Friendship

Movie Review 11-1-2012 “Radio” The movie I picked to review was one I had not seen before, “Radio” starring Cuba Gooding Jr and Ed Harris. It is based on a true story of James Robert “Radio” Kennedy and tells the story of how a man who is mentally retarded becomes friends with the high school football coach. The coach befriends Radio after some of his players have bullied and hurt him. The movie opens with Radio pushing his cart through the street and shows a woman moving her child away from him, a man staring at him, and another man who almost runs him over calling him a “moron. I liked that they started this way to establish what he goes through on a daily basis. Radio is constantly looking down allowing the viewer to realize that he has some sort of disability. Other times throughout the movie members of the town can be seen starring and laughing at Radio. The coach ignores their behaviors and continues his friendship with Radio despite what others think. The film never establishes the exact cause of his disability but when Coach asks his mother what was wrong with him, she says the doctor just says “he is a little slower than most. As the coach got to know him, he learned that he loved radios, hence his nickname “Radio”. The coach tries to bring Radio into the team as an assistant. The school didn’t allow him to travel on the bus for the “safety” of the students. As the movie continues some of the townspeople begin to accept Radio while others are very irritated that he is a part of the football program. Coach always supports Radio and teaches him many things throughout their friendship. The coach’s family also comes to appreciate Radio and supports the friendship of the two men.

The things that impacted me about the movie are the fact that it is based on a true-life story. The filmmakers did a good job of being realistic in the fact that not everyone is going to support a mentally challenged individual all of the sudden being a part of a football team. This is definitely the case. In my ideal world people with disabilities would not be bullied but would be accepted. This isn’t the case and the movie shows us this. Reality is that not everyone is comfortable with individuals with disabilities.

One thing that bothered me about the movie was the look that Radio was given. He has a big front tooth and a chipped tooth. I believe it was at the end of the movie that in the credits you get to see a picture of the real Radio. He does not have perfect teeth just as the character didn’t in the movie. However, the movie cover picture doesn’t have the actor with messed up teeth. To me this shows that they aren’t completely portraying the character the way they should. They are still out to sell their movie and “pretty” probably sells better than reality sometimes.

There were times in the movie that I was angry with some of the people in the town. More than this though, there were times that I was proud of the coach. I was proud of those that came together to make sure Radio had a good Christmas after his mother had passed away. I was mostly proud of Radio for in return giving the presents that he had received to individuals that had been mean to him in the past. The movie is an inspiring one! There are good people in the world.

Kendall Fretwell Assignment 3

1. Changes in sexual maturity that occur during puberty are referred to as  Secondary sex characteristics.
2. The first ejaculation in boys is called  Spermarche.
3. Girls who are sexually active are also more likely to have experienced early  Menstruation.
4. Approximately one-third of teen pregnancies in the U. S. end in abortion.
5. Many researchers feel that recognition of one’s feelings of same-sex attraction begins as early as self-recognition.
6. Mary is a biological female who identifies psychologically and emotionally as male. Mary is  Transgender.
7. The incidence of illicit drug use among teens was higher in the 1990s than in the 1970s.
8. Sylvia, although extremely thin, looks in the mirror and sees excessive body fat. She exercises obsessively and eats very little. Sylvia might be diagnosed as having  Anorexia nervosa.
9. Piaget’s concept of  Self-Expression enables teens to understand metaphors and symbols.
10. Goals that are based on a desire for self-improvement are referred to as mastery goals.
11. Jason works out regularly at the gym. He is one of the best players on his soccer team. Jason’s goal to be the best on his team is an example. Task/ego involvement goal.
12. The last of Freud’s stages of psychosexual development is the  Genital stage.
13. Erikson used the term gender-role identity to refer to the period when an adolescent is troubled by a lack of identity.
14. An individual whose gender-role identity is androgynous would perceive herself or himself as having both feminine and masculine traits.
15. Sometimes Kohlberg’s stage of social system and conscience is known as the  Law and Order stage.
16. Antisocial Behavior is defined as antisocial behavior which includes law-breaking.
17. A combination of cliques forms a  tribe.
18. Homosexual teens become aware of their same-sex attractions at about the age of  9. Heterosexual teens become aware of their opposite-sex attractions at about the age of  11.
19. Response inhibition depends on the ability of the limbic system of the brain to regulate the limbic system.
20. Changes in the heart and lungs that take place in young adulthood are likely not to be noticeable except during.
21. Regarding immune function: immature T cells are made in the bone marrow and they mature in the thymus.
22. In the Alameda study on health and aging, only marital status and monthly personal income were found to be unrelated to mortality.
23. HIV stands for  Human Immunodeficiency Virus.
24. In order to be diagnosed with a personality disorder, a young adult has to have been exhibiting the behavior since development.
25. Lorie is in her late twenties. She has been unable to hold a job for more than 3 months at a time and she quickly gets bored with her relationships. Her mood tends to be unstable and she is short-tempered. Lorie may suffer from  Cyclothymia.
26. Post-operational Development thought is associated with the fifth stage of cognitive development.
27. The most common modification in academic settings for students with disabilities is extra time for taking tests.
28. College women in the U. S. and Europe use a  60%   number of study skills than men.
29. African American students who attend historically Black institutions show more gains in both education and skills competence than those who attend predominantly white colleges.
30. intimacy versus isolation argued that the central crisis of early adulthood dealt with issues of isolation and intimacy?
31. Jack has settled into his new life as a retiree. He has friends and activities and feels a happy sense of stability in his new life. Jack is in Levinson’s  Culmination phase.
32. One factor that correlates with marital success is each partner’s attachment to his or her personality.
33. Close friendships rely on mutual trust and personal friendship.
34. Work-family conflict more strongly influences career decisions.
35. One strategy for coping with conflicts between work and family life is to redefine family time.
36. Young drivers exhibit more lapses in attention and driving errors than middle-aged drivers.
37. Fifty-year-old Mr. Evans has started experienced difficulty achieving and maintaining an erection. These changes might indicate that Mr. Jones is experiencing  Erectile dysfunction.
38. The last phase of menopause is called the  Postmenopausal phase.
39. Bernice is 45. At least once a week, she wakes up in the middle of the night wringing wet with sweat. She is having hot flashes, a form of early menopause.
40. The loss of bone mass is called osteoporosis and begins at around age  30.
41. Paul’s family is getting tired of having to repeat everything they say to him because he has difficulty hearing. He goes to an audiologist and finds that he has hearing loss, so the audiologist recommends a hearing aid.
42. Heart disease is the most common cause of death for adults in the U. S.
43. The personality characteristic which seems to be the biggest contributor to cardiovascular disease is stress.
44. High cholesterol diets seem to increase the risk of some forms of cancer while high vegetable diets seem to decrease the risk of other forms of cancer.
45. Among women, death from breast cancer is considerably more likely than death from heart disease.
46. Overall physical health and cognitive performance in middle adulthood are most closely linked to  Physical and Cognitive Development.
47. Episodic memory is the recollection of specific events; Semantic memory is the recollection of general knowledge and facts.
48. List the three phases of menopause in order. Identify what happens to hormone levels in each phase.
49. Perimenopause. It is the result of changing levels of ovarian hormones in your body. Estrogen levels decline, but they do so unevenly. Sometimes they can even be higher than when you were younger.

A fairly common social issue people have is that they’re not sure how to make friends and put together a social life for themselves. There are quite a few ways someone can find themselves in this situation: They’ve moved to a new city and don’t know very many people yet. They’ve been in a long term relationship and have let their social life wither. Their old friends have slowly been dropping out of the picture (moving away, busy with work or a new family, etc. ) and haven’t been replaced by new ones.

A large chunk of their social circle disappeared overnight, like everyone graduated from university and most of their friends moved out of the city. They feel like they’ve grown apart from their current friends and want to make entirely new ones. In the past they were happy being alone a lot of the time, but now they want to be around people more often. They never really knew how to make friends and have always wished their social lives were better. They’ve recently made a big lifestyle change such as deciding not to drink anymore, and need to develop a new social circle that’s more suited to it.

Below are my thoughts on how to make friends. I’ll cover a basic structure first, then go into some attitudes and principles towards the whole thing that I think are important. I’ve noticed people who are already good at making friends naturally tend to do most of the things I outline below without thinking about it. Bare bones guide on how to make friends Here are the basic steps to making friends. It seems simplistic, but there can be a lot to each point. People who struggle with their social lives often stumble on one or more of them as well. 1. Find some potential friends

To make friends you first have to find some possible candidates. There are two main ways to do this: Draw on your current contacts This won’t apply to people who have just moved to a new area and don’t know anyone, but often you’ll already have the seeds of a social life around you. You don’t necessarily have to go out and meet ten strangers to have one. It’s often easier to turn existing contacts into full-fledged friends than it is to meet new ones. There are probably a handful of people you already know who could end up becoming part of a new social circle.

I’m talking about people like: Acquaintances you’re friendly with when you run into each other, but who you never see otherwise. People at work or in your classes who you get along with. Friends of people you know who you’ve gotten along with in the past. Someone who has shown an interest in being your friend but you never really took up the offer. People you very occasionally hang out with, who you could see more often. Friends you’ve gradually lost contact with who you could call up again. For some people, cousins who are close to your age. Meet some new people

Getting more out of your current relationships can go a long way, but it doesn’t always work. Sometimes you’re at a point where you need to meet entirely new people. Not having easy access to potential new friends is a big barrier for many people in creating a social circle. I go into more detail here: How To Meet People. Overall, I’d say the easiest things to do are: Being in a situation where lots of potential friends are around, and you naturally have to get to know them through your day-to-day interactions. Work and school are the two big ones. Meeting one or two good people and then getting to know all their friends.

If you hang out with fifteen people, you shouldn’t have to have met them all individually. Being into hobbies or communities where you’ll naturally meet a lot of people, ones you already have something common with and a built-in activity/conversation opportunity to do with them. Overall, meeting new people may require making an effort to pull out of your day-to-day routine. If most of your hobbies are solitary you might also need to add some more people-oriented ones to the mix. Also, the easiest way to naturally meet a lot of people is just to live a full, interesting life and run into lots of potential friends as a side effect.

Once you’re in a situation with some prospective friends around, you need to strike up conversations and try to get to know them. You won’t form a connection with everyone you interact with, but if you chat to enough people you’ll find you like and get along pretty well with some of them. Once you’ve done that you could say you’re now at the Friendly Acquaintance stage, or that they’re context-specific contacts (e. g. , work “friends”). If you have trouble with successfully meeting, chatting to, and getting to know people, you may want to check out the site’s sections on shyness, fears, and insecurity and on making conversation. . Invite potential friends to do something with you Once you’ve met those people you seem to be clicking with with, ask them to hang out and do something outside of the situation you met them in. This is the most important step in my experience. You can meet all the people you want, and they can think you’re great, but if you don’t take any actions to do something with them in the future, then you won’t form many new relationships. People will stay as the guy you talk to in class, or the girl you chat to at work in the break room. This seems basic, but lonelier people often hit a wall here.

There may be someone they joke around with at work, or chat to in one of their classes, but they won’t take the step of inviting them out and taking the relationship to the next level, and beyond the acquaintance stage. If you’re on the shyer side, you might be a little hesitant to invite people out. While it is a little scary at first, and there is some risk of rejection, it’s fairly easy to get used to. It’s not nearly as bad as asking someone out on a date, for example. Depending on how you met them, you may invite someone to hang out fairly quickly or wait a few weeks.

For example, if a friend brings one of their buddies along to have drinks with you one day, and you spent four hours together and hit it off right from the start, you may be totally comfortable asking them to hang out again right away. On the other hand, if you seem to mesh with someone at your job, you may only be able to have short conversations here and there over a month before you feel like they’d be someone worth knowing better. If you’re not sure how to ask someone to do something with you, you could check out this article: Examples Of Various Ways To Invite People To Hang Out Make a habit of getting people’s contact information

It’s a good idea to get into the habit of getting people’s contact info fairly early. You may meet someone interesting, but you can never assume you’re going to see them around again any time soon. Ask for their phone number or email address, or see if they’re on Facebook. That way if an opportunity to get together comes up, they’ll be easy to reach. Also, if they have your info, then they can get a hold of you if they want to invite you to something. Have a basic grasp of how to make plans To hang out with someone you’ve got to plan it. Sometimes the process is straight forward.

You ask them if they want do something, they agree, and you set a time and place. At other times trying to nail down a plan can be tedious and unpredictable, especially when more than one other person is involved. It helps to accept that this is just an area where there’s always going to be an amount of uncertainty, and you can’t control everything. If inviting people out and arranging plans all seems like a big hassle, it also probably feels that way for everyone else at times. They shouldn’t always have to step up and organize things for you. Do some of the lifting yourself when you need to.

More details here: Advice On Making Plans With People Do your best to accept every invitation Of course, making your own plans is important, but if someone asks you to hang out, then that’s even better. If someone invites you to do something, then you should go. Why turn down a free chance to get out there with people? When you’ve got more friends and different options competing for your time you can be more choosy. If you’re more of a shy or solitary person it’s easy to mull over the invitation and rationalize that it won’t be that fun and that you don’t want to go.

Ignore those thoughts and go anyways. You never can be sure how fun something will be until you show up and see how it is for yourself. Sometimes you’ll have to inconvenience yourself for the sake of your social life. You may get invited to a movie you don’t particularly want to see, or someone might call you up on Friday evening as you’re about to go to bed, asking if you want to go out. Whenever you have two or more people in the equation, you’re going to have to compromise sometimes. Again, just being out there outweighs these minor annoyances.

Another thing to consider is that many people will stop inviting someone out to things if they decline too often. They may have nothing against the person, but the next time they’re planning an event will think, “Paul never comes out when I ask him, so no point in letting him know this time really. ” 3. Once you’ve got some budding friendships, keep in touch, keep hanging out, and let the relationship grow It’s one thing to hang out with someone once, or only occasionally. You could consider them a friend of sorts at that point.

For that particular person maybe that’s all you need in a relationship with them, someone you’re casually friendly with and who you see every now and then. However, for someone to became a closer, more regular friend you need hang out fairly often, keep in touch, enjoy good times together, and get to know each other on a deeper level. You won’t have the compatibility to do this with everyone, but over time you should be able to build a tighter relationship with some of the people you meet. I talk about developing friendships way more in this article: How To Grow And Deepen New Friendships Once you know some people, build on this foundation

Once you’ve made a regular friend or two you’ve also got a good base to work from. If you’re not super social in nature, one or two good buddies may be all you need to be happy. At the very least, if you were feeling lonely and desperate before, having a relationship or two should be enough to take those feelings away. Sooner or later you’ll end up meeting your friend’s friends. If you hit it off with them then you can start hanging out with them as well. You could also become a member of the whole group with time. You can also continue to meet entirely new people.

Having friends will make this easier as they’ll do things like invite you to parties or keep you company in places where there are new people to potentially meet. 4. Repeat the above steps more often to make more friends If you join one new club, hit it off with three people there, and end up hanging out with two of them long term, then you’ve made two new friends. If you stop there then that’s all you’ll have. If week after week you’re coming up with new ways to meet people, and then following up and attending lots of get togethers, then you’ll have a pile of friends and acquaintances eventually. It’s up to you when you feel like stopping.

There’s no law that says everyone has to have dozens of people in their social circle either. Many people are perfectly happy only having a few really close relationships. If you only have a couple of friends and decide you want more though, you can always get out there again. General principles on making friends Above I outlined a basic structure of Meet People > Hang Out With Them > Keep Hanging Out > Repeat. Now I’ll go into some broader concepts that apply to making friends as a whole. I think the points below are just as important as the stuff I’ve covered already, if not more so. If you want social life, you’ve got to make it happen for yourself A huge, core principle when it comes to building a social life is: Take Initiative. It’s a big mistake to passively wait for other people to do the work of befriending you. It’s great if it happens, but don’t count on it. If you want to get a group of friends, assume you’ll have to put in all the effort. If you want to do something on the weekend, don’t sit around and hope someone calls you. Get in touch with various people and put something together yourself, or find out what they’re doing and see if you can come along. Don’t worry too much about seeming desperate or needy.

Take the attitude that it’s about you and you’ll do what needs to be done to make some friends. Who cares if a handful of people think you’re a bit too eager along the way if it all eventually works out? It’s a lot like dating or trying to find a new job. What you get out of these things depends a lot on how much you put into them. Don’t take it personally if people seem indifferent to you Other people are often harmlessly thoughtless and preoccupied in the sense that they’d be happy if they hung out with you, but they wouldn’t think to ask you themselves. Sometimes you have to take an interest in them before you appear on their radar.

Similarly, some people are more lax and laid back than you’d like about returning your emails or calls. They’re not consciously trying to reject you, they’re just a little more loosey-goosey about that stuff than most. Don’t feel making friends is super tricky If you’re inexperienced with making friends, you may see the process as being more drawn-out and complex than it really is. Often all you have to do to make a friend is meet someone you naturally click with and hang around with them enough. You also don’t have to know them for months before applying the ‘friend’ label to them.

One characteristic of more social people is that they’ll throw the word friend around pretty loosely when describing their relationships with people. But it almost becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy in a way. Sure, if you’ve just met someone it may not be a deep, intimate relationship, but you can still hang out with them and have a good time. Don’t be overly picky about who you hang out with at first Your initial goal should just be to get some sort of social life going. So hang out with whoever you get along with and who seems interested in doing things with you.

The first people you meet may not be your 100% ideal friends. The benefits of just being out there as opposed to moping around at home outweigh this. At the very least, it’s easier to make further friends when you’ve already got a few. Also, if you’re forming your first-ever group of friends, you probably don’t totally know what you like or want in other people. You have to see what different types of people are like in a friend capacity firsthand. As a general rule, if you more-or-less get along with someone, actually become friends with them first, and then decide if want to be friends.

If you’re picky, you can come up with reasons not to befriend just about anyone ahead of time. But when you’re already hanging out with someone, and you’ve skipped over your pickiness, you often find you like their company, even if they wouldn’t have been good ‘on paper’ in your mind beforehand. I also give this advice because studies show lonely people tend to be more negative about others in general. Less naturally outgoing types can also be more picky about who they choose to spend their time with. If you naturally tend to be down on everyone you meet, you need to make an effort to consciously override these feelings.

Plus, don’t have an unrealistic self-image that demands you can only hang out with a certain caliber of people. Be realistic about yourself and your circumstances. If you don’t totally like yourself, you may also be averse to hanging around people who you see as too similar to you, as it can act as a mirror that reflects your shortcomings back at you. This may be justified if you have some irksome traits and understandably want to avoid others who have them, but often you may be turning away legitimately good people who just happen to have some characteristics that hurt your pride a little. Be persistent nd try not to get discouraged by setbacks too easily Sometimes you’ll join a club or be introduced to your friend’s friends and hope to meet a bunch of great new people. Then you get there and the experience is disappointing. You may feel like you don’t click with anyone, or like they’re ignoring you in favor of making in-jokes with each other. Give these groups a few more tries, often you’re limited in how much you’ll connect with others on the first meeting. You may warm up to each other before long. If someone refuses your invitation because they’re busy or not sure if they can make it out then don’t give up.

Try again another time. Don’t automatically jump to the conclusion that they hate you and you’re fundamentally unlikable. Assume the best. Also, even the act of making an invitation sends the message that you like someone and want to hang out with them. They may be unable to meet that one time, but now see you as someone they could possibly have fun with in the future. When you meet potential friends be realistic about your importance in their lives and how long it may take to become buddies with them. They probably already have a social circle and their world won’t end if it doesn’t work out with you.

As such, don’t get too discouraged if they’re not knocking down the door to hang out with you a day after you met them. They may be busy and your plans may not pan out for another few weeks. Sometimes it just won’t work out with someone. You’ll get along at the time, and they may express an interest in hanging out in the future, but for whatever reason things don’t materialize. They may be too busy, already have enough friends, or they don’t think you’re a good enough match for them. It happens to everyone and is nothing to get too down about.

Keep the bigger picture in mind and continue meeting people. The whole ‘taking initiative and don’t give up too easily’ thing can be a missing piece of the puzzle for people, but sometimes it still seems that no one is interested in you. You may want to check this out: When People Don’t Seem Interested In Being Friends With You Be patient In the right situations you can build a new social life really quickly, like if you’ve just moved to a new city to go to college, or if you join the right club or team and instantly click with everyone there.

At other times it takes longer for things to develop, but stick with it. It may take a while before you get a chance to meet some people you’re compatible with. After that, it may be a few months before you’re consistently hanging around with each other. It may be a year or more before you feel like you’re really, really friends with them. It often takes time to go from having no plans, to having plans with the same person every third weekend, to having plans with a variety of people three times a week.

Strong and Weak Relationships in Stories Relationships in stories are very important, to who the characters are and how they act. In the stories that were read the relationships shown were both strong and weak. Depending on how the characters act toward each other, it determines their relationship. The stories, Forty-five a Month and The House on the Border, both have very weak relationships, whereas the story, The Ch’i-lin Purse, has a very strong relationship. In a relationship one person sometimes depends on the other, but if the other does not support the other, it becomes weak.

In the story, House on the Border, there was a very weak relationship between the main characters, the people that live in the house and the authorities. The relationship is weak for many reasons. The authorities are not helpful to the people that live in the house. After a thief has just broken into their house, the people that live there tie him up and go to the authorities. They go to different authorities, who just keep passing the responsibility of taking care of the situation on to the other one. Either all eight of us, my wife and I and the six thieves, will spend the remainder of the year here, or they will include the house in one of the areas, thus enabling me to complain to the authorities. ” This shows a weak relationship because the people that lived on the house were very dependent on the authorities, just like any other citizen. This relationship is foreshadowing the author’s take on the his country’s government and how they are not giving aide to the people in the country. That is also another example of a weak relationship, and a more simple example would be between two particular characters.

The story Forty-five a Month is a great example of weak relationship between two characters directly. Two of the main characters, Shanta and Venkat, represent a very weak relationship. Shanta is the daughter of Venkat, they have a weak relationship for a lot of reasons. In a daughter to father relationship, it is imagined that the two are to be considered “close” by spending time together. In this story the daughter to father relationship is broken apart because of the father’s work. The daughter cannot understand the father’s purpose for being devoted to work. I don’t know if it is going to be possible for me to take her out at all- you see, they are giving me an increment. ” The father wants to spend time with his daughter, but he cannot because his job supports his whole family. It is also weak because of the broken promises that Venkat makes to Shanta. Venkat promises to take her to the movies, but he lets Shanta down because she expected a great night out with her father, and is now asleep at home and all dressed up. The promises being broken make it very weak. The Ch’i-lin Purse is a perfect example of a strong relationship.

The relationship between Mrs. Lu and Hsiang-Ling in the Ch’i-lin Purse is very strong because it taught a lesson and saved the characters. It taught the lessons of sacrifice and good karma. The lesson of sacrifice was taught to Mrs. Lu when she gave up her purse to the crying girl at her wedding. Also she was taught to sacrifice when she got her soup after the storm and then gave it away. “If you have a chance to do something good, be sure to do it. Happiness will come back to you. ” The lesson of karma is taught when Mrs. Lu has sacrificed her things and was rewarded in return.

All of that could not have been done without the strong relationship of two strangers, who in the end are both saved and rewarded, because they found each other. The stories, Forty-five a Month and The House on the Border, both have very weak relationships, whereas the story, The Ch’i-lin Purse, has a very strong relationship. The stories had strong and weak relationships, and they all represented them in different ways. The stories showed good examples through characters, foreshadowing, and lessons. Many other stories have both strong and weak relationships.

He has been called the most significant President of the 20th century. Ronald Reagan’s devotion to the American people and his unwavering commitment to managing both domestic and foreign affairs with sincerity, composure and efficiency provided a beacon of hope in an era that was marked by economic turmoil on the homefront and an impending threat of nuclear war.

An analysis of Reagan’s life history, from a psychological standpoint, seeks to reveal the significant factors and influential events that may shed light on how he acquired the distinctive characteristics and how the interplay of how these factors subsequently shaped the extraordinary person he became. It is necessary to consider the influence of heredity, certain family issues, social systems and environment on psychological development. Ronald Reagan was born on February 6, 1911 in the small midwestern town of Tampico, Illinois to Nell (mother) and Jack (father) and older brother Neil.

Jack Reagan was a salesman, a staunch Irish- Catholic, a Democrat, despised bigotry and racial discrimination, supported blue collar workers and instilled in his sons the same values. Possibly more influential to Ronald’s psychological development was that his father was also an alcoholic (Gilbert, 2007). This was very difficult aspect of Reagan’s childhood and he struggled to cope with his reality and make sense of his father’s behavior. Ronald’s mother, Nelle was a very patient and nurturing woman who doted on her sons.

She can be credited for familiarizing Ronald to theater and the stage by sharing with him her love of acting, as she was an actress herself. Being on stage and performing proved to be enjoyable for Ronald, so much so that he went on to star in various Hollywood movies. He even confessed that, “for a kid suffering childhood pangs of insecurity, the applause was music” (Will, 1990). She made a concerted effort to help them recognize that their fathers alcoholism, while upsetting and hard to understand, was a disease.

Nelle was sympathetic in helping her sons deal with their father’s affliction and urged them not to blame their father for succumbing to the disease. She functioned as the constant source of unconditional loving care that seemed to lessen, though not completely diminish, the impact of Jack’s disease (Gilbert, 2007). She reminded her sons how evident their father’s love was when he was not drinking and helped them to maintain love and respect for their father in spite of his weakness.

Nelle was a faithfully eligious woman and frequently made visits to families in need, the sick and went out of her way to lend a helping hand to anyone she was able help. Her generosity, kindness and unconditional love had a profound impact on her sons and masked some of the pain and disillusionment associated with their fathers’ alcoholism (Gilbert, 2007). For Reagan, growing up in an environment marked by the staggering paradox of his parents left an indelible impact on his life. His mother was the dependable parent who provided consistent love and guidance.

In contrast, Jack Reagan’s alcoholism caused his sons considerable grief and confusion as to why he was unable to conquer his disease. Nelle Reagan wanted to protect her sons by rationalizing Jack’s behavior hoping they would not develop resentment towards their father. These efforts by Nelle, while well intentioned, served to create the illusion that the Reagan home environment was less dysfunctional than it truly was. According to Psychodynamic Theory, her behavior could be interpreted as reflective of an unconscious need to protect her children.

Making a consistent effort to assure her sons that their father was the victim of a disease and powerless against his alcoholism could be classified as an illustration of both denial and rationalization. Denial is defined as, “the persons refusal to acknowledge external realities or emotions” (Kowalski and Westen, 2009). Rationalization can be identified as, “explaining away actions in a seemingly logical way to avoid uncomfortable feelings” (Kowalski and Westen, 2009). The Reagan family moved many times as a result of Jack’s inability to maintain work.

This made it difficult for Ronald to build friendships which inevitably took a toll on his social skills as a boy and his ability to have meaningful relationships as an adult. As a child, Ronald Reagan was an introverted child with low self esteem (Gilbert, 2007). This is highly characteristic of children with alcoholic parents. Many individuals in Reagan’s close knit inner circle observed his reluctance, even inability, to sustain intimate and meaningful relationships with very many individuals. This is consistent to what research suggests about children who grow up in families in which at least one of the parents is an alcoholic.

According to an article in the International Journal of Social Sciences and General Studies, “since the family is the context in which children usually learn to express their feelings, to love and express affection and to trust and share intimate aspects of their lives; it is understandable that many adult children of alcoholics have significant problems with psychosocial adjustment. They show extreme difficulty in sharing themselves in intimate ways with other people” (2010). It seems unlikely that Ronald Reagan, or any child who endures such unfortunate experiences, would ultimately be an actor or the president of the United States!

However, the attention that Reagan sought was passive attention. He did not necessarily have to interact with audience members or constituents on a level that forced him to create any intimate, personal bond with these persons. Rather, he was able to operate from a secluded platform where he was able to control people’s perceptions of him. While he proved to be an effective leader and loved President, his childhood and subsequent development were certainly noticeable and undoubtedly affected how he operated as the leader of the free world.

Interpersonal Communication Interpersonal communication is an important issue in the social aspect dealing with the different forms of association with other individuals. The said process may involve varying number of individuals but the most important component is the exchange of responses regardless of the nature such as positive and negative. When it comes to the said issue, it is important to consider different factors. The important factors that are needed to be considered in the study of interpersonal relationships include the ways and methods of expression, the types of interpersonal interaction and even the results.

These are included in the issues that are essential in the discussion of interpersonal communication. Interpersonal relationship can vary from a professional relationship in the workplace and the academe to personal relationship such the family, friendship and the relationship between man and woman. In the movie, When Harry Met Sally, an important area of interpersonal communication was the main focus which is the interaction between the female and the male population.

There are significant views presented by the movie regarding the interpersonal communication between a man and a woman. The main objective is to be able to present an analysis of the ideas and concepts that are presented in the film. I. The basic differences between Harry and Sally (and their friends, if applicable) regarding their nonverbal behavior, nurturance and empathy, friendship, conflict and power. The characters of the movie represent the varying behaviors of the human beings in terms of the interaction with one another.

Interpersonal communication can be assessed through the verbal and the non-verbal stimuli and indications. In terms of the non-verbal behaviors of the characters in the film, certain groups of personalities are represented. Harry is the representation of the population who are either different due to their personal beliefs or wanted to be different, thus, they tend to adopt behaviors that are out of the conventional. Being anti-social at some degree, Harry believed that he is different which also make him opinionated about different issues.

Oftentimes he perceived that his views on different situations are the standards that should be taken. He can also be described a rebel in his beliefs. Sally on the other hand, can be considered as the representation of the people with structures lifestyle and those that follow the conventional norms. Thus, she is relaxed in conveying what she wants in every details and aspects in her life. She can communicate verbally which can be considered to lessen the need for non-verbal communication.

In terms of nurturance and empathy, both of the main characters have the capability to nurture and empathize although they had the difficulties to express these interactions, the years of friendship after the long years of not understanding each other can be considered an important notion in interpersonal communication. Two very different persons had achieved a level of relationship, both friendship and love, that make them understand each other. This relationship of nurturance and empathy can be considered to be essential and vital, since it was able to transcend the personal differences.

The story also depicts the complicated interaction between a man and a woman that can be vaguely defined from friendship to the verge of love. This can be considered as the main issue of the story between Harry and Sally, the success or failure of friendship due to the inevitable attraction between man and woman. The main issue specifically being the incapability of the opposite sexes to be friends since the issue of sex lurks with capability to break the friendship or raise the level of relationship to a higher note of human interaction.

When the differences of the sexes are defined, commonly there is a conflict in terms of power and other aspects. Varying beliefs in the strengths of the male and the female population can be perceived. These differences were presented through the unfolding of the plot of the movie. Although stereotypical knowledge commonly depicts the physical superiority of the male over the female population and emotional prowess and understanding can be attributed to the female population, there can never be a general rule. II. The different ways that men and women communicate

There are varying ways and methods that men and women communicate. The movie deals with the fact that men and women can never be really friends. This can be considered on the basis that attraction can never be ignored, that it is inevitable. This is the main belief of the main character. In the end, some of the view that he considered true really happened. This is due to the fact that friendship can be considered as an intimate relationship. A view that friendship between a man and a woman can be comparable to an intimate relationship is due to the fact that there is commitment.

For that matter interpersonal communication and relationship between the two sexes can inevitably lead to another level. Friendship can be considered as one of the most intimate relationship next to love. The possibility of being in a man-woman relationship between friends of the opposite sexes can inevitably be considered. This can be attributed to the fact that the film deals on the attraction in between a man and a woman who initially dislike each other but found attraction as they had learned to understand and empathize each other. [1]

There are different ways that a man and a woman can communicate. Due to the fact that interpersonal communication can be classified on the basis of the interaction between same or opposite gender, varying through other factors such as age, culture and the environment wherein they had been raised, determining the classification is a challenge. But a man and a woman can be friends and even a couple. The ways of interpersonal relationship is complicated and complex that it cannot be defined in simple terms. The interaction of the main characters in the film depicts the different ways communication.

During the first part, they are opposing each other. The antagonistic communication is one type interpersonal communication. In this type of interaction, the two sides have different ideas and find it hard to empathize with each other. Another type of interaction can be that wherein both parties find it unnecessary to communicate with each other due to lack of common ideas and similarities. Although such interactions are present, there are also other forms that can be considered as positive. These types of relationships and communications are of deeper commitment and interaction.

This is where friendship and man-woman relationship can be classified. Another relation that can be considered in this group is that of the relationship for family members. The ways of communication can be considered positive. Verbal and non-verbal communications are also considered as the important ways of communication in the interpersonal level. These two types can be considered as essential to be able to establish relationship and interaction in the society. The verbal communication can be considered as a way of explicit interaction and expression to be able to convey the message to the other party.

Men and women can be considered to have different strengths and methods of communication. Thus, its can be a challenge to determine the real message that is needed to be communicated. This can be considered as one of the hindrance in interpersonal communication. Another is the personal differences which can be considered as a challenge in communication and understanding. [2] Another way of communication between the male and the female is through the non verbal indications. According the cliche, actions speaks louder than voice the non-verbal communication can be more effective in expression of deep feelings.

Men can be considered to be better in communication through the non-verbal ways, but this cannot be considered as a general rule. Although non-verbal communication is an important method to be able to achieve interpersonal communication and interaction, misunderstanding can be a common scenario. It is important then to consider that the integration of the verbal and the non-verbal ways of communication should be applied to be able to achieve the understanding that is the primary role of the interpersonal communication. III.

What about role expectations, and how does this concept apply to the characters on a social and cultural level? On the basis of communication then, there are different expectations between the sexes with regards to the roles that they can undertake in the communication process. Based on the stereotypical standards of the society, the women can express their emotions better through the verbal communication. This can be considered due to the diplomacy and understanding exhibited by the mother in her interaction with the family and other members of the community.

Due to the said perception, even in the roles taken by the female in the different aspects of the society, may it be political, religious, etc. the skill to communicate verbally and understand is one of the main focus in considering a woman for the role. On the other hand, due to the perception that the man is the strength of the society, as depicted in the role of the father to support the family, the male members of the population is considered to have the capability to better communicate through the non-verbal ways of communication. IV.

What roles perception and stereotypes play in the communication between the characters? In the movie, the differences in the sexes and their perceptions were conveyed. Also some of the stereotypical behaviors of a male and a female were portrayed. The guy being a womanizer is also another stereotype in the story. On the other hand the woman is more family oriented which is the typical characteristic of the females. There are also important behaviors in the world with the differences between the male and the female that the film presented. One is regarding the state of relationships.

The movie presented different scenarios wherein a long term and strong relationship can be achieved in different ways, most important of which is to be able to transcend the differences of the male and the female. Another important concept presented is the importance to being with a person for a long period of time to be able to gain a level of harmonious relationship. In the film, the interpersonal relationship of Harry and Sally developed from two people despising each other to being friends. Once they got to know each other better, they were able to understand and empathize.

Friendship then was established, a comfortable and mutually beneficial one, for they can exclusively support each other. Due to the fact that they do everything together the friendship developed into a more intimate relationship. V. Do you think that men and women can stay friends without the `sex part` getting in the way? And why? There is a complex interaction of the different interpersonal communication factors that decide the relationship between individuals. In the case of friendship between male and female individuals, attraction can be considered inevitable.

This can also be magnified by the fact that they can consider the other person as the only one that they can comfortable confiding their problems and every details of their life. For that matter, friendship becomes very important. Due to the perspective of friendship, there are those who approve and whose that disapprove developing friendship to another level, thus, they consider that man and woman cannot stay are friends. A more important view though is related to the attraction between the male and female. The attraction between the two sexes can be considered as the main reason that can hinder friendship.

It is based on the perspective of the person. In relation to the fact that ‘sex part’ can be considered as a hindrance in friendship it can be considered true since as presented, the attraction between man and woman is inevitable. But there are other factors that should be considered. These factors also involve different forms of interpersonal relationship. VI. Does friendship strengthen the relationship of a man and a woman once they become a couple? Interpersonal relationship can be considered as a complicated process in the human interaction.

But friendship according to those who experienced it, can attest to the fact that once the man-woman relationship is achieved, friendship strengthens the bond. The movie depicts the fact that sexual interaction can interfere but in the case of the couples who had been together through the adult years, friendship and deep understanding can be considered as the main framework of the relationship. Conclusion In the study that was conducted regarding interpersonal relationship and the scenarios presented in the film “When Harry Met Sally,” the fact that relationships with other people is a complex process.

The most complicated of these relationships is that between a man and a woman. Due to their differences, they tend to be curious and attracted to each other. But they will soon learn that the opposite sex whom they found really different is in fact a complimentary half. A deeper relationship can then be developed towards friendship and even lifetime partnership. The query on the possibility of friendships between the sexes without considering attraction can be considered less important to the fact that through different levels of interpersonal communication between men and women, a deep understanding can be acquired.

Reference Conville, Richard and L. Edna Rogers, eds. The Meaning of “Relationship” in Interpersonal Communication. Westport, CT: Praeger, 1998. ———————– [1] Richard Conville and L. Edna Rogers, eds. The Meaning of “Relationship” in Interpersonal Communication. (Westport, CT: Praeger, 1998). [2] Richard Conville and L. Edna Rogers, eds. The Meaning of “Relationship” in Interpersonal Communication. (Westport, CT: Praeger, 1998).