The Jarrett Family In The Film Ordinary People

In the Academy Award winning film Ordinary People, the Jarrett family deals with the emotional struggles of losing their son Buck in a boating accident. The relationships in the family become dysfunctional because of their lack of communication. Conflict management could have assisted the Jarrett family with their situation. Conrad, Beth, and Calvin all participate in acts of “silence” or “violence.” Conrad shows acts of “silence” or “violence” in a myriad of ways. In the beginning, Conrad is hesitant to call Dr. Berger and when he finally does, he does not want to leave the doctor his number. This is a way of avoiding his problems. Another example is when he goes to see the doctor and Conrad will not tell him anything about what is wrong. Again he is avoiding talking about his feelings and emotions. One example of Conrad showing “violence” is when he barked at his mother to avoid the

An example of how she uses “silence” is she always plans trips to get away when something bad is happening. In the scene where Conrad is resting outside, she heads out to talk to him but when the incident is brought up she quickly changes the conversation. When Beth and Conrad meet in the hall she avoids connecting with her son by telling him to clean his room. At one point she says she wishes her son would go off to school so she does not have to deal with him. When Calvin brings up the funeral in the garage she gets really annoyed and refuses to talk about it. An example of when she uses “violence” is when she shoves Conrad’s french toast down the drain. She also gets angry when she has to take a picture with Conrad. When the big fight scene happens, she continuously victimizes and ignores her son. Also when Beth and Calvin are golfing they get into a fight. The family could have helped Beth by creating emotional safety for her and talking it through. Calvin also has communication errors that cause