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A Memoir of Teddy Daniels

Devika


 *Spoiler Alert* for the film Shutter Island

 Shutter Island is a psychological thriller that plays with the idea of psychosis in unimaginable ways. It’s gripping plot will leave you bewildered, astounded and hooked till the very last scene. Starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Mark Ruffalo and Ben Kingsley in major roles, Shutter Island traces the life of Teddy Daniels and the ordeals he faces to escape his own eerie reality.

The film opens with Teddy and his partner Chuck, both US marshals, arriving at Shutter Island - a federal mental asylum for the criminally insane - to investigate the disappearance of a patient. Notorious for its radical treatments, the asylum practices unethical and illegal procedures when dealing with their patients. Nonetheless, Teddy’s astute investigating skills provide a promising lead, but officials refuse him access to records he suspects would solve the case. Simultaneously, a hurricane cuts off communication with the mainland, leaving Teddy and Chuck stranded on the island. As Teddy begins to peel away the layers of deceit, he realizes that all is not as it seems. With puzzling clues and unanswered questions he begins to doubt everything - his partner Chuck, his memory, his identity, and even his own sanity.

 It is revealed only at the very end that Teddy is suffering from an acute case of delusional disorder. This condition is characterized by firmly held false beliefs, without other symptoms of psychosis such as hallucinations or disorganized speech and behavior (Tamminga, 2018). It turns out, the entire asylum orchestrated an elaborate role-play to make Teddy doubt his identity, with the hope that he would come to terms with his traumatic past. His real identity is that of man named Andrew Laeddis, who went clinically insane after shooting his manic-depressive wife who is culpable for drowning their three kids. Andrew has been a patient at this psychiatric facility for the past two years, ever since he was admitted for killing his wife. During this time, he sculpted the identity of a US marshall, in order to escape the horrors of his past. Officials and doctors at Shutter Island agreed to take part in this role-play in the hope that Teddy realizes, on his own, that he is actually Andrew Laeddis. Yet, his desire to escape from his sinister past and disregard his reality resulted in a manic state of delusion.

As Andrew dug deeper to find this supposedly missing patient, he ended up facing what he was vehemently trying to escape - his reality. This is shown by a series of recurring dreams that include the truth about his wife and children. His dreams are a mix of what he is trying to escape, what he wants to believe is the truth, and what is the truth. These dreams show snippets of Andrew’s past, coupled with his guilt about how his life panned out. His strong desire to reject the identity of ‘Andrew Laeddis’ is exemplified when he assaults a fellow patient who refers to him with his real name, ‘Andrew’. These confusing dreams also result in severe migraines which further prompt Andrew to doubt himself.

Evidently for the past two years, Andrew has been living a life of delusions. Thus, his case is a classic example of individuals with delusional disorder. In an attempt to flee his past, he plays his role as a US marshall with such conviction that he starts to conflate it with reality. In other words, he is blinded by these delusions, or firmly held false beliefs.

The accuracy of the portrayal of the disorder was maintained throughout the film. Even though it was unapparent till the end that Andrew was suffering from a mental illness, his bouts of headaches, mind-numbing dreams and doubt of the world definitely foreshadowed what was to come. Andrew’s delusions fall under the realm of persecutory delusions, which is when an individual believes they are being plotted against, spied on, maligned or harassed (Tamminga, 2018). This can be seen multiple times throughout the film where Andrew’s doubt towards the hospital staff starts to take a toll on his sanity. Treatment for such extreme cases of delusional disorder usually involves medication and psychotherapy (Tamminga, 2018). Andrew was however treated by the now illegal, transorbital lobotomy.

Shutter Island reveals the grim reality of the 20th century with regards to its treatment for psychotic patients. The role of Andrew Laeddis, although an extreme example of delusional disorder, does due justice to this all-consuming and frightening mental illness.


References


Medavoy, M. (Producer), & Scorsese, M. (Director). (2010). Shutter Island [Motion Picture]. United States: Paramount Pictures
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