“I have this condition,” repeats Leonard Shelby, the leading character of Memento, a film by Christopher Nolan. In the psychological thriller, Leonard has a condition that does not allow him to make new memories. The condition was caused by head trauma; the result of trying to protect his wife from being killed by the thieves who broke into his house and raped his wife. He is doomed to a live a life by following mementos--- his pictures, notes, and tattoos. Leonard’s single life mission is to find and kill his wife’s murderer. However, his condition allows him to seek vengeance over and over again. As a result, there is not only a barrier between Leonard and reality, but also a barrier between Leonard and the understanding of himself. Rooted in this confusing film is an important philosophical study of identity. How does the ability to make memories contribute to the idea of one’s identity? Can Leonard have an identity if he has lost this ability? These questions can be explored through the perspectives of John Locke, David Hume, and Immanuel Kant. Their philosophical theories of identity and the self involve a close study of the conscious mind. However, when studying only this level of self, it is difficult to argue that Leonard has an identity. Leonard’s identity can best be supported when one also considers Sigmund Freud’s theory of a multilayered self, which allows one to look deeper, beyond the conscious level to what seethes underneath.
Before Freud, there was a lack of philosophical consideration for the unconscious---the foundational driver of one’s desires. However, to best look at Leonard’s identity in this Freudian light, one should trace the historical progression of the study of the multilayered s...
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...re the Leonard kills Teddy, for killing his wife or for possessing inconvenient truths, Teddy says, “so you lie to yourself to be happy. There's nothing wrong with that. We all do it.” Teddy is right---we all do it. While Leonard’s condition serves as an extra barrier to reality, it only enforces what is already in our human nature. According to Freud, it is human nature to protect ourselves from painful memories and feelings. Leonard’s condition and his manipulation of reality leaves him in an endless cycle of denial. He will never come to terms with what lurks in his unconscious, the pain that drives his new identity as a killer.
Works Cited
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Memento. Directed by Christopher. 2000. Santa Monica: Summit Entertainment, 2001. DVD.
of this essay is to identify the influence Marx and Nietzsche had on Freud’s critique of
examine Freud's claim in his own terms, as well as in the light of the
Stumpf, S. E., & Fieser, J. (2008). Philosophy: History and problems. . New York: McGraw-Hill.
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Director Christopher Nolan′s film Memento (2000), is loosely based from the concept of a short story named Memento Mori written by his brother Jonathan. This story is about a man named Leonard Shelby who is suffering from anterograde amnesia, which is a loss of ability to create new memories after the event that caused the amnesia, leading to a partial or complete inability to recall the recent past, while long term memories from before the event remain intact. Leonard was hit over the head during an attack which resulted in his wife being raped and murdered. With the help of contact named Teddy and a bartender named Natalie, Leonard set out for revenge. Since the attack Leonard has set out to exact revenge on the man who has caused him suffering. He helps himself by writing notes, taking photographs, and tattooing himself with important notes and facts. An analysis of the film Memento reveals the use of film techniques such as editing, non-linear storytelling, symbolism, director's style, musical score, color, and cinematography that creates an intellectual stimulant that has the viewer deciphering a puzzle in a reversed chronological order.
Among carpenters, it is a well-known fact that building a house upon a solid foundation is imperative. When beginning the construction of a home, the foundation is always the first step leading to success, for without it, the house will become unstable. During extreme weather, such as floods, hurricanes, tornadoes, and other conditions, a slight fault in the foundation of a home will most likely guarantee significant damage, if not complete destruction. Similar to a house, a person’s identity must rest upon a firm foundation; otherwise, it may not be capable of withstanding the ominous conditions of the world. When trials and burdens threaten to crumble people’s identities, their foundations must stand their ground and overcome the various tribulations. Although there are billions of inhabitants of the world, no two people share the same identity; rather, each person has unique memories, stories, events, and artifacts influencing who they have become. Some people’s identities may reflect a difficult childhood of discrimination, poverty, and hatred similar to the one described by Malcolm X in his article, “Nightmare.” Other people may associate with Katie Pederson and her article, “Identity,” in which they are defined through a simple artifact such as an identification card. In addition, numerous unfortunate people may struggle from the devastating effects of memory loss similar to those Floyd Skloot experienced, and they are helpless as their memories and identity slowly slip away from them. Still other people may find themselves desperately searching for acceptance and identity similar to the homeless man in Gina Berriault’s article, “Who Is It Can Tell Me Who I Am.” Unlike the homeless man and Malcolm X, I was fortuna...
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Many people enjoy a good film and at the end, they have the potential to judge the film by the content and delivery it had provided. In some films, the screenwriter chooses to portray one of the many psychological disorders. The audience of the film will try to focus on how well the disorder was portrayed and how well the movie played out. Whether the intention of the film maker was trying to expose the public about such psychological disorder or choosing to make a film based on the disorder, some viewers will argue if the film has portrayed the disorder accurately and whether the public has taken notice to the disorder. Screenwriter, Jonathan Nolan and Christopher Nolan, portrayed the psychological disorder, Anterograde Amnesia, in their film “Memento.”
Freud begins to create the map of mental life through the ideas of the ego, the id, and the superego. The ego, or consciousness, is the manner in which a person first realizes tha...
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In the film Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind stresses the importance of memory and how memories shape a person’s identity. Stories such as “In Search of Lost Time” by Proust and a report by the President’s Council on Bioethics called “Beyond Therapy” support the claims made in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.
The aim of this essay is to clarify the basic principles of Freud’s theories and to raise the main issues.
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By considering such arguments, psychoanalysis can be said to have no ultra fundamental meaning when assessing an author’s work. For former advocate of this analysis, Frederic...