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Monica and David reactions

By abby rose
October 5, 2014 - 16:33

Monica and David was such a sweet film, and I did appreciate how it gave a humanizing look into the lives of two adults with Down Syndrome. Typically in popular culture, individuals with Down's are rarely shown in loving relationships or with jobs or having dreams. In the film, Monica and David had all of these and they had the same concerns as most other 30-somethings in the US (marriage, financial stability, children, etc.) Monica and David displayed more self-sufficiency than I expected, as they were much more driven by their own desires than I anticipated.

ACHA Survey Question Due October 5th at 5:00pm

By sowk2
October 5, 2014 - 16:19

Donna Caires

SOWK B556

Due: October 5, 2014

Weddings & Work & Worry

By bridgetmartha
October 5, 2014 - 15:43

In conjunction with the dilemma Sunshine and Hummingbird addressed on whether our perception of Monica and David's seeming dependence on Monica's parents is accurate or is only a result of how they are treated by those around them, I was deeply troubled by the presentation of their wedding.

Kroger, ACHA, and Role Confusion

By bridgetmartha
October 5, 2014 - 14:44

One page of statistics from the ACHA fact sheet that struck me was the set of statistics--or, rather, expected statistics--pertaining to drug and alcohol use (on pages 6-7; section E). I was given several such surveys like the ones mentioned, in both college and high school, and without fail, students overestimate on all accounts. With this in mind, I look at Erikson's stage of Identity vs. Role Confusion.

Mental Health– No Surprises

By Hummingbird
October 5, 2014 - 14:27

My first reaction to was that I found it interesting that the largest stress was the largest cause of late work, incomplete work, withdrawal from a class, etc. and also that the largest stressor was academics. In many ways, it's a self-feeding system. We can't do work because we're stressed and we're stressed about being able to do work or doing work well.

#5 Elite, my Gatoi Revised

By nienna
October 5, 2014 - 14:03

Elite, that was her name. She looked exactly the same as all the other ones I had had before. However, when we first met, on that specific Sunday morning in 2008, I thought she would be my saving grace. She would be the one to help me accomplish all my dreams. She would be the one.

Our relationship lasted exactly 4 years, between breaks and comebacks. It did not take me a long time to realize that Elite was not as easy to keep up with as I initially thought she would be. She was too demanding, too rigid, and too orthodox. She asked me to do things I have never thought I would have to do in order to achieve my goal

Handicapped?

By smalina
October 5, 2014 - 10:40

I agree with Sunshine--the film really suggested to me that having money has a lot to do with intellectually disabled individuals living safe and healthy lives. Monica's mother mentions several times that she does not want Monica and David to work because she does not want them to be exposed to people who could be rude or insensitive about their disability. However, they are only able to give up on the idea of work (if only for a short time) because Monica's mother is wealthy enough to feed and clothe them.

American Horror Story: Freak Show

By Kristin
October 4, 2014 - 22:27

bridgetmartha mentioned that the upcoming 4th season of American Horror Story is entitled "Freak Show." It premiers this Wednesday, Oct. 8. I just saw a clip in which Mat Fraser, crip performance artist and actor, is interviewed. Mat is also one of Riva's portrait subjects. Here's the clip:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EF_IsA8NC8k

And here's another interview clip, also under the category "Extraordinary Artists," with Rose Siggins:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DObsODg8y2s

Independence? Self-Sufficiency?

By Hummingbird
October 4, 2014 - 17:11

I think it says something important, Sunshine, that your first connection was to your seven year old cousin. I wonder how much of that is because of Monica and David's actual behaviour and how much of it is because of the way others treated them. I was incredibly troubled by both Monica's parents' and David's parents' reluctance to give them more independence. In the scene in which Monica's step-father is grilling hamburgers in preparation for a get-together, he says Monica can't be fully independent – that essentially she's not capable of it. (I cringed).

Monica and David

By Sunshine
October 4, 2014 - 14:28

I think Monica and David portrayed disability as something that has its limitations, but is not debilitating. Monica and David were limited to staying with their parents for the rest of their lives, or living with another family. When David developed diabetes, Monica’s step-father gave his insulin. However, after a while David was able to do it himself. I couldn’t help but compare it to my family vacation over the summer.