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Primal Fear

            Primal Fear is a movie about the vicious murder of a renowned Archbishop by an altar boy. The prominent community figure, the Archbishop, was stabbed brutally dozens of times, and the altar boy played by Edward Norton was found to have committed the murder. The defense (Richard Gene) used the insanity defense because later in the movie it appeared as if Edward Norton was suffering from Dissociative Identity Disorder, more commonly referred to as Multiple Personality Disorder. It was also discovered that the Archbishop was sexually abusing the boy, which they believed may have triggered a stressor for the murder and onset of DID.
             It states in the text that most often patients who suffer from Dissociative Identity Disorder were horribly abused as a child, which holds true in this situation. Also, it seems to be a symptom of DID that often times, patients "lose time" as they switch from personalities. Aaron (Edward Norton) experienced a loss of time when he switched from one alter to the other. Roy was his other personality. He was the dominant personality which rescued Aaron from traumatic events or stressors. This is also common for someone suffering from this disorder because they do not exhibit the ability to deal with these troublesome events. A video recording in the movie showed Aaron as he switched to Roy. He displayed constant eye movements, distinct facial differences, and gestures. These are also signs of DID. Even the speech impediment that was present in Aaron vanished as he became Roy.
             Roy made one crucial error at the finale of the movie, however. He asked the defense how the female prosecutor was doing after his outburst in the courtroom. The emphasis on this is because more often than not, a patient suffering form DID is unable to recall events that took place as the other alter because they are commonly distinct characters. Although the character in this particular movie did not experience Dissociative Identity Disorder, it still remains a topic of debate whether or not DID is an actual disorder or if suggestibility by others plays an important role.


Essays Related to Primal Fear

1. Dissociative Identity Disorder in Primal Fear

... Stampler (Edward Norton) is an altar boy in the Movie Primal Fear, and has been charged with murder in the first degree. The archbishop was brutally murdered in his chamber at a Chicago church, and Stampler was caught immediately after the crime running ... exposed to this hostile persona for a brief moment, and it is made very clear that the psychiatrist is scared of him, as she makes her way toward the door in fear. The next time we see this alter personality is when Vail finds a sexual tape of Stampler and his girlfriend directed by the archbishop. Vail aggressively questions Stampl...

  • Word Count: 1207
  • Approx Pages: 5
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

2. Primal Fear: The Novel and The Movie

... as if producers have a certain image that must be shown in order for a movie to be successful and deemed remarkable in the media eye. This is displayed in the movie, Primal Fear and its difference from the novel. The movie seemed to protect its intended audience from what the producers saw as "flaws" in the novel, to dodge possible controversy. This is ... but it serves as a facet for high-payed executives to display some kind of made up action and put it into what they think is the common world. The movie Primal Fear displays this very principle. ...

  • Word Count: 1092
  • Approx Pages: 4
  • Grade Level: High School

3. Fear in The Crucible

Humans have always had an instinct to react with fear to certain situation and in certain ways. This is a primal emotion exists to keep us alive and avoid danger. In the play, "The Crucible," by Arthur Miller we see this emotion come up in many ... different characters throughout the play-in some more than others and have a great impact on the thoughts and actions of each character. Through these said character, the play emits the notion that fear ... you are! Mr. Parris, go into the court and bring Goodwife Proctor out," (Miller). With this excerpt we can see that Danforth is starting to fea...

  • Word Count: 618
  • Approx Pages: 2
  • Grade Level: High School

4. Violence is the instinctive response to fear

... the off chance of an encounter with the "unknown." After all, there may be something lurking in the shadows. This is fear in its most natural state; the gut retching mystery of the unknown that consumes all rationale. Fear exposes the most primal human reaction; a trait depicted in the boys of Lord of the Flies, where an ingrained reaction to self-preservation overcomes ... were intrigued by the island and were having a marvelous time without any restraints. The first sense of alarm came from a littlun who conjured up a "beastie" out of shadows. The littlun's fear of this object origina...

  • Word Count: 616
  • Approx Pages: 2
  • Grade Level: High School

5. Full Summary - Lord of the Flies

... the other boys. Simon embodies a kind of innate, spiritual human goodness that is deeply connected with nature and, in its own way, as primal as Jack's evil. The other boys abandon moral behavior as soon as civilization is no longer there to impose it upon them. They are ... feelings, while Roger seems barely capable of comprehending the rules of civilization. Generally, however, Golding implies that the instinct of savagery is far more primal and fundamental to the human psyche than the instinct of civilization. Golding sees moral behavior, in many cases, as something that civilization...

  • Word Count: 11237
  • Approx Pages: 45
  • Grade Level: High School

6. The mystery of the Wolf Man

... is more controversal that whether unconscious theory is valid or not. In his Three Case Histories, he has mentioned a thousand times that the primal scenes have gone into Wolf-Man unconscious mind. However, now "behaviorists, humanists, and existentialists all believe that the motivations and problems that can ... at that time. On the other hand, his sister is the person who makes Pankejeff has animal phobia. Every person has something to fear, like cats, dogs, thunder, etc. While Pankejeff fears of wolves, his sister kid him by showing him the picture of wolves. Like conditioning ... a...

  • Word Count: 2025
  • Approx Pages: 8
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: High School

7. Abjection in Women in Love

... century has made them witness. To Kristeva, literature is the prime signifier of the abject self, and modern literature's signified is the experience of primal want, absence, and loss (5). "Women in Love," contains all of these signifiers of the abject-outcasts, corpses, artists, women, and effluvia ... not penis envy (Freud), but the, "love of a lost identity of attachment," to the mother. While men also undergo this primal loss, they can construct a new identity under patriarchy, one that is forbidden to women because they are not full subjects, having no access or ... deject," or, "st...

  • Word Count: 6483
  • Approx Pages: 26
  • Has Bibliography

8. Characters and Symbolism in Lord of The Flies

... , and the English are best at everything", he implies that they have to be well-mannered, even though he is the first one to give into his primal instincts (Golding 42). Dissimilar to the other blacks in my mandala, this black is used to demonstrate Jack's sociology. This black represents power, sophistication, formality, elegance ... he is fearless, he is also scared of the beast. Even though he is scared, later in the novel, he uses the others' fear to control them and keep them in line. Whenever people are fearful, they often turn to those who will issue brute force against what is ......

  • Word Count: 2153
  • Approx Pages: 9
  • Grade Level: High School

9. Lord of the Flies and The Inheritors

... in survival, their brutality is still evident in how they treat their women, fear the Neanderthals, and use violence as a solution to everyday occurrences. The savagery in the Neanderthals is also seen in the new people. Both groups emulate primal characteristics in each other's point of view. Several Neanderthals witnessed the elder of ... him but went on with their noise." (Golding 172). The drinking of the new people did not make them calm, but instead made their primal-ness more prevalent and excessive. On the other hand, the Neanderthals respected the elders in their clans and in tu...

  • Word Count: 2518
  • Approx Pages: 10
  • Grade Level: High School

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