THEMES IN THE MIRACLE WORKER MOVIE

Indeed, HelenвЂ™s anger due to her frustration in not being able to connect comes out as hostility as she fights with one of the African American servant children. This shot can imply resentment on HelenвЂ™s part for the child that has the physical attributes she lacks, and jealousy concerning her motherвЂ™s love for that other child. She knocks over objects, including her baby sibling resting in a cradle on the floor. She looks like a scarecrow, something that appears to be a person, but is not (until transformed in The Wizard of Oz, which hints at the metamorphosis to come).Д«ecause she is unable to see or hear what is around her, Helen is also a threat to others, because she has no early warning system. The analogy is repeated when we see Helen walking with outstretched arms in a field. This shot again emphasizes how Helen stands apart from the other average inhabitants of the world. She is next in the yard and gets caught in the white laundry, and the image of her wrapped in the fabric makes her look like a ghost. We actually see her shadow first, implying she is not a fully formed person, given the limitations of her disabilities. The shot stresses the danger in this world for her, as she can fall (and fail?) at any moment. The narrative jumps forward to 1887, and Helen (Patty Duke, repeating the performance she gave on the stage, and winning an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress, but looking older than HelenвЂ™s age here) tentatively walks forward toward a staircase. She screams and the Captain waves a lantern in front of Helen, with no response from the child. Indeed, the Captain and his adult son from a previous marriage, James (Andrew Prine), donвЂ™t seem to comprehend the strength of the women around them.Д«ut, KateвЂ™s hope for a healthy Helen quickly vanishes as she realizes her baby does not blink and canвЂ™t respond to KateвЂ™s snapping her fingers. HelenвЂ™s mother, Kate (Inga Swenson), after her husband escorts the doctor to the door, talks to Helen, commenting that Captain KellerвЂ™s earlier remark that his wife was not used to вЂњbattle scarsвЂќ shows how men donвЂ™t understand what women must endure.

He does say that the baby has a great deal of energy, and as we see he is correct on that account.

So much for the medical profession in Alabama in 1882.

The doctor says that sometimes there is вЂњacute congestionвЂќ of the brain at birth, but that Helen will be okay. HelenвЂ™s father, Captain Arthur Keller (Victor Jory), a loud ex-military man used to having his world marching to the sound of his voice, speaks with a doctor (Grant Code) following HelenвЂ™s difficult birth.

THEMES IN THE MIRACLE WORKER MOVIE

The movie opens with a shot upwards, almost from HelenвЂ™s crib shortly after her birth, which emphasizes that she is the prime interest in the film.

Themes in the miracle worker