Comparison Between 'Memento And Finding Nemo'
In this paper I will explore the concept of psychological happiness, which I define as the quality or state of being happy, as it connects to the philosophy of memory demonstrated in the movies Memento (2000) and Finding Nemo (2003). I will show how philosopher David Hume’s theory of memory through the article Memory and Morals in Memento: Hume at the Movies by George Bragues and Wladyslaw Tatarkiewicz’s theory of happiness through the article Happiness and Time; can be applied to the main characters in both films. I will also explore the possibility of remarriage using Stanley Cavell’s novel Pursuits of Happiness: The Hollywood Comedy of Remarriage. In Memento, Leonard’s happiness solely relies on pictures and what people tell him. Due to
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his life being fueled by revenge, Leonard can never truly be happy. However in Finding Nemo, Dory’s positive outlook on life, it is possible for her to be happy. Lastly, I will propose what’s still missing in these theories and what else is there to find in these movies pertaining to happiness and memory that these theories did not cover.
Memento is a 2000 American film directed by Christopher Nolan.
It stars Guy Pearce, Carrie-Anne Moss, and Joe Pantoliano. Memento chronicles two separate stories of Leonard Shelby, an ex-insurance investigator, who suffers from short-term memory loss, as he attempts to find the murderer of his wife, “John G.”, which is the last thing he remembers. One story line moves forward in time while the other tells the story backwards revealing more each time. Finding Nemo is a 2003 American animated movie written and directed by Andrew Stanton, released by Walt Disney Pictures and produced by Pixar Animation Studios. It tells the story of the overprotective clownfish named Marlin (Albert Brooks) who, along with another fish named Dory (Ellen DeGeneres) searches for his abducted son Nemo (Alexander Gould) all the way to Sydney Harbor. Along the way, Marlin learns to take risks and let Nemo take care of …show more content…
himself.
Cavell’s book the Pursuits of Happiness is a philosophical book based on the comedy of remarriage, a genre of American comedy films in the 1930-40s. The comedy of remarriage is emphasized around the reuniting of the central couples after divorce or separation. Both of the movies I will be talking about do not fit the typical criteria for Cavell’s philosophy. Finding Nemo does have many qualities for the idea of remarriage to be possible where as Memento does not have any. Even though Marlin and Nemo are not considered a “couple”, there could still be a remarriage. A majority of Finding Nemo’s plot is Marlin searching for Nemo, after his abduction by a scuba diver. They are separated for a majority of the movie but are reunited at the end. Cavell often talks about remarriage as the couple being unable to be apart from each other (Cavell 9). I would believe that remarriage does not just have to be about a romantic connection. Marlin and Nemo are clearly unable to be apart from each other because of the sanctity of their father and son relationship.
David Hume’s theory of memory primarily deals with memory affecting personal identity and moral responsibility. According to Bragues, experiences of happiness are directly related to memory itself. He states, “personal identity refers to that sense we have of being the same individual amidst the myriad of different sensations, thoughts, emotions, actions, and circumstances that befall us in the passing of time” (Bragues 72). The sense of a struggling identity creates doubt with what is believed to be the truth in a state of happiness and reality. As more knowledge about the main characters is gained by the audience, the better the understanding of the subject as a whole. Happiness is not something that can be innate; it is something that has to be attained. Therefore memory can be considered to play a part in a person’s happiness.
Some people would believe that happiness and memory are related. It would be believed that happiness is achieved in many different emotional and physical states. Happiness is an individual emotion, but many people would agree that they would want to encounter situations that bring happiness into life rather than sorrow. As human beings, we all strive to be happy, even though it sometimes is not reached. “The feeling of happiness includes not only an agreeable present state, but also a favorable assessment of the past, and good prospects for the future” (Tatarkiewicz 1). My interpretation of this quote is happiness will always be apart of your past, present, and future. People have the choice to be happy or not. But is it possible to be truly happy without the ability to create new memories? The conditions of happiness in regards to memory will be compared and contrast while investigating the movies Memento and Finding Nemo.
Due to his memory loss, Leonard struggles, yet thrives with his lifestyle. He struggles with not being able to remember the people he meets, where he lives, or why he was somewhere in the first place. He also thrives because he is blissfully ignorant to the crimes he committed and to what truly happened to his wife. One of the reasons I believe the movie is in reverse chronological order is because it is reflecting how Leonard’s memory actually works. The chronological order is the opposite of what one would expect, just like it is rare to see someone with short-term memory loss. I also believe the movie is in reverse chronological order because it confuses the audience, just like how Leonard is confused by his condition. According to Christopher Nolan, the director of the film, it was his decision to open the film with the shaking of the photograph, where the images are observed to be in the present but then are “very quickly and irretrievably decayed”, which is a metaphor of Leonard’s memory problem (Bragues 65). Due to his memory loss as well, many people try to take advantage of Leonard, using his condition as a tool for their own personal gain. Natalie uses him to get revenge on Teddy while Teddy is using him to kill men who are considered bad people. To help him stay on his quest to find the man that murdered his wife, Leonard has many tattoos all over his body, takes pictures of everything, and makes sure to only read things in his own handwriting. The audience gathers that Leonard’s memory loss is not an ideal way to live. However, to Leonard, that is all he knows, to continuously search for a man that we know does not exist anymore. He will never stop searching for answers that he will eventually forget anyway. Hume’s theory of memory states that people never observe anything beyond feelings, sensations, and impressions (Bragues 66-67). But because Leonard cannot remember what he previously felt or his first impressions of someone, it does not make him truly happy.
Happiness can be described in many different instances. It can be thought of as the living the good life, freedom, flourishing in life, joy, prosperity, and pleasure. I’m arguing that Leonard is not happy in his life. With the help of Wladyslaw Tatarkiewicz’s theory of happiness, I believe I can clearly explain why I think Leonard is not happy due to his condition. Tatarkiewicz’s theory deals with happiness and satisfaction. If you are satisfied with your past, present and future, then you have achieved the ultimate happiness. The audience would agree that Leonard’s past would be a happy one because his wife was still alive, they had a pleasant marriage, and he had a good job as an insurance investigator. Tatarkiewicz states, “satisfaction with the past, however, is not indispensable to happiness: people can be happy although dissatisfied with their past” (Tatarkiewicz 5). My interpretation of this quote is that even if there is a possibility that Leonard is happy in the present, he could be displeased with his past meaning he could be displeased in the present as well. In present day, Leonard could be happy one minute, but for the next completely forget why he was happy. For example, it seems that Leonard is happy when he meets Natalie for the first time, but soon after forgets that he had even laid eyes on her. It is hard to tell from this movie whether or not Leonard will be happy in the future. Due to the fact that the movie is in reverse-chronological order, it is hard to determine if he was happy or not in the beginning of the movie. The start of the movie is technically the beginning of Leonard’s “future’. The shaking of the photograph of Teddy lying on the ground dead makes me believe that it symbolizes a new beginning for Leonard. Even if it does symbolize a new beginning for Leonard, we do not know if it will necessarily make him happy. Leonard is fueled by revenge, making the future uncertain for him. Due to his short-term memory loss and will to kill everyone named John G., it is hard to imagine Leonard being happy. All he can think about from his past is the sight of his wife being murdered, his present is consumed with finding the man who caused his short-term memory loss and his future is uncertain because Leonard is not sure what to do next in his life.
The themes of happiness and memory in Finding Nemo are different than those in Memento, yet they are still predominant. Dory, a regal blue tang fish, is first introduced to the movie when she literally bumps into Marlin, the clownfish. Marlin is frantically chasing a boat for his son, Nemo, who was taken by a scuba diver. Dory remembers seeing a boat and agrees to show Marlin the way it went. However, after swimming a few minutes, Dory completely forgets who Marlin is and why he had been following her. It soon after becomes apparent that Dory suffers from short-term memory loss. Throughout the journey to find Nemo, there are many occurrences that reveal Dory’s condition. She has a hard time remembering names (especially Nemo’s), has trouble learning and retaining new information and conversations, and has difficulty remembering directions to places they need to go. Dory’s condition constantly creates set backs for her, especially when it comes to Marlin. Marlin does not understand why Dory cannot remember anything, sometimes making it difficult for them to get along. Dory’s condition though, unlike Leonard’s, does allow her short-term memory to absorb information. For example she is able to remember the address for the scuba diver who took Nemo. Hume’s theory of memory does not apply to Dory because she is able to observe feelings, sensations, and impressions beyond her condition (Bragues 66-67). She can always know after the fact that she has forgotten something and recalls information from her past, present and future.
Despite Dory’s condition and the obstacles it creates, she always seems to remain optimistic, confident, and determined. She does not allow her impairment to delay her and Marlin from finding Nemo. When she is faced with difficult situations, she always reminds herself to, “just keep swimming”. Dory’s positive attitude and her carefree sprit make her an essential part of this duo. Nemo would have been lost forever had it not been for Dory’s involvement in the journey. There is no doubt that Dory’s short-term memory loss is an obstacle, but her optimism allows her to overcome the many problems her and Marlin face on their adventure. Unlike Leonard, we are unsure if Dory was happy in her past. She could of also been unhappy because we do not know how her family life affected her in the past. Due to her positive attitude, it is more than likely to believe that she was in fact, happy. It is easy to figure out that Dory is happy in her present life. Her short-term memory affects her but she develops a supportive, interdependent, and family-like relationship with Marlin. In the movie she says to him, “I just, I remember things better with you” (Imdb quotes). As for her future, the end scene of the movie has Dory and Marlin sending Nemo off with his school. Even though Dory forgets Nemo’s name at the end of the movie a few times, it shows how happy she is to have a new family. Because Dory’s short-term memory does not affect her in the way Leonard’s condition affects him, Tatarkiewicz’s theory of happiness may apply to Dory. However, she is clearly satisfied with her life in the present and future and due to the fact that we are unsure if she was happy or not in her past, Tatarkiewicz’s theory does not apply to Dory.
Both of these theories only touch on a few parts of psychological happiness and memory.
The quality or state of being happy is just a single definition of happiness. I believe there are so many more qualities to happiness than just the state of being happy. Happiness coincides with memory and it is an important part of personal development. Without memories, people cannot compare their happiness to good and bad moments of their life in any reality. In Memento, due to the reverse chronological order, Leonard is not truly happy at the end of the movie, which is actually the beginning of his story. He learns all about his past and how people take advantage of him and his memory loss. Even when Leonard figures out the truth about what people are doing to him, he really cannot do anything about it because he will end up forgetting anyway. One would like to believe that there is some type of help in Leonard’s future, but then again there are other John G’s to kill
off.
On the other hand, Dory is almost always in a constant state of happiness. The most important characteristic about Dory is her positivity that she carries with herself which originates from her into the environment she is in. She does not treat her condition like it is a disability. She is constantly telling herself to “just keep swimming”, which is used a personal motto. Dory lives in the moment and does not fret about her past, which makes her a much happier character than Leonard. Like Dory, I believe being happy is all about your outlook on life. The reason why Dory can be happy even with her condition is because she wants and chooses to be happy. Leonard on the contrary, uses his life for revenge, constantly thinking about the man who killed his wife, never giving himself a reason to be happy. Happiness can be a choice. Even though happiness coincides with memory, it is not a requirement for happiness itself.
Films tend to over exaggerate the real world by amplifying emotions and themes. Leonard is so fueled by hatred and revenge that he can never try and live in the moment like Dory. Happiness cannot be achieved by living in the past, but it is more than possible to live happily in reality. Psychological happiness makes it easier to accept and meet the challenges that life may bring. Even though memory is an important factor for a person’s happiness, it does not define us as human beings.
his life being fueled by revenge, Leonard can never truly be happy. However in Finding Nemo, Dory’s positive outlook on life, it is possible for her to be happy. Lastly, I will propose what’s still missing in these theories and what else is there to find in these movies pertaining to happiness and memory that these theories did not cover.
Memento is a 2000 American film directed by Christopher Nolan.
It stars Guy Pearce, Carrie-Anne Moss, and Joe Pantoliano. Memento chronicles two separate stories of Leonard Shelby, an ex-insurance investigator, who suffers from short-term memory loss, as he attempts to find the murderer of his wife, “John G.”, which is the last thing he remembers. One story line moves forward in time while the other tells the story backwards revealing more each time. Finding Nemo is a 2003 American animated movie written and directed by Andrew Stanton, released by Walt Disney Pictures and produced by Pixar Animation Studios. It tells the story of the overprotective clownfish named Marlin (Albert Brooks) who, along with another fish named Dory (Ellen DeGeneres) searches for his abducted son Nemo (Alexander Gould) all the way to Sydney Harbor. Along the way, Marlin learns to take risks and let Nemo take care of …show more content…
himself.
Cavell’s book the Pursuits of Happiness is a philosophical book based on the comedy of remarriage, a genre of American comedy films in the 1930-40s. The comedy of remarriage is emphasized around the reuniting of the central couples after divorce or separation. Both of the movies I will be talking about do not fit the typical criteria for Cavell’s philosophy. Finding Nemo does have many qualities for the idea of remarriage to be possible where as Memento does not have any. Even though Marlin and Nemo are not considered a “couple”, there could still be a remarriage. A majority of Finding Nemo’s plot is Marlin searching for Nemo, after his abduction by a scuba diver. They are separated for a majority of the movie but are reunited at the end. Cavell often talks about remarriage as the couple being unable to be apart from each other (Cavell 9). I would believe that remarriage does not just have to be about a romantic connection. Marlin and Nemo are clearly unable to be apart from each other because of the sanctity of their father and son relationship.
David Hume’s theory of memory primarily deals with memory affecting personal identity and moral responsibility. According to Bragues, experiences of happiness are directly related to memory itself. He states, “personal identity refers to that sense we have of being the same individual amidst the myriad of different sensations, thoughts, emotions, actions, and circumstances that befall us in the passing of time” (Bragues 72). The sense of a struggling identity creates doubt with what is believed to be the truth in a state of happiness and reality. As more knowledge about the main characters is gained by the audience, the better the understanding of the subject as a whole. Happiness is not something that can be innate; it is something that has to be attained. Therefore memory can be considered to play a part in a person’s happiness.
Some people would believe that happiness and memory are related. It would be believed that happiness is achieved in many different emotional and physical states. Happiness is an individual emotion, but many people would agree that they would want to encounter situations that bring happiness into life rather than sorrow. As human beings, we all strive to be happy, even though it sometimes is not reached. “The feeling of happiness includes not only an agreeable present state, but also a favorable assessment of the past, and good prospects for the future” (Tatarkiewicz 1). My interpretation of this quote is happiness will always be apart of your past, present, and future. People have the choice to be happy or not. But is it possible to be truly happy without the ability to create new memories? The conditions of happiness in regards to memory will be compared and contrast while investigating the movies Memento and Finding Nemo.
Due to his memory loss, Leonard struggles, yet thrives with his lifestyle. He struggles with not being able to remember the people he meets, where he lives, or why he was somewhere in the first place. He also thrives because he is blissfully ignorant to the crimes he committed and to what truly happened to his wife. One of the reasons I believe the movie is in reverse chronological order is because it is reflecting how Leonard’s memory actually works. The chronological order is the opposite of what one would expect, just like it is rare to see someone with short-term memory loss. I also believe the movie is in reverse chronological order because it confuses the audience, just like how Leonard is confused by his condition. According to Christopher Nolan, the director of the film, it was his decision to open the film with the shaking of the photograph, where the images are observed to be in the present but then are “very quickly and irretrievably decayed”, which is a metaphor of Leonard’s memory problem (Bragues 65). Due to his memory loss as well, many people try to take advantage of Leonard, using his condition as a tool for their own personal gain. Natalie uses him to get revenge on Teddy while Teddy is using him to kill men who are considered bad people. To help him stay on his quest to find the man that murdered his wife, Leonard has many tattoos all over his body, takes pictures of everything, and makes sure to only read things in his own handwriting. The audience gathers that Leonard’s memory loss is not an ideal way to live. However, to Leonard, that is all he knows, to continuously search for a man that we know does not exist anymore. He will never stop searching for answers that he will eventually forget anyway. Hume’s theory of memory states that people never observe anything beyond feelings, sensations, and impressions (Bragues 66-67). But because Leonard cannot remember what he previously felt or his first impressions of someone, it does not make him truly happy.
Happiness can be described in many different instances. It can be thought of as the living the good life, freedom, flourishing in life, joy, prosperity, and pleasure. I’m arguing that Leonard is not happy in his life. With the help of Wladyslaw Tatarkiewicz’s theory of happiness, I believe I can clearly explain why I think Leonard is not happy due to his condition. Tatarkiewicz’s theory deals with happiness and satisfaction. If you are satisfied with your past, present and future, then you have achieved the ultimate happiness. The audience would agree that Leonard’s past would be a happy one because his wife was still alive, they had a pleasant marriage, and he had a good job as an insurance investigator. Tatarkiewicz states, “satisfaction with the past, however, is not indispensable to happiness: people can be happy although dissatisfied with their past” (Tatarkiewicz 5). My interpretation of this quote is that even if there is a possibility that Leonard is happy in the present, he could be displeased with his past meaning he could be displeased in the present as well. In present day, Leonard could be happy one minute, but for the next completely forget why he was happy. For example, it seems that Leonard is happy when he meets Natalie for the first time, but soon after forgets that he had even laid eyes on her. It is hard to tell from this movie whether or not Leonard will be happy in the future. Due to the fact that the movie is in reverse-chronological order, it is hard to determine if he was happy or not in the beginning of the movie. The start of the movie is technically the beginning of Leonard’s “future’. The shaking of the photograph of Teddy lying on the ground dead makes me believe that it symbolizes a new beginning for Leonard. Even if it does symbolize a new beginning for Leonard, we do not know if it will necessarily make him happy. Leonard is fueled by revenge, making the future uncertain for him. Due to his short-term memory loss and will to kill everyone named John G., it is hard to imagine Leonard being happy. All he can think about from his past is the sight of his wife being murdered, his present is consumed with finding the man who caused his short-term memory loss and his future is uncertain because Leonard is not sure what to do next in his life.
The themes of happiness and memory in Finding Nemo are different than those in Memento, yet they are still predominant. Dory, a regal blue tang fish, is first introduced to the movie when she literally bumps into Marlin, the clownfish. Marlin is frantically chasing a boat for his son, Nemo, who was taken by a scuba diver. Dory remembers seeing a boat and agrees to show Marlin the way it went. However, after swimming a few minutes, Dory completely forgets who Marlin is and why he had been following her. It soon after becomes apparent that Dory suffers from short-term memory loss. Throughout the journey to find Nemo, there are many occurrences that reveal Dory’s condition. She has a hard time remembering names (especially Nemo’s), has trouble learning and retaining new information and conversations, and has difficulty remembering directions to places they need to go. Dory’s condition constantly creates set backs for her, especially when it comes to Marlin. Marlin does not understand why Dory cannot remember anything, sometimes making it difficult for them to get along. Dory’s condition though, unlike Leonard’s, does allow her short-term memory to absorb information. For example she is able to remember the address for the scuba diver who took Nemo. Hume’s theory of memory does not apply to Dory because she is able to observe feelings, sensations, and impressions beyond her condition (Bragues 66-67). She can always know after the fact that she has forgotten something and recalls information from her past, present and future.
Despite Dory’s condition and the obstacles it creates, she always seems to remain optimistic, confident, and determined. She does not allow her impairment to delay her and Marlin from finding Nemo. When she is faced with difficult situations, she always reminds herself to, “just keep swimming”. Dory’s positive attitude and her carefree sprit make her an essential part of this duo. Nemo would have been lost forever had it not been for Dory’s involvement in the journey. There is no doubt that Dory’s short-term memory loss is an obstacle, but her optimism allows her to overcome the many problems her and Marlin face on their adventure. Unlike Leonard, we are unsure if Dory was happy in her past. She could of also been unhappy because we do not know how her family life affected her in the past. Due to her positive attitude, it is more than likely to believe that she was in fact, happy. It is easy to figure out that Dory is happy in her present life. Her short-term memory affects her but she develops a supportive, interdependent, and family-like relationship with Marlin. In the movie she says to him, “I just, I remember things better with you” (Imdb quotes). As for her future, the end scene of the movie has Dory and Marlin sending Nemo off with his school. Even though Dory forgets Nemo’s name at the end of the movie a few times, it shows how happy she is to have a new family. Because Dory’s short-term memory does not affect her in the way Leonard’s condition affects him, Tatarkiewicz’s theory of happiness may apply to Dory. However, she is clearly satisfied with her life in the present and future and due to the fact that we are unsure if she was happy or not in her past, Tatarkiewicz’s theory does not apply to Dory.
Both of these theories only touch on a few parts of psychological happiness and memory.
The quality or state of being happy is just a single definition of happiness. I believe there are so many more qualities to happiness than just the state of being happy. Happiness coincides with memory and it is an important part of personal development. Without memories, people cannot compare their happiness to good and bad moments of their life in any reality. In Memento, due to the reverse chronological order, Leonard is not truly happy at the end of the movie, which is actually the beginning of his story. He learns all about his past and how people take advantage of him and his memory loss. Even when Leonard figures out the truth about what people are doing to him, he really cannot do anything about it because he will end up forgetting anyway. One would like to believe that there is some type of help in Leonard’s future, but then again there are other John G’s to kill
off.
On the other hand, Dory is almost always in a constant state of happiness. The most important characteristic about Dory is her positivity that she carries with herself which originates from her into the environment she is in. She does not treat her condition like it is a disability. She is constantly telling herself to “just keep swimming”, which is used a personal motto. Dory lives in the moment and does not fret about her past, which makes her a much happier character than Leonard. Like Dory, I believe being happy is all about your outlook on life. The reason why Dory can be happy even with her condition is because she wants and chooses to be happy. Leonard on the contrary, uses his life for revenge, constantly thinking about the man who killed his wife, never giving himself a reason to be happy. Happiness can be a choice. Even though happiness coincides with memory, it is not a requirement for happiness itself.
Films tend to over exaggerate the real world by amplifying emotions and themes. Leonard is so fueled by hatred and revenge that he can never try and live in the moment like Dory. Happiness cannot be achieved by living in the past, but it is more than possible to live happily in reality. Psychological happiness makes it easier to accept and meet the challenges that life may bring. Even though memory is an important factor for a person’s happiness, it does not define us as human beings.