Logic Behind Illogic｜Comparing Mind Walking(play) & The Father(film)
In drama classes, when acting as someone who is drunk, you want to act like you’re trying to be sober. If you want to show your nervousness, then you must act like you’re calm. Reading through Mind Walking and The Father, I recognize there is a sense in Alzheimer’s disease or dementia. Memories don’t just disappear or pop out from nowhere, but they might be lost, morphed or intertwined.
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In The Father, scenes are acted out in the order of Andre’s comprehension. As the screen shows the world through his eyes, the questions he asks and the reactions he has made all seem logical. Anne is going back on her word for not leaving Paris. Pierre and Paul are intruders of his flat. What is bothering is people always ask Andre “do you remember?”, assuming Andre has a difficulty putting himself together. The more doubts and questions Andre receives, the harder he tries to wrap his head around reality. Eventually, we infer that it is either the scenes are distorted due to Andre’s worsening ability or the world is lying to him. The answer is obvious. By using similar layouts of places and conflicting segments of memory, the director immerses audiences into Andre’s perspective. The more desperate Andre wants to get control of time, the more stubborn he appears and the further his psyche breaks down.
Similarly in Mind Walking, the rationality Bobby shows from time to time only create a heartbreaking irony of his weakening cognitive functions. “Alzheimer’s, I have Alzheimer’s. I know! Plaques and tangles in the brain…” (27) The intellectual insight of Bobby only makes his incapability even more bleak. Although word salad, flight ideas, circumstantiality are often found in Bobby’s conversation, every detail of it serves a purpose of revealing Bobby’s complicated identity and sickness. Both Mind Walking and The Father engages audience into the patient’s world. Stepping into the circeau, Bobby meets the Parsi Priest, Farhad, and his mamma. And all of the plots happening inside Alzheimer’s world are played out on stage, allowing the audience to understand the logic behind Bobby’s seemingly illogical behavior.
To conclude, both plays portray and rationalize the complicated mindset of a mentally ill mind. Not only do we see the possibility to communicate with Alzheimer’s patients, but we also see there’s a chance for them to review their lives and reach a higher spiritual level. In the context of dramatology, the utility of a fictional world also strengthens the misunderstanding between the patient and caretaker. The more a patient wants to figure out his situation, the more messed up and impaired he seems. The clever contrast depicted on deteriorating mental conditions helps audience sympathize with them and brings out an incredible dramatic effect.
