I am Sam Disability - 1394 Words

I chose the movie I am Sam to challenge my own opinion on how people with disabilities should be treated under certain circumstances. I am Sam is a movie about a mentally challenged man, named Sam, striving to raise his daughter, Lucy, alone. Diagnosed with Autism, Sam’s intellectual capacity cannot exceed the age of 7. As we watch Lucy grow up under Sam’s roof, we are able to see the love they have for each other. When Lucy reaches the age of 8, social workers see this as an issue, so they place Lucy in a temporary home while Sam goes to court to try to win Lucy back. Sam’s lawyer, Rita, took this â€Å"pro bono† case to impress her coworkers. At first, Rita doesn’t believe Sam is capable of raising Lucy along with the social workers who†¦show more content†¦As Sam and Rita are preparing for the trial, Sam states that he feels he is smarter than Lucy in some ways. He then tells Rita he is in some ways smarter than her, too. Here, Sam is di splaying the confident side of himself. On the other hand, Sam seemed to parallel my assumption that disabled people can be fragile in ways that are not related to their disability. We see this after Sam loses hope of winning his case as he says to Rita, â€Å"You dont know what it’s like when you try and you try and you dont ever get there! Because you were born perfect and I was born like this. People like you dont know what it’s like to get hurted, because you dont have feelings. People like you dont feel anything!† Many people tend to perceive disabled people lacking emotion or feeling, or that their emotion is just part of their disability. It seems that Sam thinks that feeling sad is part of his disability, but what he doesn’t know is that everyone experiences intense emotions. He lacks the realization that anybody getting their child taken away from them would have feelings similar to his. His statement raised questions in my mind about how all di sabled people perceive able bodied people. Sam also displayed one of my assumptions that â€Å"disabled people are more comfortable around each other compared to being with abled people†. Sam’s best friends in the movie all happen to be disabled in some way asShow MoreRelatedThe Theme Of Intellectual Disability In I Am Sam766 Words   |  4 Pagesâ€Å"I am Sam† is a story about a father and daughter relationship that is threatened when daughter Lucy begins to develop gradually passing her father Sam who suffers from intellectual disabilities. Because he has an intellectual capacity of a seven-year-old, social workers do everything they can possible to separate the two thinking he is not capable of taking care of his very thriving little girl. The main diversity issue in this film includes Intellectual Disabilities. An intellectual disability isRead MoreFinding The Underlying Conflict Sam1113 Words   |  5 PagesThe director may have used this portion of the movie to establish the underlying conflict Sam is being questioned about. The court system consistently states that Lucy will surpass his IQ by her next birthday. The judge claims that due to his â€Å"low intelligence,† Sam will not be able to take care of Lucy as well as someone with a higher mental age. Although this is the court’s assumption, does this make Sam any less capable of raising Lucy? Mindsets such as Henry Goddard, author of the Kallikak FamilyRead More Mental Retardation Essay510 Words   |  3 Pagesinterfere with learning. Individuals with mental retardation learn at a slower pace, have low IQs, and may reach a level where learning stops. There are no exact causes for mental retardation but some things are associated with the disability. Prenatal development problems, childbirth difficulties, and a childhood brain injury can all lead to mental retardation. An individual with mental retardation might have problems in learning and social skills. Learning problems canRead MoreMy Movie Reflection1314 Words   |  6 Pagesmovie changed my outlook on everything. Sam is a man who has a mental disability and he got a woman pregnant. The woman took off when she gave birth and left Sam with the baby. Sam tried very hard to raise his daughter Lucy, but due to the fact that he had a mentality of a 7 year old, he had a hard time. He got help from her God Mom, Annie, who was also Lucy’s piano teacher later on. Sam’s friends, who had disabilities as well, helped him with Lucy. Sam worked at Starbucks and it showed examplesRead MoreI Am Sam Movie Review894 Words   |  4 PagesI am Sam I am Sam is a 2001 American drama film written and directed by Jessie Nelson, starring Sean Penn as Sam who has an intellectual disability that had sole care for his daughter Lucy Diamond played by Dakota Fanning. The two of them encounter problems with the Department of Child and Family Services as they believe the presence of Sam’s intellectual disability negates his ability to parent. A lawyer Rita Harrison played by Michelle Pfeiffer plays an important role in this film as sheRead More I am Sam Movie Review Essay examples431 Words   |  2 PagesI am Sam Movie Review 1. Movie Title   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  I Am Sam 2. Year of Production   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  2001 (Theatrical) ? 2002 (Home Video) 3. Feature Length   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  134 Minutes 4. Director   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Jessie Nelson 5. Producers and Studio   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Director/Producer Jessie Nelson, Executive Producer David Scott Rubin Producers Edward Zwick, Marshall Herskovitz, Richard Solomon.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  New Line Home Entertainment 6. Major Character Cast   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Sam Dawson played by Sean Penn   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Rita Harrison played by MichelleRead MoreThe Boy Who Couldnt Stop Washing by Judith L. Rapoport657 Words   |  3 Pagesand or worry. By repeating the compulsion it causes the persons fear to lesson. In my opinion I feel as if this book is a great book it gives you true life events of what symptoms people actually face in the real world they are symptoms that are given to make sure that you won’t be alone facing this sickness. This book helps by proving methods and diagnosis that promise help and hope. The movie I Am Sam was written and directed by Jessie Nelson in January 25th, 2002. New line Cinema was one of theRead MoreI Am Sam s Mental Retardation999 Words   |  4 PagesI am Sam was quite possibly one of the best movies I have ever seen in my life. I was personally very moved by the entire story. I learned a lot about how these kinds of cases usually pan out for those that are mentally disabled. I had not ever thought of a story like this, but now that I was opened to these kinds of issues in the lives of people with mental disabilities, I am glad that I watched this movie and gain some insight. Sam faced several psychological issues in this story. Out of all theRead MoreEssay on I Am Sam1694 Words   |  7 PagesI Am Sam is the compelling story of Sam Dawson (Sean Penn), a mentally-challenged father raising his daughter Lucy (Dakota Fanning) with the help of an extraordinary group of friends. As Lucy turns seven and begins to intellectually surpass her father, their close bond is threatened when their situation comes under the scrutiny of a social worker who wants Lucy placed in foster care. Faced with a seemingly unwinnable case, Sam vows to fight the legal system and forms an unlikely alliance withRead MoreCharacter Analysis of Sam Dawson from the Film, I Am Sam1669 Words   |  7 Pagesï » ¿Case Study of Sam Dawson Authors name Authors institutional affiliation Authors note Case Study of Sam Dawson Part 1 I. Character Background The name of the film selected for this case study is I am Sam. (2002) The protagonist of the film is Sam Dawson, who is played by the actor Sean Penn. Sam Dawson is a developmentally or intellectually challenged adult male, who has a young daughter, primary school aged, named Lucy. Sam and Lucy live together without her mother, who is a homeless person