Vanshikaa Savla
Darren Aronofsky's ballet
psycho-melodrama “Black Swan” is a work of art, often appreciated by
professionals for a relatively accurate representation of schizophrenia. It
depicts an intense combination of backstage rivalry and single-minded
professionalism in pursuit of a successful career. The film’s protagonist,
Nina, played by Natalie Portman, is shown to drift slowly from being a
focussed, driven dancer to surrender to a loss of sense of reality. This blog
post will elucidate how Black Swan is an effective depiction of the onset and depiction
of the life of a schizophrenic.
Nina Sayers lives in Manhattan in
a small, mildly cramped house with her mother, Erica, who claims to have given
up her career to raise her daughter. She wants to live her own dreams of being
the lead dancer for ‘Swan Lake’ and pushes her naïve daughter to the extremes
in terms of routine, diet and lifestyle to be able to achieve this role. After
finally landing the role, the director, Thomas Leroy, is doubtful of her
capabilities and believes that while she has mastered technique, she lacks
fluidity. Meanwhile, Lily, played by Mila Kunis, arrives and sparks extreme
jealousy in Nina for being everything she is not: fluid, easy going,
sexual. It is here that the pressure triggers her mental breakdown along with
her consistent anxiety that leads to the beginning of her onset of
schizophrenia.
Schizophrenia is a chronic
disorder which makes the patient unable to differentiate between reality and
imagination. It is classified with: positive symptoms such as hallucinations,
paranoia and distorted perceptions, negative symptoms that inhibit the ability
to express emotions, disordered thinking and impaired cognition that causes
problems with concentration (Parekh, 2017). The symptoms usually occur in early
adulthood, like it did with Nina. A compilation of the aforementioned events
causes her anxiety to escalate. Her compulsive habit of scratching and peeling
skin is heightened alongside. Henceforth, she begins to hallucinate too with
increasing frequency. Aronofsky has manipulated well with his setting in
Manhattan. The dark interiors and shady lanes of the city illustrate the
surging claustrophobia and anxiety Nina is experiencing.
Evidence suggests
that certain environmental factors, such as a viral infection, poor social
interactions, or highly stressful situations, may trigger schizophrenia in people
who have inherited a tendency to develop the disorder (Villareal, 2010). The
stressor in her life was the pressure of performance, to manage to hold onto
her lead role in the routine while facing severe competition from her rival,
Lily. Some subtle signs such as troubled relationships may be present even
before the symptoms emerge which can be observed in her lack of friends and her
relationship with her mother. Erica is excessively controlling, be it her room
arrangement or her diet or how she bides her time and has channelled her rage
and disappointment with her own self into coaching her daughter. As Nina delves
deeper into her role with each practice session, she begins to see the ‘black
swan’ alternative of herself everywhere. The role requires her to shed her
virginal, sweet girl persona and embrace her darker side. In the midst of this
transformation, Nina loses the difference between the real and unreal as is the
case with schizophrenics.
Unfortunately, the movie ends with Nina
surrendering to her psychosis after significant amount of suffering. She
becomes convinced that her reflection in the mirror continues to stare at her
even after she has turned away. She even conjures a love scene between herself
and Lily which probably materialised because Lily seems to have
all the qualities she wishes to imbibe in her new character on stage. Therefore,
the climax leaves the viewers with an intense performance but a lost Nina.
Interestingly, the film took “liberties
with a host of anxiety disorders: anorexia, bulimia, cutting and
obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), most of which would not all appear
together according to some psychiatrists” (James, 2018). It is speculated that
psychosis appears to be disorders where one loses sense of reality whereas
obsessive disorders express one to be too in touch with reality and
consequently, do not usually occur together.
Black Swan characterises a talented
woman struggling with her grip on reality as a result of exorbitant pressure. Just
when Nina’s professional career seemed to be reaching its pinnacle, it ended
with her at her lowest, forfeited to her schizophrenia. Similar to the case of
Nina and her artistic breakthrough fused with a nervous breakdown, it has been
witnessed in multiple successful individuals who have worked through their
struggles of the same disorder. The famous John Nash developed ground breaking
theories while he underwent auditory and visual hallucinations consistently. Fortunately,
treatment can help those suffering from schizophrenia and it has been observed
that large numbers of people have managed to “lead highly productive and
rewarding lifestyles” post therapy (Parekh, 2017).
References:
1.
James, Susan
Donaldson. ‘Black Swan’: Psychiatrists
Diagnose Ballerina’s Descent. Abc News. December 20, 2010.
2.
Parekh,
Ranna. What is Schizophrenia?
American Psychiatric Association. July, 2017.
3.
Villareal,
Christina. Black Swan- a cinematic
portrayal of schizophrenia? December 6, 2010.
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