Luckily, most of the people around the globe get to know about disasters from their screens for example by watching the news on the television or movies that are a reflection of a certain catastrophe. The interpretations are snapshots of lives, events, and heroism and it is rare for people to be informed of the long-term impacts the particular disaster has on psychology (McMohan, 2011). Much has been written in psychology about the ability of people to return to their original position, situation or state of mind after facing a disaster. An active disaster environment, however, provides an opportunity for a new reflection, reorganizing of thoughts and constructing new meaning in a short timeline.
‘ Pompeii' is a film inspired by the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius burying the famous Roman city of Pompeii in 79 AD. The movie gives the audience an experience of a natural disaster that had a high degree of threat to human life. In the movie, we see different reactions of the people to the disaster. Mt. Vesuvius is the only active volcano on the mainland of Europe and is said to have had one of the worst recent eruptions. The eruption involved a massive spillage of hot melted rocks from the mountain that burned everything they landed on. The eruption also caused landslides and disruptions in water masses. In the movie, Pompeii is a city near the sea. It is evident that the people there do not know about active volcanoes since they do not move from the city when the mountains start to give them signs. Some of them believe it is the gods who are unhappy with the people who there for their sins including ruthless slavery. The disaster comes to them unexpectedly; while they are seated in an arena watching slaves fight each other to death.
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The psychology concept of moral disengagement is portrayed on the day Pompeii faces disaster as the movie shows. Moral disengagement involves an individual convincing themselves that moral ethics are not applicable to him or her in a particular context (Bandura, 1999). Moral disengagement is further broken into four behavior categories which include dehumanizing, reconstructing immoral conduct, misrepresenting injurious effects and diffusing responsibilities. Dehumanizing is a type of moral disengagement in which an individual convinces themselves that other people are less human and that they do not deserve the same treatment as others. In the Pompeii film, dehumanizing is portrayed by Senator Corvus who orders his soldiers to kill the people blocking his way to the harbor when hot larva from the mountain starts to burn the city. The Senator considers himself special than the other people. Everyone is trying to escape the wrath of the mountain, but he thinks he is the one who should reach to the harbor first.
The Senator's actions also portray reconstruction of immoral conduct which entails a sudden decision that something that was considered unacceptable is at the time of disaster acceptable. Killing innocent people trying to escape for their lives was not an order the Senator would give before the disaster, but he did it during the disaster to serve his purpose. The Senator also portrays a misinterpretation of injurious consequences. He ignores the reflection of what negative consequences his behavior might have. Diffusion of responsibility is also depicted in this disaster situation. People neglect their duties and take those that suit their safety.
In a disaster, there is often the psychology concept of heroism. Heroism entails putting the concern of others ahead of that of oneself. Heroes are considered selfless, caring, inspiring, reliable, resilient, smart, strong, and charismatic (Cherry, 2016). Heroism is voluntary, risky in terms of quality of life and is not motivated by material gain. Although the concept of heroism is still under study, it is believed that it is more connected to one's personality. Heroes are mostly people who are kind, generous, compassionate and possess a great deal of altruism and empathy. Some psychology experts, however, say that some people engage in this self-sacrificing behaviors for self-benefit such as long-term rewards like recognition and protecting their lineage. Nevertheless, heroism is highly valued across many societies and is considered a value of a high standard.
In the Pompeii movie, heroism is profoundly portrayed by three slaves Milo, Atticus, and Ariadne. Milo risks his life to save the princess Cassia. Ariadne who is Cassia's personal maid sticks by her until she dies when going to fetch drinking water for the princess not to chock to death. Atticus saves a mother and her child who trip and fall and people run away for their dear lives; when no one else dares to stop to help them. Towards the end of the movie, Milo notices that the horse he and Cassia use to escape the city cannot run fast enough while the two of them are riding it. He asks Cassia to ride alone and save herself and leave him behind. Cassia, however, refuses sighs for the horse to run and save itself as she and Milo kiss and wait for the larva to burn them to death.
There is also the concept of acceptance during a disaster. In human psychology, acceptance is one's assent to reality. Some people in the population faced by the disaster seem to accept the situation at hand and decide to live the last minutes of their lives doing things that would make the moments valuable. According to Elliot (2007), acceptance is the last phase of grief. Some people compare the acceptance concept during a disaster to giving up on trying to save oneself. In the Pompeii film, several people accept the situation facing their city and are ready to die. Some believe that it is the doing of the gods and cannot escape. Before the beginning of the disaster, Atticus had been promised freedom if he won his last fight in the arena. All Atticus ever wanted was to be a free man, but his master was not true to his word. When the eruption causes a disturbance in the sea, and the harbor is washed, it is almost impossible for anyone to escape the city. Atticus, therefore, focuses on fighting and killing the people who had denied him his freedom. His primary concern is to die a free man and not to escape the disaster. He is glad when he kills the commander of Senator Corvus, and he dies to get ready to die as a freeman.
Milo and Cassia also decide to accept the reality that they cannot make it out of the city alive. The horse they ride to escape cannot run fast enough to save them both. They let the horse go and decide to share their last moment the best way they could. The two had been in love with each other but could not be together because of the social class difference between each other. Milo asks Cassia not to look at the hot larva that was flowing fast ready to petrify them but rather look into his eyes and think about their love.
Catastrophes have a lot of effect on human psychology hence impacting their behavior in all the phases of the experience, that is, during preparation; for predictable disasters, during the disaster period, and the also during the post-disaster period. Natural disasters, as well as other catastrophes, are not rare events and therefore people are not used to reacting to them. All people do not react in a similar way to life-threatening situations, but everyone has a way in which they cope with such a situation.
References
Bandura, A. (1999). Moral Disengagement in the Perpetration of Inhumanities. Personalities and Social Psychology Review 3 no. 3, 193-209.
Cherry, K. (2016). The Psychology of Heroism. Retrieved From https://www.verywell.com/the-psychology-of-heroism-2795905
Elliot, S. (2007). The Last Phase of Grief: Acceptance, Reorganization, and Integration. RetrievedFrom https://web.archive.org/web/20090212221847/http://gettingpastyourpast.wordpress.com/2007/07/31/the-last-phase-of-grief-reorganization-integration-and-acceptance/
McMohan, K. (2011). The Psychology of Disaster. Retrieved From http://www.resilience.org/stories/2011-03-17/psychology-disaster/
