Coraline, a stop-motion film released in 2009; among many stop-motion fans, it was a sensation and a cult favorite. Coraline teetered on the brink of controversy, like most of Tim Burton's works. Now one might ask why did this remain on the verge of controversy? Simple, Coraline crossed the line with its frightening images and inner meanings. To some, it was nothing more than a children's film, but to others, it was a chilling depiction of a mental illness found in none other than a young teenage girl. It hit close to home for some, while others turned a blind eye because it meant almost nothing to them. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay In the opening credits, hands are seen recreating a button-eyed doll from what can only be identified as sewing needles. A doll made to look like Coraline Jones, our dear protagonist. Coraline, an adventurous 11-year-old girl, had just moved to Ashland, Oregon with her family from their hometown of Pontiac, Michigan. Like many teenagers, Coraline resented being uprooted by her parents at such a tender age, much less forced to live in divided apartments. Throughout the film she meets her new neighbors, all of whom seem to represent some form of mental illness and the whole film leaves you wondering what reality really is. Understanding the definitions of wellness and illness has changed from the mid-20th century to modern times. , moving from a diagnosis-focused definition of mental illness to a person-centered definition of mental illness, and from an “absence of illness” model to one emphasizing the positive function of mental health. Well-being currently refers to the degree to which you feel positive and enthusiastic about yourself and life, while illness refers to the presence of an illness. These concepts refer to physical and mental health and well-being. In Coraline's case, initially her mentality seems to be primarily in the direction of normal behavior. The childhood fantasy she exhibits, however, is consistent with children engaged in fantasy play during isolation or neglect, in Coraline's case. It becomes more and more apparent as the film goes on that Coraline is nothing more than a neglected child who is disillusioned with what a better life could look like. Interestingly enough, Coraline plays a classic example of fantasy play after returning to the other world for the first time and attending a tea party; a bit like that of the Mad Hatter in the Alice in Wonderland film. But Coraline's experience is not adapted to her age since she is only 11 years old. Therefore, imaginative play and imaginary friends should not cause serious anxiety or disability. Thus, Coraline's childhood memories stem from abnormal behavior. Because of the distress these experiences cause her, we can conclude that Coraline is a mess. Coraline's disorder and distress indicate nothing other than the illness of schizophrenia. Some of the signs of this illness are cognitive impairment, paranoia, amnesia, perceiving that an ordinary event has a different, personal meaning, assuming that one's feelings are not one's own, disorientation, loss of memory, mental confusion, slowness of action or false belief in superiority. All this closely affected Coraline and herexperiences throughout the stop-motion film. For example, the belief that an ordinary event has a special, personal meaning comes into play when she opens a strange little door she finds in her home, perhaps thinking that there was some sort of tunnel leading to a “other world”. Another disillusionment. We could also say that each event that takes place in the film is none other than a hallucination imagined by our dear Coraline. It is difficult to say whether what we see is truly an illusion or a reality. Although, for many people who take this as a real-life scenario, it's hard to dispute his experience as reality. In most cases, she would qualify as sick. All of the examples above suggest the presence of mental illness, however, it could also be argued that Coraline is nothing more than a girl struggling with a debilitating drug addiction. Although it's much more far-fetched, it could most certainly be the story of a drug-addicted girl, going on a journey of a lifetime, but suddenly stopping because she's afraid of being discovered by his parents. The entire film could not be anything other than a psychedelic trip; at one point everything is dark and boring and at another point it's crazy and amazing. Maybe, just maybe, it's just one big bad trip, but it's a little less believable when you compare the events of the film to the drug theory. It is much more likely that the film is subtly alluding to the presence of mental illness rather than serious drug addiction. Connecting it to disillusionment and hallucination, as Gillian Rose put it best, during a simulation (or hallucination in this case), "it was no longer possible to do a distinction between the real and the unreal; the images had become detached from any certain relationship with a real world. . .” (Gillian Rose, 8 years old) A bit like that of the Coraline Jones simulacra. Stuck in her head, Coraline distinguishes between her reality and her dream. Deep down, Coraline knows that the reality presented to her throughout the film cannot be true, her mother never cooks, her father never pays attention to her, but they do so in her disillusionment. As a visibly hurt girl, Coraline has a good way of telling the audience. To access the reality opposite to her own, Coraline must cross a door, a door that her father and mother cannot cross, nor her neighbors or friends, Wybie. Only Coraline is allowed entry for the duration of the film, and this entry only occurs at night, when no one else is present. Unable to prove the existence of the other world, she must face the other world herself. The Other Mother, the main antagonist of the film, begins as a lovely and wonderful woman. She is neither scary nor doubtful. She's just a normal mother. The one Coraline is convinced she deserves. Further into our diagnosis of schizophrenia and the mental confusion it brings, it is painfully obvious how much Coraline suffers from it. She believes that “the other world” really exists outside of her imagination, that it is reality. She continues to visit this “other world” and soon realizes that it may not be all that it seems. There is a level of fear that builds as she deludes herself. What does reading Stuart Hall mean to you, as with the study of hysteria, could this be solved by hypnosis? Hypnosis is a kind of “psychoanalysis”. (Stuart Hall, 53) This is the “question of representation”. (Stuart Hall, 53) Psychoanalysis is a form of mental health treatment. Compilation of theories and methods related to the study of the unconscious, thePsychoanalysis is a discipline established by the famous Austrian neurologist Sigmund Freud. Psychoanalysis is a controversial discipline and contested for its validity as a science. However, within psychiatry, it remains a strong influence, in some circles more than others. It's no secret that there have been problems with Coraline Jones, anyone on the outside can see that. That is, except for his own parents. For some strange reason, they weren't seeing the fact that Coraline had underlying mental health issues and needed treatment to combat her ever-increasing issues. Could this all come from his parents' negligence? Can we say that the root of all her problems and the development of her mental illness is entirely due to the way her parents raised her? In many cases this can be considered the truth, but the exact cause of most mental illnesses tends to be unclear, although research suggests that various factors may be involved, including heredity, genetics, psychological trauma and environmental stress. Which leaves room for a strong argument regarding Coraline's childhood as a factor in the development of her mental illness. As his hallucinations continue, his schizophrenia sets in as his perception and paranoia worsens. Coraline believes that the Other Mother residing in the alternate reality might actually harm her physically. This is where the link to suicide comes in. Suicide is not a mental illness itself, but a serious potential consequence of mental disorders which, in most cases, can be treated. In fact, signs of suicidal behavior include excessive sadness or low mood, hopelessness, insomnia, sudden calmness, social withdrawal, changes in personality or even appearance, dangerous behavior that can lead to self-harm and recent trauma. Unfortunately for Coraline, the description of suicidal behavior fits her perfectly. Let's see why. First comes the excessive sadness and moodiness, all of which can be seen in the first twenty minutes of the film; Coraline is a moody teenager with a subtle vibe of sadness radiating underneath. She is upset by the move and misses her friends. Being suddenly forced into a new life can be overwhelming to almost anyone. Second, despair. Towards the end of the film, when Coraline believes in the potential harm of the other mothers, we witness her sense of despair. At one point in the film, she believes that the Other Mother has stolen her parents and is keeping them in a scary snow globe; unaware that they are not really her parents, Coraline loses all hope. Third, we salute his insomnia. As previously stated, our protagonist can only enter the alternate universe realm at night through a small door otherwise full of bricks. She looks like she hasn't slept in days. It's hard to say whether or not this affects his perception of reality. Twenty-four hours of sleep deprivation can lead to similar symptoms of schizophrenia in healthy people like Coraline Jones. Hallucinations and delusions are synonymous with loss of contact with reality in psychosis. It also involves thought disorders and misunderstandings. Psychosis is actually one of the most serious mental illnesses to date, by category. The filter that our brain usually puts in place no longer works the longer you go without sleep. Sleepless nights lead to increased deficits, deficits, or perception, leading these individuals tofear what they believe to be reality. The flood of unselected information leads to chaos in our brains. The feature disappears and we are left with what Coraline exhibits throughout Tim Burton's film. Tim Burton's films are known for their underlying meanings; it's just a matter of whether you can locate and decipher them or not. Coming back to suicidal behavior, we find ourselves in a sudden calm. There are many moments in the film where Coraline suddenly calms down in the scariest situations. A perfect example of this is when her neighbor Wybie is introduced by the Other Mother into the alternate reality. Wybie is a social butterfly, he shares personal information excessively, but in this reality he only stays silent, but not by choice. Her mouth is sewn shut, which doesn't seem to bother Coraline too much. In fact, she is quite happy with the young boy's silence. For what? Because Coraline is experiencing a form of social withdrawal. Social withdrawal is also a sign of suicidal behavior and can lead to a level of social isolation in which you avoid even contact with your closest family and friends. Our dear Coraline also goes through many personality changes throughout the film. no fear, the next moment she is desperate and scared. She also exhibits many dangerous behaviors, just like the Other Mother. The Other Mother does not want Coraline to leave her, she wants her to stay, to build another life within herself. Raising fears that she will never be able to return to her own reality, Coraline breaks. She goes into survival mode and looks for every possible way out of her predicament. His dreams of a better life quickly turn into nightmares. Nightmares that she struggles to wake up from and look past. All of this may be linked not only to his continued neglect, but also to his sudden move from Michigan to Oregon. Unable to accept change, she begins to lose it. Now let's talk about the film and how it relates to the underlying issue of his mental illness and another important life lesson. Coraline is a little girl, and to the untrained eye, her family life seems nothing but average. She sees a lot of things as wrong in her family, like most preteens. His mother is incapable of cooking and his father's cooking leaves much to be desired. Both parents are too busy with work and neglect to give her the attention she needs. One day, Coraline discovers a small secret door in the wall while exploring her new home in Oregon. Once she opens it and enters, she inhabits an alternate universe, with seemingly perfect versions of her parents. Everything in this parallel house revolves only around Coraline's desires and strongly appeals to her tastes. Her new mother only cooks the little girl's favorite dishes. Her new father plays the piano for her alone and plants a beautiful garden that looks like Coraline's head from above and with a spectacular circus show the neighbors entertain her. However, it turns out that this magical world is entirely false, the opposite of what it initially appears to be. It involves the creation of an evil witch who lures people in by preying on their dissatisfaction with reality and promising them a life worth living. In reality, this evil witch only wants to suck out the living soul of her victims, which, in this case, is that of Coraline. For what? Because she likes to dominate others and play with the minds of innocents. But as in children's films everything usually ends on a happy note, Coraline just survives.