Constructing Madness

Catalog description

Students will employ basic strategies of film analysis to examine mainstream films that portray: 1) individuals who are designated 'mentally ill;' 2) the therapists who treat them; and, 3) selected treatment modalities. While an intensive review of the formal psychiatric diagnoses system (DSM-IV-TR) is beyond the scope of this class, students will critique the accuracy of the representation of psychiatric conditions, the effect of these conditions on individuals and families, and the roles of therapists and psychiatric interventions. The primary emphasis of this course is the effect of film on attitudes toward mental illness and the degree to which mainstream films both reflect and shape our attitudes toward individuals experiencing mental illness, toward those who treat it and toward the mental health treatment process.