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Reconstructing Michael: Retrograde Amnesia in Jane the Virgin

Trisha Deb 

The representation of mental illnesses and disorders in the media has always been a popular topic of debate. The question of when can the line between fiction and reality be crossed under the guise of directorial creativity looms over every film or TV show. It is not uncommon for writers to use disorders as a mode of dramatization to further the plot. One such popular trope is that of- Amnesia. Amnesia is a complex neurocognitive disorder that manifests in different ways and forms. It is characterized by a loss of memory, with Retrograde Amnesia being the inability to recall past experiences that transpired before the traumatic incident or accident and Anterograde Amnesia being the inability to form new memories after the traumatic incident or injury (Sarah Jividen, 2021). One TV show that represents Retrograde Amnesia through the character of Michael is Jane the Virgin.
This telenovela revolves around the protagonist Jane who ultimately gets caught in a love triangle between Michael- her old lover since her university days and Rafael- her new love interest. It covers the genres of love, drama, action and thriller. Towards the end of the show, when Jane finally gets married to Michael in season 4, the notorious crime boss- Sin Rostro, the antagonist of the show haunting Jane’s life, kidnaps Michael and erases his memories. She does so because Michael almost discovered her true identity. She says she used “electroshock therapy focused on the hippocampus and temporal lobe”. Research has extensively linked amnesia to these portions of the brain which makes the justification realistic (Reed & Squire, 1998), however this gives rise to the question of whether ECT (Electroconvulsive Therapy) can result in retrograde amnesia and what are its effects.
A study conducted in 2011 used 21 participants who underwent ECT to treat major depressive disorder (Meeter et al.). They were tested for memory before and after the ECT succeeded by a follow-up session after 3 months. Two types of memory tasks were used- verbal learning to assess Anterograde Amnesia and a remote memory test for news received over the course of a year assessing Retrograde Amnesia. The findings suggested that memory scores were lower than the control group before ECT. After ECT, the scores on the news recall memory task were lower than pre-ECT and the control which indicated Retrograde Amnesia. However, in the 3 month follow up, it was found that memory pre-ECT had returned. This provides evidence that while ECT can cause retrograde amnesia, its effects are temporary.
Contrastingly, Michael’s amnesia after ECT was characterized by him not only losing memory of Sin Rostro’s identity but other basic information such as using a keyboard. This is an inaccurate representation of the effects of ECT. Additionally, this extensive loss of information is not only a mis portrayal of the effects of ECT but also of Retrograde Amnesia and memory storage in general. Two scientifically established theories describing the process of memory loss strongly contradict this. Ribot’s law of Retrograde Amnesia claims that “brain damage impairs recently formed memories to a greater extent than older memories, which is generally taken to imply that memories need time to consolidate” (1881). Likewise, Jost’s Law of forgetting claims that “if 2 memories are of the same strength but different ages, the older will decay more slowly than the younger” (1897). Research that reviewed these indirectly related laws through a combination of other studies and theories found that memories become less susceptible to decay caused by disruptive forces over time (Wixted, 2004). In Jane the Virgin, Michael dislikes the things he loved before the onslaught of amnesia. For example, he used to love cats which he now disliked and hated dancing which he now enjoyed. This is therefore an inaccurate representation of the storage and decay of long-term memories.
While short-term memories that have not been consolidated can be lost in Retrograde Amnesia, long-term memories such as autobiographical and semantic memories do not decay this easily. Autobiographical memories “are the content of the self and define who we are, who we have been, and, importantly, who we can yet become. They enable us to have a past, present, and future in which we exist as individuals” (Conway & Williams, 2008). In Jane the Virgin, Michael not only forgets the people in his life- including Jane and his parents, he forgets his own identity and goes by the name of Jason. Research suggests that this loss of autobiographical memories is uncharacteristic of Retrograde Amnesia (Reed & Squire, 1998). This study conducted a case study on 4 patients-2 with hippocampal lesions and 2 with temporal lobe lesions. It was found that damage to the hippocampus or the medial temporal lobe specifically, did not impair their recollection of autobiographical memories. In fact, they showed the same patterns of recollection as the control group despite suffering from retrograde amnesia for over 15- 25 years. Contrastingly, this dissociation from the self is a manifestation of another form of Amnesia- Psychogenic Amnesia. A study investigating this found that damage to the left posterior parietal cortex of the brain is associated with Psychogenic Amnesia and loss of identity (Arzy et al., 2011).
In conclusion, the depiction of Retrograde Amnesia in Jane the Virgin is, to a large extent, inaccurate. Even though viewers are aware that this telenovela is a work of fiction that is fueled by dramatic, unpredictable plot twists, the misrepresentation of ECT as causing such severe memory loss adds to the already existing stigma around this form of therapy. Likewise, the mis portrayal of Retrograde Amnesia through Michael/ Jason is unethical since it spreads misinformation. Therefore, it is important for writers and producers to gain an understanding and create a conscious effort to not romanticize, aestheticize or dramatize a mental illness or disorder. They should instead use the power of the media for myth-busting and creating a safer space for mental health conversations.
 
 References

Arzy, S., Collette, S., Wissmeyer, M., Lazeyras, F., Kaplan, P. W., & Blanke, O. (2011). Psychogenic amnesia and self-identity: A multimodal functional investigation. European Journal of Neurology, 18(12), 1422–1425. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-1331.2011.03423.x

Conway, M. A., & Williams, H. L. (2008). Autobiographical memory. Learning and Memory: A Comprehensive Reference, 893–909. https://doi.org/10.1016/b978-012370509-9.00135-2

Meeter, M., Murre, J. M. J., Janssen, S. M. J., Birkenhager, T., & van den Broek, W. W. (2011). Retrograde amnesia after electroconvulsive therapy: A temporary effect? Journal of Affective Disorders, 132(1-2), 216–222. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2011.02.026

Reed, J. M., & Squire, L. R. (1998). Retrograde amnesia for facts and events: Findings from four new cases. The Journal of Neuroscience, 18(10), 3943–3954. https://doi.org/10.1523/jneurosci.18-10-03943.1998

Sarah Jividen, R. N. (2021, October 18). All about the different types of amnesia. Verywell Health. Retrieved April 17, 2022, from https://www.verywellhealth.com/amnesia-types-5203061

Wixted, J. T. (2004). On common ground: Jost's (1897) law of forgetting and Ribot's (1881) law of Retrograde amnesia. Psychological Review, 111(4), 864–879. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-295x.111.4.864





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