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Antwone Fisher was a victim of circumstances. He believed that he had every right to be angry at the world because of what happened to him during his childhood and his teenage years. His escape to the U.S. Navy made him more prone to violent outbursts. It was not until he met a naval psychiatrist Davenport that he began to understand that he needed to stop thinking that he is a victim. But the psychiatrist, played by Denzel Washington in the movie, made him took another step forward and encouraged Antwone Fisher to reconcile with his biological parents as well as with his former foster parents. Antwone Fisher’s life story could also be understood using the principles gleaned from the study of Erik Erikson’s stages of psychosocial development.
Background
Antwone Fisher was a desperate man. He is drowning from emotional as well as psychological problems that needed resolution. But ever since he was little, there was no one to take care of him and guide him. His father died while he was little and he was born in prison. His mother was a convict and therefore not in a position to take care of her little baby. Antwone Fisher was then placed in a foster home. It did not take long before he was transferred to another foster home. In his new home, the black woman who agreed to take care of him and three more foster kids seemed to be a decent person but this affirmative assessment quickly changed to the negative. Ms. Tate subjected Antwone Fisher to physical and emotional abuse.
The emotional and physical abuse came in the form of beatings, abusive language, deprivation, and humiliation. There were two scenes in the movie that vividly illustrated the sick mind of Ms. Tate. In the first scene, Ms. Tate punished Antwone and his foster brother down in the basement. Ms. Tate used a wet rag as a tool to break down Antwone’s spirit. The second scene showed Antwone accused of stealing. In this same scene, Ms. Tate humiliated him even when Antwone tried to explain the source of the funds. She succeeded in her goal to break Antwone’s spirit and this forced him to run away from home. In his desperation, Antwone enlisted into the U.S. Navy. Little did he know that he had taken the first step to heal and freedom.
Erik Erikson
Sigmund Freud is well-known all over the globe because he had contributed much in the field of human psychology. The same can be said of Erik Erikson who formulated a theory of psychosocial development that still is being discussed, analyzed, and used as the basis for numerous experiments. Erikson believed that a child develops in a predetermined order much like the life stages in a growth cycle of organisms – such as infancy, childhood, young adulthood, etc. (Heffner, 2001). Instead of focusing on the cognitive Erikson wanted to understand the impact of socialization when it comes to the development of individuals (Heffner, 2001). In the process, Erikson developed his famous stages of psychosocial development.
The different stages are listed as follows:
- Trust vs Mistrust (birth to one year )
- Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt (one year to three years old)
- Initiative vs. Guilt (age three to age six)
- Industry vs. Inferiority (age six to puberty)
- Identity vs Role Confusion (age 13 to 21)
- Intimacy vs. Isolation (young adulthood)
- Generativity vs. Stagnation (age 40 to 60)
- Ego Integrity vs. Despair (60 years to death)
For the sake of this study, the discussion will focus on stage 6 (Intimacy vs. Isolation). By intimacy, Erikson meant that the well-adjusted person will be able to form close relationships and love another person. In fact, there are experts who interpreted Erikson’s stage 6 as the capacity to honor commitments even if it requires sacrifice (Sadock, 2007). Moreover, the indicator that an individual has successfully negotiated this stage is apparent when he or she can “…tolerate the fear of ego loss arising out of experiences of self-abandonment (e.g. sexual orgasm, moments of intensity in friendship, and aggression)” but if this stage is not successfully handled then the person is “…apt to become deeply isolated and self-absorbed” (Sadock, 2007). Thus, there are two possible consequences in each stage of development.
If the individual has successfully negotiated this sixth stage then he or she has the capacity to love and work. As mentioned above the meaning of love here is more than sexual intercourse, in fact, the person would have shown maturity if he or she is not carried away by emotions with regards to sex. If the individual failed to negotiate this stage then according to Erikson he or she will demonstrate distantiation [sic] which is interpreted as “…the readiness to repudiate, isolate, and if necessary destroy those forces and persons whose essence seems dangerous to one’s own” (Sadock, 2007). This is the reason why Antwone could not control his temper, could not establish good relations with the opposite sex, and could not relate well with people in authority.
Negotiating Erikson’s Stages of Development
Antwone Fisher is the best example of what could happen to a man unable to hurdle the sixth stage of development. He was unable to establish intimate relations with friends, loved ones, and even with the opposite sex. He was also unable to focus on his work in the U.S. Navy. The reason for his problem can be explained by distantiation [sic] and isolation. The girl in the movie, played by Ms. Bryant, had repeatedly given him signs that she was interested and at least ready to be close friends with Antwone but the young Mr. Fisher did not have the capacity for intimate relationships and so he repudiated her.
While working in the U.S. Navy Antwone believed that he was justified in his emotional outbursts. It was a macho environment and men are trying to be men with ego oozing from their pores. He did not channel his anger and for many years he did not ask for help. He thought that it was just natural for him to feel that way. With very little provocation Antwone could be easily drawn to a fight like a moth to a flame and he had no control over this area of his life.
It was at this stage in his young adult life that he cried for help. Fortunately for him, his supplication was heard by Dr. Davenport who gave him the chance to pour out his heart and then guided him towards healing and forgiveness. Unknown to Antwone Fisher his love interest in the movie was also helping him to the path of healing and recovery. Dr. Davenport was like a father to him and he helped Antwone understand the impact of his past the reason why he is prone to outburst of anger.
Support and Hindrance
The odds were against him. A casual review of Erikson’s life stages will lead to the conclusion that Antwone Fisher was unable to negotiate each stage successfully. If this is true then it means that he could not trust people. It also means that he is plagued with self-doubt and shame making it impossible for him to develop close ties with others. He will forever feel inferior and to top it all there was no indication that he knew where he was going and what he will do with his life. This prompted him in one scene to cry out that he is lost and he had no idea how to continue living.
The only good thing that happened to him was that he enlisted in the U.S. Navy. This was not emphasized enough in the movie but if he was unable to join the navy then he would not have met two of the most important persons in his life. He would not have access to psychiatric help provided by the highly proficient Dr. Davenport and he would not have experienced the unconditional love of his girlfriend, the type of love he was unable to experience growing up.
Life stages of the Therapist
Antwone was fortunate that his therapist was highly competent. He was also fortunate that his psychiatrist is an African-American like him. So aside from giving expert help to Antwone, Dr. Davenport was also able to peer into his soul because just like Antwone, the good doctor knew fully well what it was like to grow up as a black man in America.
But instead of blaming the whites and racism as the main cause of Antwone’s problems, Dr. Davenport also pointed out that the “slave community” is partial to be blamed for not realizing that they inherited the sins of the past. According to Davenport, their ancestors assimilated the evil practices they have witnessed in the master-slave dynamic and then passed it on to their children. The scene where Ms. Tate applied excessive punishment to Antwone and his foster brothers is an example of this.
Code of Ethics
Dr. Davenport exhibited competence as well as his ability to observe ethical standards that govern the client-therapist relationship. He was firm when he needed to but the use of discipline contrast significantly with the methods used by Ms. Tate. Dr. Davenport did not terrorize his patient and he did not look down on them. He always made Antwone Fisher feel that he is a person worthy of his time and effort.
Dr. Davenport strived hard to make Antwone feel that he is valued as a person. He also wanted Antwone to look into the future and be motivated by the desire to have a better life for himself and his future family. Aside from his competence and integrity Dr. Davenport also exhibited another quality that indicated he was an exceptional psychiatrist – he offered to work with Antwone pro bono and even though he was swamped with many patients he found the time to connect with Antwone and guided him out of the darkness of his soul.
Impact of the Environment and other Social Factors
It is difficult to miss the impact of the environment and other social factors when it comes to Antwone Fisher’s maladaptive behavior. First of all, he had no parents. Erikson’s life stages were built on the premise that maladaptive behavior is possible if the child failed to experience love and care from his or her parents. One could just imagine what could happen to a child orphaned at a very young age. But in the case of Antwone, he did not only lost his parents to crime but was also assigned to a foster home that made his life hell. These factors help explain the maladaptive behavior of Antwone Fisher.
Aside from that Antwone lived in a foster home where his foster parent made it clear to him that he was not important. That was a major psychological impact on him. One could just imagine the feeling of not being wanted by anyone, not even by foster parents. This was exacerbated by the fact that the second foster parent that he was assigned to loved the idea of playing the brutal taskmaster. It is certain that Ms. Tate had issues to deal with but at that time she was confident that her child-rearing techniques were acceptable to God and man. She was wrong of course but no one could correct her. So Antwone ran away.
When Antwone ran away he quickly realized that the outside world is as brutal as the foster home. There was no love and tenderness there but more than that he saw that black people are not exactly the most favored group in American society. It was pointed out earlier that the U.S. Navy was his salvation but without a doubt, Antwone did not see it that way. For him, the navy was his only available option and he was forced to go there. If he had a choice it was doubtful if he would still prefer to enlist. After all, there were hundreds of thousands of American kids who had the chance to go to college and not go through navy life.
Poverty was like quicksand for Antwone, once he was on it, the more he struggled the more he would sink. At this stage, he felt that there was no hope for him. In the navy the people were indifferent and when he first met Dr. Davenport he felt that he was letting him down too. Antwone believed that Dr. Davenport was just like the rest of the people that he met in his life – they were mindful only of their own business and did not care at all what will happen to the guy next to them.
Antwone’s deep feelings of mistrust, shame, doubt, and insecurity were overwhelming him and he had to express himself in violent terms so that people will take notice and at the same time allow himself to create a wall where no one can enter. It was a good thing that Dr. Davenport did not give up on him and worked hard to gain his confidence. It was also a good thing that Dr. Davenport was competent enough to know precisely what to do with Antwone Fisher.
Conclusion
The life story of Antwone Fisher was a perfect example of what will happen to a person if unable to negotiate the different stages of psychosocial development as prescribed by Erikson. His problems were very much illustrative of the sixth stage of development where a person either learns the beauty of love and the satisfaction of work or to the contrary learns isolation and creates an impenetrable wall that will exclude everyone.
It is a good thing that he enlisted in the navy and then got the chance to work with Dr. Davenport. He was also fortunate to have the chance to learn love from a friend. Dr. Davenport recognized the wall that Antwone was trying to erect around him and the good psychiatrist was patient, caring, and skilled enough to demolish the wall brick by brick. In the end, he was able to guide Antwone out of the dark woods and into the light.
Impact on the Social Worker
I was surprised by the fact that someone was able to fully understand the life stages each person has to go through in their life journey. It was a testament to the genius of Erik Erikson. His insight into human psychology is simply amazing and the world of psychology will be forever indebted to him. It does not require one to be a psychologist or a psychiatrist to fully appreciate what he has done. Even a social worker or a guidance counselor can learn much from studying his principles of psychosocial development.
The sixth stage (Intimacy vs. Isolation) is one of the most important of Erikson’s developmental stages because this is a tool that can help counselors and social workers deal with the most problematic stage of a person’s life. It gave me the ability to see the importance of being a young adult and the tremendous pressure felt by those who are negotiating this stage. This is the time when a young man or woman decides on a career and in many cases, this is also the stage where people seriously consider marriage or get seriously engaged with someone. There is no need t elaborate on what will happen if they will fail to negotiate this stage of the development process.
A correct understanding of this life stage coupled with a mastery of the ethical standards guiding the therapist-client relationship will help the social worker change a person from being a nuisance to society to a productive citizen. A clear understanding of Erikson’s life stages will equip the social worker with the necessary background knowledge that will help him or she encourages the patient to open up. In the movie, the breakthrough came when Dr. Davenport was skilled enough to ask the right questions.
References
Heffner, C. (2001). “Erikson’s Stages of Psychosocial Development.” Web.
Sadock, B. (2007). Kaplan & Sadock’s Synopsis of Psychiatry. PA: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
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