A Case Study of John Forbes Nash Junior from A Beautiful Mind

699 Words2 Pages

Introduction
The film, A Beautiful Mind (2001) is the fictional account of the life of a mathematician and the Nobel Prize-winning economist, John Forbes Nash, Jr. in his struggles with schizophrenia. The film was inspired from the unauthorized biography of the same name written by Sylvia Nasar (Wikipedia). Schizophrenia is a chronic brain disorder through which a person has difficulty in interpreting reality which may result to the combinations of hallucinations, delusions, and disordered thinking and behavior though this disease is not associated and cannot be referred to with split-personality but it is solely pertinent to disruption of natural balance of thinking and emotions (Mayo Clinic). This case study will feature the titular character of the film (stated above), John Forbes Nash, Jr. The observations and assessments as well as other useful information covered in this study were all based upon the film, A Beautiful Mind (2001).
I. Preliminary Assessment
The subject John Forbes Nash, Jr. is portrayed as a typical student while attending Princeton University back in 1947. During his stay at Princeton, he would often be seen seated at the far end of the class isolating himself from the rest of his classmates and ultimately doesn’t appear to attend classes at all. He has difficulty associating with people around him though it is implied that he has made a few acquaintances and got to hang out with them at times nevertheless he was referred to as a genius and was extremely intelligent. He appears to have good family upbringing. Aside from difficulty in associating people, he has difficulty in accepting defeat and disappointment (A Beautiful Life (film), 2001).

II. Analysis of the Patient
Mr. Nash claims to have a roommate...

... middle of paper ...

...nations. We have to note here that the film doesn’t actually portrayed what the real Mr. Nash experiences while struggling from the disease (the real Mr. Nash only had auditory delusions and hallucinations whereas the film depicted both visual and auditory). Nevertheless, the movie has relatively portrayed the disorder accurately and stand firmly within the criteria of hypnosis (addictiontreatment, 2012).

Works Cited

A Beautiful Mind (book) (n.d.) In Wikipedia retrieved in January 13, 2014 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Beautiful_Mind_(book)#cite_note-1
Howard, R. (Director) (2001) A Beautiful Mind [FILM]. Hollywood: Universal Studios Entertainment
Mayo Clinic (n.d.) Schizophrenia Definition. Retrieved from Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research Website: http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/schizophrenia/basics/definition/con-20021077

Open Document