Patch Adams 'Laughter Is The Best Medicine'

Laughter is the Best Medicine

The movie Patch Adams uses narrative terminology by telling the story of a medical student who wants to change the way doctors interact with their patients. It uses plot, character, and setting, among other terminologies, to create a compelling narrative that explores themes of compassion, empathy, and healing.

Patch Adams is a film that illustrates a story based on a man who struggles with depression in a mental hospital, Hunter "Patch" Adams (Robin Williams) decides he wants to become a doctor. He enrolls at Virginia Medical University but is disillusioned by the school's clinical perspective on patient care. With the aid of a wealthy friend, Adams opens his own medical clinic for those without insurance. He

One moment I am laughing at how Patch makes the younger patients laugh, and on the other hand I get a bit teary eyed when I see Dean Walcott take down Patches confidence and tried to belittle him. Allegory is a story that can be interpreted to reveal a hidden meaning, typically a moral or political one. Throughout the film we discover that laughter can truly be the best medicine with most situations. Patch Adams’ main goal was to see the patient as a person and not as some case number. He influenced most upcoming doctors by sticking to his beliefs and not let anyone tear down his motivation with becoming the best doctor there is. One of the key narrative terms used in the movie is the concept of the “hero’s journey” or monomyth. The journeys feature similar stages such as “meeting the mentor,” “supernatural aid” and “the road of trials.” Patch goes through an almost transparent version of a monomyth. His call to adventure was towards the beginning of the film when he experienced the life in a mental institution. He comes to a realization how poorly patients can be treated and how they are seen as a case number or as a scientific study rather than a sick patient who needs to feel safe and heard and to be treated. Patch seeks out to fix that and to recreate the teachings of becoming a

. .”: Lived experience of surviving mental illness as a prosumer, how psychology chose him because of his mothers struggles with mental illness. He grew up around the rollercoaster of emotions and feelings his parents went through and how instead of negatively impacting him, it inspired him for the greater good. As a doctor with prior related experiences with seeing the outskirts of what someone goes through with mental illness, it made him stronger aas a doctor and helped him relate to his patients rather than just seeing the patients as case numbers like Dean Walcott did in Patch Adams. I think it is important for any type of doctors to think and realise how important it can be to relate to your patients or see them eye to eye. I have heard multiple stories and unfortunately experienced situations where a doctor doesn’t actively listen or overall care. Overall, Patch Adams is a great example of how narrative terminology can be used to create a compelling and emotionally engaging story. By using devices such as allegory, bildungsroman, and monomyths, the filmmakers were able to tell a story that resonates with audiences and inspires them to think about possibly other films that clearly show narrative terminologies along with inspiring them to think differently about the world thats around