Psychology Joan of Arc
Paranoid Schizophrenia
Jolissa B. Simon
University of Saskatchewan
Psychology 223.3
Paranoid Schizophrenia
In broad terms, schizophrenia can be defined as a disorder characterized by symptoms of inconsistent or contradictory behavior concerning action, emotion, and thought process; its defining symptom is loss of contact with reality (American Psychiatric Association [DSM-IV-TR], 2000). In the media, it is often portrayed as humorous and commonly mistaken for Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID). However, schizophrenia is far from comedic, and differs from DID in many aspects. It can be extremely frightening in the sense that it disrupts lives, little is known about its cause, and there is no absolute cure. Only 38% of Schizophrenics recover 15 to 25 years after developing the disorder (Harrison et al., 2001), and 1% of the population is affected (Health Canada, 2006). This paper will attempt to diagnose the character of Joan in the cinematic film The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc (1999) with paranoid schizophrenia. A synopsis of the plot will be given as well as the DSM-IV-TR (2000) diagnostic criteria for schizophrenia and paranoid schizophrenia. Then, detailed accounts of Joan’s schizophrenic symptoms will be given, accompanied by the studies regarding strengths and weakness in Biological Theoretical perspective regarding schizophrenia. Treatments and managements for the outlined disorder will then follow before the conclusion of the paper.
Plot
The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc (1999) begins in the year 1420 during the 100-year war. Amidst the turmoil, the main character is a young girl named Joan who has a strong obsession and devotion to the Christian religion. When she is a child she has her first vision of Jesus sitting on a throne. Afterwards, her village is attacked and destroyed by English soldiers, who kill and rape her sister, Wendy.
Years later, Joan is a 19 year old woman, and tells Charles VII, the Dauphin of France, that she is
Jolissa B. Simon
University of Saskatchewan
Psychology 223.3
Paranoid Schizophrenia
In broad terms, schizophrenia can be defined as a disorder characterized by symptoms of inconsistent or contradictory behavior concerning action, emotion, and thought process; its defining symptom is loss of contact with reality (American Psychiatric Association [DSM-IV-TR], 2000). In the media, it is often portrayed as humorous and commonly mistaken for Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID). However, schizophrenia is far from comedic, and differs from DID in many aspects. It can be extremely frightening in the sense that it disrupts lives, little is known about its cause, and there is no absolute cure. Only 38% of Schizophrenics recover 15 to 25 years after developing the disorder (Harrison et al., 2001), and 1% of the population is affected (Health Canada, 2006). This paper will attempt to diagnose the character of Joan in the cinematic film The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc (1999) with paranoid schizophrenia. A synopsis of the plot will be given as well as the DSM-IV-TR (2000) diagnostic criteria for schizophrenia and paranoid schizophrenia. Then, detailed accounts of Joan’s schizophrenic symptoms will be given, accompanied by the studies regarding strengths and weakness in Biological Theoretical perspective regarding schizophrenia. Treatments and managements for the outlined disorder will then follow before the conclusion of the paper.
Plot
The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc (1999) begins in the year 1420 during the 100-year war. Amidst the turmoil, the main character is a young girl named Joan who has a strong obsession and devotion to the Christian religion. When she is a child she has her first vision of Jesus sitting on a throne. Afterwards, her village is attacked and destroyed by English soldiers, who kill and rape her sister, Wendy.
Years later, Joan is a 19 year old woman, and tells Charles VII, the Dauphin of France, that she is
References: American Psychiatric Association. (2000). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (4th ed., text rev.). Washington, DC. Besson, L. (Director), & Birkin, A. (Writer). (1999). The Messenger: The story of Joan of Arc [Motion picture on DVD] Bradford, D., Stroup, S., & Liberman, J. (2002). Pharmacological treatment for schizophrenia. In P.E Gottesman, I.I. (2001) Psychology through a life span-genetic prism. American Psychologist Association, 56, 867-878 Gottesman, I.I. (1991). Schizophrenia genesis: The origins of madness. New York: Freeman. Harrison, G., Hopper, K., Craig, T., Laska, E., Siegel, C., & Wanderling, J Canada 2006 - Public Health Agency of Canada. Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) | Agence De La Sante Publique Du Canada (ASPC). Retrieved June 20, 2011, from http://www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/publicat/human-humain06/ Kapur, S A., et al. (2005). Comparative and interactive psychopharmacological effects of ketamine and amphetamine. Arch. Gen. Psychiat., 62, 985-995. doi: 10.1007/s00213-007-0706-2 Rabinowitz, J., Litchenberg, P., Kaplan, Z., Mark, M., Nahon, D., & Davidson, M Tiernari, P., Lahti, I., Sorri, A., Naarala, M., Moring, J., Wahlberg, K.-E., et al. (1987). The Finnish adoptive family study of schizophrenia Zalewski, C., Johnson-Selfridge, M., Zarrella, K., & Seltzer, J. (1998). A review of neuropsychological differences between paranoid and nonparanoid schizophrenia patients