Infant development can be studied by observing the various physical acts that a child engages in. The actions will tend to change as the infant gets older whereby the complexity of its cognition becomes more elaborate. John P. Spencer et. al. in the journal article titled Moving Toward a Grand Theory of Development: In Memory of Esther Thelen, present their observation of limb movement in developing infants depending on age. This essay aims at employing the development theory in studying the interactions of an infant with a foster father in Charlie Chaplin’s film titled The Kid. The study will observe how the child develops from impulsive actions to deeds that are founded on the kid’s acquired knowledge as he struggles to fit in the society he grows up in.
Charlie Chaplin, the tramp, meets the infant after it is abandoned in the streets just after its mother has been released from the hospital after childbirth. The abandoned infant is in the early stages of development and will only act impulsively because it has not learnt the art of communication. Spencer et. al. have made this observation in their study whereby the spontaneous actions are not triggered by the infants knowledge but by the urge to draw attention. In this light, the tramp will always make attempt to make out what the child is trying to communicate especially with its outstretched hand. When he lifts the boy from the ground, the tramp follows the direction that the child is pointing in hope that he would get a clue on where the parents are. It is a comical film that informs the viewer that the man is foolishly studying the infant’s movements although there is no credible information that can be decoded from its actions. Spencer et al. also noted that the hands and legs movements begin immediately the infant is born with finger movements coming later as the infant grows. In the Chaplin film, the viewer can observe that the child’s legs are kicking beneath the rugs that keep it warm. More so, the hand just stretches out without finger motions. This highlights that that the psychological development of the child is still at its genesis and would develop later where the gestures would be more understandable. It is also notable that there are various factors that influence the child’s movements. Hunger, for example, is a motivation that makes the child kick and throw his arms as he cries. Understandably, this is the only language that the child understands when it needs to ask for food and the circumstances where the mother is not around form the foundation for a secure base where the child learns to look up to its guardian.
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With time, the child develops to stand, walk and make more meaningful movements as compared to the spontaneous kicking of an infant. Technically known as cognitive development, the child is aware of what is expected and can choose whether to conform or otherwise. At some point, the tramp is inspecting the child in a casual study that involves looking into its ears. The kid, at this point, appears to have gotten used to the routine and will move its body according to what is expected of it. In this light, calculated hand movements such as pulling down its cardigan’s neckline to have the trump study its neck reveal that its movements are no longer spontaneous but well programmed in its mind. It is revealed that the child is aware of the relative surroundings and has the impulse to reach, hold, and use the things he sees.
The environment, which includes the child’s company, will further determine the child’s development and the things it does. In this light, the kid in the film knows no other parent apart from Charlie Chaplin and has developed secure attachment from the relationship. It will, therefore, get used to the things its foster father does and also led a hand in the shenanigans involved. Ethology as a theory has explained these adjustments from the understanding that behavior evolves as individuals attempt to adapt. It is for that reason that it becomes Chaplin’s partner in crime whereby it breaks windowpanes as the tramp fixes them for financial gains. From the way the two engage in mischief whereby the unsuspecting community takes it as a coincidence that the fixer happened to be in the vicinity, it is apparent that the child is not merely a doer but also a knower who has undergone a development that is defined by the tramp’s character. The precision with which it carries out its endeavors, the throwing and running, reveal a mind that is psychologically toned to fit in its society.
It is at the age of about four years that the kid has developed its movements to parallel the situation at hand. Psychosocial theory, in this light, explains that the boy has developed trust for the tramp and is motivated by a desire to be competent in complementing him. At this point, the boy is a good actor and will observe what the society makes out of its deeds to adjust accordingly. When a policeman finds it in the process of its mischief, the child makes agitated moves with its hands and stamps its feet before throwing the stone away. At the same time, it points in the direction of Chaplin and the owner of the house whose window is broken. This informs a critical observer that the child at this stage does not only make movements to get what he wants but also to get out of a difficult situation. By pointing at Chaplin he gets the policeman distracted and uses the opportunity to run away.
There are certain movements that children will make in their privacy to expose the underlying emotions as is the case in the film. In the scene where the kid is at the door playing with a doll, it is notable for the viewer to understand the love he has for the plaything by the way he hugs it. It explains the fight that erupts as the big boy grabs his doll and runs away with it. A change of emotions is evident as the children exchange blows with the young kid emerging as the winner a further change of emotions is evident as the child is taken to the orphanage and the reunion after Chaplin runs after it.
From a personal experience, I have had to interact with various children as they developed and in the process have learnt that movement gradually develops from spontaneous newborn reflexes to calculate moves that will define how the child has been nurtured. I have seen, for example, children who sit back and cry when they are offended and those that fight back at the slightest provocation. I have also seen children suffering from insecure attachment such that they will only prefer to be held by their mothers. From the film, however, I have noted that it is important to nurture a child in a natural world where they will learn to survive without the parents having to hover over them.
In conclusion, the development of a child from birth can be seen as a gradual process that graduates from spontaneous newborn reflexes to well calculated moves that are inspired by cognition. It is notable that the initial stages involve throwing of hands and legs after which finger movements develop as the child grows. With time, it can reach and grab at thing depending on its conceptualization. Later as the child learns to walk the movements are more calculated and more informed. From the observation of the kid in Chaplin’s film, the viewer can note the various psychological processes involved.
