The Influence of Childhood Psychic Traumas on Personality Development on the Example of a Film Shine

The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of childhood mental trauma on personality development. The objectives of the study were: to study psychoanalytic theories of personality development, to analyze the concept of trauma in psychoanalysis, to investigate the role of childhood trauma on personality development with the help of theoretical analysis, to investigate the influence of childhood mental trauma on personality development on the example of the protagonist of the film “Shine”. Theoretical analysis has shown that early childhood experiences play a critical role in the formation of adult personality. As a result of a trauma, the child may be fixed at some stage of psychosexual development, which may be due to the frustration of the child's needs as a result of overprotective parents. Trauma is defined as an experience that actualizes psychological defenses. Psychoanalytic study of the influence of childhood mental trauma on personality development on the example of the film “Shine” showed that the cause of early trauma is a child-parent relationship with the father, which is characterized by overprotection and symbiotic relationships. Through the experience of abuse in a relationship with a narcissistic father, David develops a disorganized form of attachment, characterized by an ambivalent and anxious attitude. Abuse of the child with complete disregard for his emotional needs led to the development of David's mental disorder, as an escape to a safe mental shelter from an unbearable reality. And his excessive sexualization was a desire to feel intimacy, warm emotional contact, which was so lacking in childhood. Perhaps the destructive effect would not be so strong if in early childhood there were other adults who could support and help the protagonist to contain his feelings. The prevalence of negative internalized experiences over positive ones in the relationship with the object resulted in a split ego and an inability to integrate the Self.