Defense Mechanisms In Matilda

People distract themselves or cope with unpleasant wishes and desires by using defense mechanisms. Defense mechanisms are ways that we protect ourselves from being consciously aware of thoughts and feeling that may be too painful to tolerate. They occur on an unconscious level so we are usually not aware of when we are doing it. The purpose of developing defense mechanisms is to ultimately flourish the ego in carrying out its functions. One the other hand, Sigmund Freud suggest that should defense mechanisms distort reality and become too extreme, it may become maladaptive and destructive which may prevent further personal and social growth. The movie “Matilda” is a great example as to how one may use defense mechanisms to cope with their everyday

Repression involves blocking a wish or desire from expression so that it cannot be experienced consciously or expressed directly in behavior. People perform an involuntary act that prevents them from being aware of anxiety producing conflicts or remembering specific traumatic emotional events from their past. Matilda demonstrates this defense mechanism by not acknowledging the fact that her parent’s neglected her as a child. Matilda never recalls on her childhood when her parents left her alone at home to fend for herself. Instead, she acts as if it never

Many people do this on a daily basis in order to cope with anxiety producing conflicts. The teacher in Matilda uses reaction formation as a defense mechanism by pretending to get along with the principal of the school however; she does not like the principal because of the way she treats her and the children. Regression is when a person returns to an earlier form of expressing an impulse. It is said that when a person is troubled or even frightened, their behaviors often become more childish. The person moves backwards in time to a stage that was less anxious and had fewer responsibilities. Regression usually occurs when the person experiences something traumatic. The principal is a bully and treats the children who attend the school inhumanly. She orders the children around and if they do not listen to her, she punishes them in cruel ways. Toward the end, the children seek revenge by retaliating. The principal is then seen crying like a baby and running away from the children. The defense mechanism that she uses is known as