For children, anxiety makes small or simple worries to excessively blow up into big bewilderment and fear. It becomes frightening and intimidating to them. It then triggers the flight, freeze or fight reactions. The net result of this development is that children tend to start feeling incompetent and unable to perform some tasks or carry out particular actions. However, when the cover of anxiety is blown out, children are able to view the whole thing as just a powerful illusion. It then dawns on them that worry and anxiety has no power or control over them. They become free to do whatever they intend to.
Anxiety is a feeling that is normal in human life. In fact, every one experiences anxiety in life. Anxiety is a quite positive condition depending on the way the individual takes it. Its positivity emanates from the fact that it prepares the human bodies to remain sensitive and ready to respond when need arises. However, anxiety in children is on most occasions negative because of its chronic nature. It overwhelms children and hinders them from functioning remarkably. The movie “The Wizard of Oz” offers a classic example of the Anxiety Disorder and its impact in human life. It is in this movie that all characters are seen experiencing fear, confusion and doubt before they attain self-discovery.
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Children are conditioned to live in fear and worry. In most cases, a child is normally sent into frantic mood and anxiety by even quite small things like objects. The anxiety of a child is so devastating that it tends to keep it even in the absence of the object which created it. This phenomenon is highly in agreement with the assertions of theorists who have spent time to study child development. Various theories related to child development portray children as beings who are easy to be controlled by even imaginary situations. Theirs is chronic Anxiety Disorder.
The theory identified on this issue of anxiety is Erik Erikson's theory of identity development. This theory properly explains the presence of alienation among the adolescent children. The basic concept in the theory of adolescent development by Erikson is acquisition of an ego-identity. Erikson identifies identity crisis as the characteristic of adolescence. Erikson explains that this particular characteristic is common to all cultures, despite the fact that individual identities tend to be established in different ways influenced by culture (Monahan, Rhew, Hawkins & Brown, 2014). This specific theory provides that a child has to get consistent and meaningful acknowledgement of his or her achievements in order to develop a strong and healthy ego-identity.
According to Erikson’s theory, adolescence refers to the period in which a child must make his or her personal identity. In the course of establishing a sense of personal identity, the child must avoid the risks of role diffusion as well as identity confusion. Erikson explains that the individuals make an assessment of their assets and liabilities to establish the best ways of using them. The adolescents have to answer to the questions regarding where they are came from, their personality and what exactly they will be in future (Monahan et al., 2014). Erikson recognizes identity as a sense of sameness and continuity, which must be searched by individuals during adolescence.
The issue of alienation comes up when a child shows the unwillingness to work with his or her identity formation, a factor that causes the danger of role diffusion. Alienation, in this case, is described as the state of being withdrawn or just sidelined from the objective world through things like indifference or disaffection. As the youths establish their identity, they tend to think they are unique and start to isolate themselves from the rest of the society. For example, adolescent youths believe that societal norms and culture are traditional hence isolate themselves as a way of disassociating from what they consider medieval way of leaving.
The issue of fear and worry among young children is also explained by the problem behavior theory. The problem-behavior theory is used to explain the dysfunction in adolescent development. It is vital to understand that the problem behavior theory is based on the concept of anomie presented by Merton and the social learning theory of Rotter (Jessor et al., 2017). The habit of substance abuse among the adolescent youths emerges from the structure and interaction of three systems. These particular systems include the behavior, personality and perceived environment systems.
The behavior system entails both the problem and modern behavior structures. The problem behavior is described as habit that gets off the social and legal norms of the society. Problem behavior causes the social-control responses from the external sources. Substance abuse is a problem behavior.
The personality system is the combination of psychological factors including the motivational-instigation structure, which define the individual’s perspective of self relative to the society. There is the personal control structure that gives somebody reasons to restrain from engaging in some behaviors (Jessor et al., 2017). The perceived environment system includes the distal, which determines a person’s relationship to his or her peer network. All these factors work together to cause the bad behavior like substance abuse among the adolescent youths.
According to the problem behavior theory, the use of illicit drugs and substance abuse among the adolescents starts when the personality and perceived environment systems clash. This concept has to be analyzed with respect to the core features of the adolescent personality like impulsivity, risk-taking and the overriding perception of invulnerability (Jessor et al., 2017). There is also the sense of being rebellious to the authority.
Piaget highlighted some important factors, which normally affect cognitive development. These factors include maturation, experience and social transmission. These are factors that food and nutritional educators must consider when educating the preschool pupils. Piaget explained that cognitive development normally occurs with maturation. Maturation causes physical as well as intellectual development. Maturation, in this case, refers to the experiences that an individual gains as a result of the things, which happen to him or her. Experience, which also affects cognitive development, occurs as a result of the direct interaction between an individual and the objects in the environment (Başkale et al., 2009). Social transmission is the lessons that children learn and imitate from the people they associate and live with like mothers, fathers and siblings.
About the Movie
This paper is based on the movie, “The Wizard of Oz”. Among the main concerns of this movie, is the search for a residence as well as personal identity. It is worth noting that this movie was adapted from a novel written in the year 1900 by Frank Baurn ( Fleming et al., 2005) . The movie itself was done in the year 1938. “The Wizard of Oz” has been hailed as the best movie in history because of its appeal to people of all generations. Adult people have been attracted to the movie by its mythological and psychological traces.
Arguably, anxiety in children is the major theme in the movie “The Wizard of Oz”. Anxiety is the wizard of worry. Understandably, the Wizard of Oz, with his quite domineering, imposing and over-blown voice appeared highly frightening to Dorothy and her friends while on the search for the Kansas home. However, below the Wizard’s tricky and dramatic pyrotechnics, existed a little scared man who indeed did not have any power or even control over Dorothy and her friends. This revelation came into bear when the Wizard’s cover was finally blown. All the characters were able to realize the truth about the Wizard and themselves. The characters later knew that they all had the potential of handling things they feared. It is a fact that they had just not realized as they were blinded by the Wizard’s powerful facade. After this understanding struck in, the characters were free to go home. In essence, they realized their self-identities.
The main character in the movie is Dorothy Gale. She was raised by her Aunt called Em and Uncle known as Henry, in Kansas. In a fateful event, a tornado strikes where Dorothy and her dog are whisked into the air. During this event, Dorothy steps out and enters a world of Oz. It is succeeded by the dream which engulfs her. While in the Oz, Dorothy starts a mythic journey as she tries to return to home in Kansas ( Meyer, 2014) . At this juncture, it is vital to point out that the Kansas home is a metaphorical term used to imply self-identity. While on this journey, Dorothy encounters various characters including the lion, scarecrow and tin man. These characters really help each other in overcoming obstacles.
Notably, a number of collisions do occur in the course of the whole movie. Considering these collisions and other events of the movie, the aspect of anxiety in children conspicuously stands out in it. It is the main focus of this paper, which seeks to establish the way “The Wizard of Oz” portrays the theme of children anxiety.
In the movie, Dorothy and her friends were able to face their challenges head-on. They started to be largely motivated by their deep desires to succeed. They could then comfortably and easily face all obstacles thrown into their path. It is important to note that this development happened when they allowed their personal power to take charge through all situations.
The character of the Lion embodies the quintessential Anxiety Disorder and its symptoms. The Lion quakes, shrinks, holds his breath and shivers as he moves in the unfamiliar world of the Oz. Instead of choosing to face his fears and overcome them, the Lion elects to keep fearing the unknown and unfamiliar world as he chronically avoids dealing with the vulnerability present and embracing his true mighty nature ( Cantor, 2001) . Notably, the Lion’s delusional belie that the Great Oz” may give him the brevity required to control his regular bouts of fear comes out as an error in thinking which is common in the life of children. It refers to the erroneous belief held by people that an agent that exists in the exogenous world from oneself is able to relieve him or her from the tyranny of confusing emotions as well as the obsessive behaviours. It is quite clear from this movie that gripping tensions, dread and the sensations of doom as well as the chronic doubts about ability to achieve or function as very competent and productive individuals amount to Anxiety Disorder which is a major disease in life.
Conclusion
The movie analyzed in this paper offers many lessons about the way to succeed in life. Dorothy and her friends, especially the Lion did harbored huge worries and fear. However, they later reach a point of self-discovery where their inner desires and motivations become the main driving force in what they do. Children are mostly fearful and worrisome. However, if they are taught to avoid the Anxiety Disorder and face life situations confidently, they can attain much achievements and success.
References
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Cantor, J. (2001). The media and children’s fears, anxieties, and perceptions of danger. Handbook of children and the media , 207-221.
Fleming, V., Garland, J., Morgan, F., Bolger, R., & Langley, N. (2005). The wizard of Oz . Turner Entertainment.
Jessor, R., Donovan, J. E., & Costa, F. (2017). Problem Behavior Theory and Behavioral Health in Adolescence. In Problem Behavior Theory and Adolescent Health (pp. 449-475). New York: Springer International Publishing.
Meyer, E. C. (2014). Courage, brains and heart: Lessons from the Wizard of Oz for difficult healthcare conversations. Australian Critical Care , 27 (3), 108-109.
Monahan, K. C., Rhew, I. C., Hawkins, J. D., & Brown, E. C. (2014). Adolescent pathways to co ‐ occurring problem behavior: The effects of peer delinquency and peer substance use. Journal of research on adolescence , 24 (4), 630-645.
