Introduction
Antwone Fisher is a film that portrays how the negative effects foster parenting can have on the psychology of a child. The childhood bad experiences of Antwone during his foster care are sexual abuse, rejection, and harsh treatment that were beyond his tolerance limit, although he severely endured. Even though Antwone endured these bad experiences at his tender age, it came to haunts and disturbs him later into his adulthood to the extent of fighting his fellow military men in the navy due to the outburst of pent-up feelings in him. To recover from this state, a psychiatrist helped him to overcome and forget his past life.
Did the foster care system fail Antwone? How? Could the same thing happen today? What could be done to improve the foster care system today?
The foster system failed Antwone because they shifted him from a foster home he had innocently believed and enjoyed to be his birth family and take him into another foster family at the age of two years when he was mature enough to realize he was in a foster family. To make the matter worse, he spends many years at the foster family while under abuse without any concern of the foster care system (Karten, Para. 2). Since the current foster care system is still prone to child abuses, the following reforms can need to improve it:
- Setting proper standards in which every foster home is required to comply.
- Streamlining the foster system to enhance the efficiency of coordination between private and public agencies
- Mass education to change the perceived negative attitudes about the foster system
- Assessment and real-time monitoring of the foster care homes and families
- Extension of home foster care into federal adoption
- Allocation of more resources
- Efficient documentation and updating of records
Describe at least two significant things that happened to Antwone while in foster care with the Tates. What was the impact of them on him as a child and as an adult?
The childhood bad experiences of Antwone during the care of his foster mother Tates include sexual abuse by her daughter, harsh treatment, and eventually exiled from the foster home by Tates. These abuses were beyond his tolerance limit forcing him to endure, thus affecting him psychologically. Even though Antwone endured these bad experiences during his tender age, the experiences came to haunt and disturb him later into his adulthood, making him very sensitive and susceptible to even a least provoking issue. His pent-up feelings make him fight spontaneously because his “angry outburst is sudden, swift, and virtually unprovoked” (Wolz Para. 1). The feelings of anger are due to the reflections of his childhood experiences.
How and why does Davenport’s relationship with his wife change through the course of the story?
Davenport was emotionally not on good terms with his wife because at the end of his appointment with Antwone, he confessed that “working with him made him a better therapist and husband” (Wolz Para. 7). Davenport had undermined his marriage because of his psychiatric attitude but his persistence in trying to make Antwone open up, made him receive therapy and change his attitude toward his family.
What does meeting the Elkins mean to Antwone?
Antwone has constantly dreamt and fantasized about meeting his father Eddie Elkins. The feelings have disturbs and haunts him and have contributed to him seeing a psychiatrist. Davenport recommended that he should visit his homeland and see his biological family allow him to recover well after psychiatric sessions (Wolz Para. 4). His meeting with the father will help him develop a sense of belonging that has constantly disturbed him.
What kind of future do you foresee for Antwone and Cheryl?
The future of Antwone and Cheryl is very great and bright because he has recovered and become strong, free of haunting past experiences that had threatened his life. Furthermore, his supportive wife in the same profession as him will help in building a bright future.
Are there any aspects in the life of Antwone Fisher that you found especially troubling, inspiring, or unusual? What were they? Could you relate to any of his experiences? Which ones?
The troubling aspects of Antwone’s life experiences are the circumstances that lead him to become a foster child and the treatment he received from his foster home. I do have the experience of staying in a foster home where there is discrimination, harsh treatment, and rejection and such experiences are very traumatizing.
Works Cited
Fritz, Gregory. “How to Improve Foster-care System.” Providence Journal, 2004. Web.
Karten, Harvey. “Antwone Fisher.” All-Movie Reviews, 2002. Web.
Wolz, Birgit. “Boundaries Crossings in Psychotherapy: Antwone Fisher.”Cinema Therapy. 2002. Web.