In Liz Garbus’ documentary, What Happened, Miss Simone?, displays the life of musician and activist Nina Simone. The documentary follows different experiences of her life that were critical to the development of Nina Simone over the years. Born in Tryon, North Carolina by the name of Eunice Waymon she aspired to be a classical pianist, but as she got older and began playing in bars she changed her focus to performing and singing. The film then describes the success of her career and her involvement in the Civil Rights Movement to the very personal aspects of her life dealing with her abusive husband/manager Andrew Stroud and her continuous depression.
What happened, Miss Simone? relates to social relationships/communication, politics and government,
In Florida, there are about 18.3 million residents and with that information there is close to 660,000 adults that live with serious mental issues based on the Nation Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) in 2010. With these statistics, 2,440 Floridians died by suicide from the result of untreated or undertreated mental illness in 2006. Symptoms of mental illness varies and may affect a person’s mood, thinking, and social interaction with others. In comparison to the documentary, Nina Simone has a reputation of being moody and angry to which later she was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. There were certain situations in the film where she would write down suicidal thoughts in her journal during her depression and people in the film would recall times of where she would have fits of anger throughout her life that affected her career. Evidently, the mental behavior of a person is something that could affect their position in society. In the case of Nina Simone, her mental behavior has affected all aspects of her life regarding her musical career and relationships to which it negatively impacted her career, relationships, and people’s perception of Nina Simone during her life. The United States has had a history of racial tension which is apart its politics and government that can be related to the documentary. The Charleston church shooting that
background and how she was brought up when she was younger. I know the history and
There are many stories, diaries and books from the time of The Holocaust but arguably the most famous of them all is the story of Anne Frank. Anne Frank was a teenage Jewish girl who went into hiding in her fathers offices in Amsterdam, The Netherlands when the Nazis called up her older sister, Margot (Anne ??). Just before the call up, Anne had started to write a “diary” which she continued to write when she went into hiding with her family. Throughout the book Anne writes that her worst nightmare is to be discovered (Anne ??). The Franks when into hiding in 1941 in the Annex of the Opekta offices and were arrested by the Nazis in ???. After such a long period of time in hiding there are many suspects for who betraye...
The Diary of Anne Frank is about Anne Frank’s life in the Secret Annex hiding from the Nazi’s. The diary shows how the members of the Secret Annex help each other keep hope in spite of dark times.
Her family ties to the south, her unique talent, her ability to travel and make money are similar to the Blues women movement that preceded her. It can be said that Nina Simone goes a step further the by directly attacking inequities pertaining to race and gender in her music. However, what distinguishes her is her unique musicianship and that is what ultimately garners her massive exposure and experiences than those of her past contemporaries. Like the Blues women Simone expands ideas pertaining to self-expression, identity and beauty as they relate to black women. She does this by embracing what is definitively African American and connecting that to a historical context. By doing so she is the embodiment of a political statement. Her journey which began like many entertaine...
The roller-coaster life of Maya Angelou has included many ups and downs that have become the stuff out of which she has written a six volume autobiography, beginning with I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings and ending recently with the last installment, A Song Flung up to Heaven. Angelou was born Marguerite Johnson on April 4, 1928, in St. Louis, Missouri (Weaver G-10). Angelou's life has been filled with chaos and despair as well as success and love. She was raped by her mother's boyfriend at the age of 8 and at various times in her life she toiled in a variety of occupations including Creole cook, calypso dancer, actress, madam, civil-righ...
Her parents who at that time could not understand the choices she made are very happy for their daughter and what she has accomplish. When she left her home at the middle of a fight and never went back. She said,” I had to make my own way” and then lived in a Manhattan dance studio where she was training. Then she got an apartment with some friends in Manhattan Hell’s Kitchen. Since the time she move out of her home she started her showbiz career as a dancer in stage musicals and most notably in her tour to Golden musicals of Broadway and in a Japanese tour. Then she audition to be a fly girl in Fox’s hit comedy “In living Colors,” she beat out 2,000 other contenders in a nation wide competition. Then she cracked into Hollywood and she wanted to make a transition to acting, but she followed Color producer Keenan Ivory Wayans advice to stay with the show for a while before making any attempt to move on.
The media in American society has a major influential impact on the minds and beliefs of millions of people. Whether through the news, television shows, or film, the media acts as a huge database for knowledge and instruction. It is both an auditory and visual database that can press images and ideas into people's minds. Even if the individual has no prior exposure or knowledge to something, the media can project into people's minds and leave a lasting impression. Though obviously people are aware of what they are listening to or watching, thoughts and assumptions can drift into their minds without even realizing it. These thoughts that drift in are extremely influential. The massive impact it can leave on America's perception leads to generalizations, assumptions, and stigmas. The media influence is not always negative, however. In most cases it has beneficial and positive aspects. Without the media, people would be drastically less informed and conscientious about major issues in the world around us. In some cases, however, the way the media portrays an issue can twist one's perception, leaving an assumption instead of a factual concept. Mental illness is one of the biggest concepts that the media has distorted due to the majority of portrayals the media presents. Mental health is extremely important and plays a key role in every individual's life. Yet it is also has millions of misconceptions. Mental illness is more common that one would like to believe. In reality, one in five Americans will suffer from a mental disorder in any given year. Though that ratio is about equivalent to more than fifty-four million people, mental illness still remains a shameful and stigmatized topic (National Institute of Mental Health, n.d.). The taboo of mental illness has an extensive and exhausting history, dating back to the beginning of American colonization. It has not been an easy road to say the least. Due to the endless efforts and research of certain foundations and individuals, the ideas and functions of mental health have improved significantly. The advancements made in the field are impressive and without them humankind would not be the same. Yet then why do only fewer than eight million people who are in need of help seek treatment? (National Mental Health Association, 2001). The history, stigmatization, and perce...
A series of shots being fired in the near distance can be heard. A crew of ambulances, police cars, and fire trucks are seen speeding down the streets while blaring their sirens to warn people to move out of the way rapidly. Then, crowds of people are seen running down the street franticly. Sounds of earsplitting yells fill the air. Their eyes are filled with tears of fear and terror. They look as if they were running for their lives. There is a wave of worry and curiosity that washes over everyone’s face as they stand there from a distance watching it take place. There was a sense of wanting to run towards the chaos to see what was going on. But the panic of the people running gave off the feeling of “Warning! Do NOT come this way!” What was happening? Later that night, the news reports that another mass shooting took place earlier on in the day. In the 21st century, many crimes involving mass shootings are the main focus of the public eye in the media. With the technology of the 21st century, investigators are able to look more into depth of the criminal’s background to see if they have a history of mental illness.
However, local and national news also produces negativity towards mental illness by “portraying people with mental illness as threats to themselves and to others” (Anaya 4). In the past two years, the news features stories such as a man who has schizophrenia, running on a shooting spree then killing himself; or a mother with depression who murders her children, then kills herself (Anaya 4). Anaya explains that television programs use mental illness as a headline to grab the attention of views and ultimately implies to respond with fear (5). Highlighting that mental illnesses are the reason for the evil in society, hurting those who suffer with mental illnesses. Therefore, the population begin to believe mental illness is bad, so do the people who suffer with mental
The movie Lady Day: The Many Faces Of Billie Holiday paints an interesting, and thought provoking portrait of one of jazz and blues most charismatic, and influential artists. The incomparable talent of Billie Holiday, both truth and legend are immortalized in this one-hour documentary film. The film follows Holiday, also referred to as “Lady Day” or “Lady”, through the many triumphs and trials of her career, and does it’s very best to separate the facts from fiction. Her autobiography Lady Sings The Blues is used as a rough guide of how she desired her life story to be viewed by her public. Those who knew her, worked with her, and loved her paint a different picture than this popular, and mostly fictional autobiography.
There are many movies that portray mental and psychological disorders, from these I chose the award winning movie: Rain Man. Rain Man was released on December 14, 1988. In the beginning of this movie, a car dealer, Charlie Babbitt (Tom Cruise), learns that his father has died and returns home to Cincinnati to attend his funeral. Charlie and his father had a falling out with each other starting when Charlie was sixteen years old and decided to steal his father’s car for a victory lap around town. His father reported the car stolen, resulting in Charlie being arrested. Charlie’s friends got off with a warning, however Charlie’s father decided to leave his son in jail for two days before he got him out. Charlie’s mother died when he was two years
In Sherman Alexie’s novel Indian Killer, there are many characters who struggle with mental disorders. Alexie states “She was manic-depressive and simply couldn’t take care of herself,” this is just one of the mental illnesses suffered in the book (212). Mental disorders are prevalent in the United States. All races are at risk of mental illness. In the article "Mental Health and Substance Abuse Characteristics Among a Clinical Sample of Urban American Indian/Alaska Native Youths in a Large California Metropolitan Area: a Descriptive Study" Daniel Dickerson and Carrie Johnson state “AI/ANs [American Indians/ Alaska Native] between the ages of 15 and 24 have the highest suicide rates in the United States compared to other racial/ethnic groups” (Dickerson and Johnson, 56). Native Americans are highly perceptible to mental illness due to the historical trauma their culture has endured.
The movie "A Beautiful Mind" tells the story of Nobel Prize winner John Nash's struggle with schizophrenia. It follows his journey from the point where he is not even aware he has schizophrenia, to the point where Nash and his wife find a way to manage his condition. The movie provides a lot of information and insight into the psychological condition of schizophrenia, including information on the symptoms, the treatment and cures, the life for the individual and for the individual's family. The movie is effective at demonstrating various concepts related to schizophrenia, and provides an insight into the disease of schizophrenia.
Nina fits the mold of many different mental disorders. I, however, personally think that Nina portrays the symptoms of a person with schizophrenia. In the DSM-5, it states that schizophrenia is characterized by delusions, hallucinations, disorganized speech and behavior, and other symptoms that cause social or occupational dysfunction. It is required that a person have at least two of these symptoms. It is clear throughout the movie that Nina has hallucinations that ...
Girl Interrupted is a film about a young woman, Susanna Kaysen, who voluntarily enters a psychiatric facility in Massachusetts. The purpose of this paper is to analyze a portrayal of psychiatric care in the 1960’s. The film is based on the memoirs of Susanna Kaysen and her experiences during an 18 month stay at a mental institution. During her visit, Susanna is diagnosed with borderline personality disorder. The film depicts psychiatric care, diagnoses, and treatments from a different era.