Introduction
Resistance is one of the most important mechanisms helping people to struggle for their values. Individuals stand for equality and freedom, trying to protect their way of living and things important to them. The film Bilal: A New Breed of Hero presents an example of a courageous man struggling against oppression to protect his sister and values. However, resistance cannot emerge without reason, meaning an individual needs an internal stimulus to start counteracting. For this reason, from the psychological point of view, any hero who struggles, such as Bilal or Sisyphus, has a specific inner force making them act in this way. Freud and Lacan, as fathers of psychoanalysis, tried to understand the peculiarities of resistance and the causes that impacted its emergence. Applying their concepts to the movie and the myth of Sisyphus, it is possible to understand the psychology of heroes and the things they symbolize. Bilal and Sisyphus’s resistance can be viewed as the manifestation of their internal values, freedom and an attempt to oppose external pressure and defend their egos.
Analyzing the movie Bilal: A New Breed of Hero from the psychological lens, it is vital to acquire an enhanced understanding of resistance as one of the fundamental concepts. It can be defined as oppositional behavior when a certain individual’s unconscious defenses peculiar to his/her ego are threatened by some other force (Chase 990). Freud, who was one of the first to speak about resistance, viewed it as the unwillingness to recall specific memories to consciousness. Moreover, he links it to desire and identification, the concepts central to understanding personality (Chase 991). The impossibility of fulfilling a wish leads to conflict and the emergence of resistance.
At the same time, Freud viewed resistance from the perspective of ego and unconscious reactions. The individual’s first and most important identification is built since birth and the first interactions with the mother (Chase 1005). It means that a person acquires his/her ego that would impact their life and responses in the future. Furthermore, any threat to this ego or values that are viewed as necessary for the survival and development of this identification will trigger resistance and the growth of opposition. It means that ego and unconscious reactions to external stressors and threats can be viewed as the major causes of resistance.
From this perspective, Bilal’s struggle can be viewed as a result of the interference in this life and resistance to it. The movie represents a hero who cannot accept his fate and remain a slave with no rights (Bilal: A New Breed of Hero). Moreover, Bilal wants to save his sister, Ghufaira, and join a new movement. He overcomes numerous challenges and tortures of being chained to the rock (Bilal: A New Breed of Hero). From a cultural perspective, he acts as a hero struggling for his land and values. Thus, a new vision can be acquired by applying the Freudian psychoanalysis model. First of all, Bilal’s mother was killed when he was a child. Following Freud’s theory, the undesired to recall these memories and the inability to accept them can be one of the significant causes of resistance.
Moreover, Bilal’s ego and unconscious desires are also important for his actions. The unreadiness to succumb can be linked to the hero’s characteristics. Bilal is a courageous man who is ready to face risk and has a high fighting spirit and patience (Darmawan and Simanjuntak 77). These cultural characteristics coincide with the psychological aspects such as his ego and unconsciousness. As a result, the incongruity between internal and external factors, along with the child’s trauma, leads to the emergence and development of resistance, helping Bilal to overcome all challenges and become one of the nation’s recognized heroes.
Nevertheless, Bilal’s resistance can be analyzed from the perspective created by Lacan. The principal categories of his approach to psychoanalysis include real, imaginary, and symbolic (Hendrix 1). The imaginary is linked to perceived images in conscious and unconscious mental processes; the real is a derivative of our senses, while symbolic refers to unconscious and intellectual, and culture (Hendrix 1). These three components are vital for understanding how a person’s ego forms and responds to external threats. At the same time, Lacan’s ideas of defense and resistance can be analyzed regarding the symbolic perspective (Ballestín). It means that the issue should be placed not only within the ego but within discourse, or language, and culture (Ballestín). It leads to a better understanding of the roots and how to manage them.
Thus, Bilal’s story can be analyzed using the Lacanian theory and the symbolic category. Lacan assumes that the application of force provokes structured and unconscious resistance to pressure (Ballestín). It can be seen in the movie when Bilal is not ready to give up and follow Umayyah’s commands. On the contrary, the more suffering he experiences, the stronger resistance becomes (Bilal: A New Breed of Hero). The main character’s ego produces unconscious responses to his master’s force and attempts to suppress his ego. It is an important part of the whole story and the movie. However, from the symbolic perspective offered by Lacan, Bilal’s struggle becomes more complex. This category refers to language, unconscious, and intellectual; moreover, it is interconnected with the imaginary, which forms the basis for psychoanalysis (Hendrix 4). In such a way, Bilal’s culture, language, and mentality are the core of his resistance.
This assumption introduces a new perspective on the story in the movie. Lacan assumes that every individual is born with a specific symbolic register and order that awaits him/her (Hendrix 6). These include language, culture, laws, and religion (Hendrix 6). Bilal was born a free man with his own symbolic register that also impacted the formation of his ego. As a result, he was not ready to accept the inevitability of slavery and the necessity to follow Umayyah. Placing this idea within the discourse of language and culture, it is possible to see where Bilal’s resistance originates and how it ends. He manages to overcome all hardships, save his sister, and become one of the most recognized people in the nation.
Finally, Bilal’s resistance conveys a specific symbolic meaning which can be understood from the movie. It represents everyday struggles and how resistance might help to overcome challenges. From this perspective, Bilal’s enchainment to the rock, which should slowly crush him, is important (Bilal: A New Breed of Hero). It shows that resistance can be difficult and cause significant pressure, both physical and psychological one. However, the readiness to accept the strong impact of the external force and continue struggle is an essential factor in filling resistance with sense and making it rewarding. Symbolically, Bilal escaped the destiny of being crushed by the rock of others’ wills or egos because of his unconscious desire to protect values vital to him and his readiness to continue his struggle. It is an important idea represented by the movie, which is also framed by Freud and Lacan’s teachings.
The Myth of Sisyphus
The Myth of Sisyphus by Albert Camus introduces another perspective on resistance and its importance. The philosopher uses an ancient Greek myth to outline his cogitations about the absurdity of life and the meaningless nature of struggle (Camus 15). Sisyphus is a man who deceives gods and is punished for it. He has to push a rock on the top of the mountain, and every time the stone reaches it, it rolls down again. It means that the hero is doomed for an absurd, meaningless, hard, and never-ending task (Camus 140). However, Sisyphus continues to struggle, which can be viewed as a form of his resistance. At the same time, it is different from Bilal’s one as it is pointless and will never end with success. This point of difference and the meaningless nature of Sisyphus’s struggle is the core component of Camus’ arguments.
Speaking about Sisyphus, Camus is most interested in him when he mows down the hill to start his endless job again. The thoughts of a man who continues to struggle regardless of all factors are critical for understanding his task’s absurdity, becoming conscious of his wretched condition, and realizing that it will never end (Camus 155). However, Sisyphus does not give up resisting, which can be analyzed from Freudian and Lacanian perspectives. From the lens of psychoanalysis, Sisyphus’ motifs can be found in his life and actions, which characterize him as a specific person. At the same time, this interpretation explains the necessity to continue resisting while the struggle seems endless and unnecessary because of its inevitable failure.
As stated previously, Freud views the inability to accept certain ideas or memories as the core cause of resistance. Furthermore, unconscious defense mechanisms of the ego are vital for promoting the emergence of resistance behaviors and struggle (Chase 1000). Sisyphus is viewed as a man with a strong ego who is not ready to obey the rules introduced by others. It impacts his view on death and his desire to escape it. Additionally, he is not ready to accept the unpleasant thought of his and other people’s mortality, which impacts Sisyphus’s resistance. Moreover, his continuous attempts to perform the task and roll the stone on the top of the mountain is another aspect of his resistance. He is not ready to accept the failure and to realize the fact that the gods will win. It makes resistance meaningful for him and helps him to continue struggling.
From Lacan’s perspective and theory, Sisyphus’s struggle comes from his inner discourse. As stated above, the combination of imagery and symbolic categories is central to analyzing individuals’ actions and their resistance (Hendrix 7). At the same time, it also results in the emergence of the fundamental disjunction between the subject as it is constituted by the image and the world (Hendrix 1). This gap might serve as the basis for the deep inner conflict and the emergence of resistance to external factors that might not coincide with inner representations (Hendrix 13). From this angle, Sisyphus’s model of resistance as it is weak as it does not have a final goal because of the lack of relevance and its being detached from the real world. He continues to struggle because of the external pressure put on him and his internal representations, or ego; however, it remains useless.
Nevertheless, applying the Freudian or Lacanian perspectives can help refute Camus’ idea of the absurdness of life. Sisyphus’ struggle is meaningless because it does not help to achieve the final goal, which proves Camus’ assumption of the absurd man and reasoning. However, Freudian views on resistance make it an important phenomenon itself, meaning that the struggle of a person helps to understand his identity and personality, ego, which has value (Chase 1005). From Lacan’s view, this resistance emerges because of the gap between the real and imaginary world and the hero’s ego. Thus, Sisyphus’ resistance is important as it represents a person’s freedom in the metaphysical sense. His struggle is an act of disobedience and a demonstration of his free will. He chooses to struggle, even though it does not guarantee any benefits, which means he remains free.
Finally, the myth introduces the rock of Sisyphus as a strong symbol. It symbolizes the struggle people cannot overcome and want to avoid in their life. It introduces an absurd dilemma that cannot be resolved (Camus 45). It also shows the necessity to accept failures and avoid unnecessary struggle as it leads to new failures because of the impossibility of winning. It differs from the rock of Bilal, which symbolizes the ability of resistance to support the ideas of freedom and protect important values. Sisyphus’ rock shows that resistance might have devastating effects on individuals who cannot control their ego and accept the reality of the world. It means that individuals should avoid this type of struggle instead of engaging in a useless and endless process.
Conclusion
Altogether, the film Bilal: A New Breed of Hero and the Myth of Sisyphus introduce two struggling heroes. They resist the world and the dominant forces to protect their values and things important to them. Bilal struggles for equality and freedom, and his resistance comes from specific inner causes. From the psychoanalysis perspective, his ego resists external pressure, while the hero cannot recall repressed memories and make them part of his consciousness. The Lacanian perspective explains the symbolic meaning of his struggle through the prism of the culture and the importance of inborn values and characteristics forming personality. As for Sisyphus, his struggle can also be linked to his ego and inability to accept others’ dominance. He cannot realize the gap between his imaginary and real, which leads to continuing endless and hopeless struggle.
However, being similar in some aspects, these examples introduce different meanings. Bilal’s resistance symbolizes struggles that can be overcome due to effort and persistence, which is also shown in the movie by the hero’s enchainment to the stone. Belial avoids being crushed by it and attains success, which also has a symbolic meaning. Sisyphus’ story has another message as it represents the hopeless and endless struggle individuals should try to avoid. His rock symbolizes inevitable failure and the usefulness of resistance in some situations. However, regardless of the differences in messages, both stories show resistance as the manifestation of individuals’ inner words and their egos. It is a form of freedom helping to avoid following external forces and obey them. The movie Bilal proves that resistance can be linked to equality and freedom as its sub-terms. In this scenario, it acquires additional sense and gives a person the force to survive and overcome all difficulties.
Works Cited
Ballestín, Lucas. “Resistance and Revelation: Lacan on Defense.” European Journal of Psychoanalysis, vol. 7, no. 2, 2021, pp. 1-15, Web.
Bilal: A New Breed of Hero. Directed by Khurram H. Alavi and Ayman Jamal, Barajoun Entertainment, 2015.
Camus, Albert. The Myth of Sisyphus. Translated by Justin Obrien, Penguin UK, 2013.
Chase, Cynthia. “The Witty Butcher’s Wife: Freud, Lacan, and the Conversion of Resistance to Theory.” MLN, vol. 102, no. 5, 1987, pp. 989-1013. JSTOR, Web.
Darmawan, Angel Agustin, and Marudut B. Simanjuntak. “Analysis Of Bilal’s Characteristics in Bilal’s Film: A New Breed of Hero by Ayman Jamal: Don’t Have to Be Noble to Give Meaning.” International Journal of Education and Literature, vol. 1, no. 1, 2022, p. 77-89. Web.
Hendrix, John S. “The Imaginary and Symbolic of Jacques Lacan.” Roger Williams University, 2021, pp. 1-23, Web.