Specifically with
you, Kate. It seems she feels there’s
been some
real tension between the
two of you.”
In this chapter, the writer applies Sigmund Freund’s psychoanalysis theory to analyze the scenes and the dialogues those describe
the main character’s problem. And before analyzing
the main character’s problem with Sigmund Freud’s psychoanalysis, she would like to discuss how the main character
described in the film.
B. Character Analysis
The main character in this film is named Esther. She is a 9 years-old orphan who lives in the orphanage. Her life as an orphan is ended when Kate and John
Coleman decide to adopt her. As 9 years-old child, Esther has so many positive characteristics that make
people likes her. She is sociable, intelligent, friendly and talented. Those all positive characters is proven when she met Coleman couple for the first time. The
scene when John met her while she was painting shows to the watcher all those positive characters above.
It can be seen when she meets with Coleman couple for the first time. She talks with John and Kate easily while she was painting
–that proves that she has a talent of it--. That makes Coleman likes her and decided to adopt her as their
second child. Her sociable also prove when she goes to the Coleman’s house for the first time. When she knew that she has an almost deaf sister named Max, she
learns how to speak with sign language. It makes Max likes her too but not with
Daniel, her step- brother. Esther’s positive characters above makes him doesn’t
like her. Among so many positive character that she had, she also has a negative
character that she keeps secretly until nobody knows and realizes about it except her step-mother, Kate. In the middle of film, the viewer can see some oddities in
her that didn’t show in the beginning of film. Unbeknownst her adopted family, Esther has a secret. And the negative character that appear in the middle of film
shows to the viewer who Esther is and what’s wrong with her. Here are some her negative character that she has:
a. Impulsive and Difficult to Control her self
In the beginning there is no oddity in Esther’ character because as 9 years old girl she has so many positive character. Her negative character is
start to show when she goes to her school for the first time. In the school, she gets bully from her classmate, Brenda. First, when Esther introduces
herself Brenda mocks her about Esther’s dress that almost similar with the character of a girl in Little Bo Peep
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. Esther doesn’t do anything, she just keep staring at Bre
nda. That’s not end there, because the next day, Brenda bothers Esther with tries to take Esther’s bible and doesn’t want to give
that back until the bible fall. Esther tries to reconvene her bible when Brenda sees her ribbon on her neck and tries to take the ribbon off.
Surprisingly, Esther screaming until makes the students look at her strangely. Then, as her revenge, Esther pushes Brenda until she fell. That
act shows us that she is impulsive and difficult to control herself.
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‗Little Bo Peep’ is a popular English language nursery rhyme which published around 1805
Picture 1
b. Liar
After pu shes Brenda until fell, Esther doesn’t honest with her family
when John asked about that accident.
Picture 2
John : “Brenda’s father says that you pushed her”
Esther : “That’s not true, we were just playing. I swear”
Kate : To Max Okay, and did
you see what happened?” Max
: with sign language she slipped. Besides lying about Brenda, Esther lies about piano. When she comes
to Coleman family for the first time, Esther is surprises when she finds that Kate has a piano. Kate offers her to learn piano and she receives
immediately without saying that she can play piano. Kate, who doesn’t know that Esther can play piano, is surprise when she knows that Esther
can play piano without any mistakes. Kate reproves her and said that Esther lies to her and Es
ther just dodging with says that she’s not lie and also says a fact that surprisingly Kate. Even though Esther’s lie has a good
purpose to please her stepmother, but Esther doesn’t regret because she doesn’t say truthfully about that. Even she doesn’t apologize to Kate.
c. Lack of Remorse and Guilty Feeling
When Esther pretends to give a surprise to Kate with gives her a flower, which Kate planted for her death child, Jessica. Esther knows that
that flower is very meaning for Kate. She deliberately picks that flower and gives it to Kate for surprise. Finally, Kate gets angry and when she
tries to pick that flower from Esther, Esther doesn’t give it and make Kate pulls her arm.
Picture 3
That situation was exploited by Esther to get John’s attention and makes him stand on her side. Esther does self-injury with broke her arm
and make John blames Kate because of that. Here we can see that Esther doesn’t have any feeling of remorse and guilty after cut Kate’s lovely
flower. d.
Lack of Empathy The next oddity in Esther is shows when she sees Daniel shot the bird
with the paint ball. Daniel doesn’t think that that bird is agony because he
just shots it with paint ball. But Esther thinks that Bird is agony. So, she orders Daniel to kill that bird with the rock. Danie
l doesn’t want to do it, because he doesn’t want to hurt that bird anymore. Besides, he thought
that bird doesn’t agony. Then Esther kills that bird with the rock without checks if that bird is still alive or not.
Picture 4
Esther : “Did you kill it?”
Danny :”It’s just a paint ball, I didn’t think it would hurt him.”
Esther : takes a rock and gives that to Danny “Put it out a
misery. It’s in pain, and it’s your responsibility.” Danny
: “It was just an accident.” Esther
: “If you walk away now, it’ll starve to death. Is that what you want?”
Danny : “I’m not doing it”
And Esther kills that bird by herself 00:29:50
e. Manipulative
In Orphan, it shows when Esther asks about Jessica to Kate. Kate tells the story of Jessica, her death child, and shows Esther that she plants a
flower to remind her of Jessica. That story makes Esther cries and says that Kate is a great mommy. That thing makes the writer think that she is a
sensitive than a manipulative.
Picture 5
Then, after Esther killed Sister Abigail, she said to Max who afraid of her to not to worry because Max is Esther’s little Sister and she’s not let
anything happen to Max. Esther also said that she loves Max while we will know that she tries to harm Max with release the hand-brake of their car.
Esther :
“Don’t worry, you are my little Sister. I won’t let anything
happen to you. I love you.” After Sister Abigail’s visit, Kate and John decide to bring Esther to
their psychiatry, Dr. Bowning. But unfortunately, Esther can manipulate the condition and Dr. Bowning’s opinion about her and discredit Kate as a
mother. Dr. Bowning
: “My initial instinct is that there’s not a deeply
rooted problem in Esther’s past.”
Kate : “So, there’s nothing wrong with her?”
Dr. Bowning : “No, it’s not all good news. I think what needs to
be examined in E sther’s relationship with those
around her. Specifically with you, Kate. It seems she feels there’s been some real tension between
the two of you.” Beside manipulates her face expression, she also manipulates her
information about herself. She does n’t tell the true information about her
past life to her family even to her nurse in the orphanage. It shows when Sister Abigail gives the Coleman the information about Esther and that
information is very contrast with the fact. Sister Abigail :
“She’s originally from Russia, but it’s amazing how strong her English is.
She’s only been in the country a few years. The family that brought her to America
died in a house fire…”
f. Aggressive
Aggression, a form of behavior characterized by physical or verbal attack. It may appear either appropriates and self-protective, even
constructive, as in healthy self-assertiveness, or inappropriate and destructive. Aggression may be directed outward, against others, or
inward, against the self, leading to self-destructive or suicidal actions. It may be driven by emotional arousal, often some form of frustration, or it
may be instrumental, when it is used to secure a reward.
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Sigmund Freud postulated 1920 that all humans possessed an aggressive drive from
birth, which, together with the sexual drive, contributed to personality development, and found expression in behavior.
In Orphan, Esther shows some aggressive action, such as when she threatens Daniel with knife when she knows that he looks she steps down
from tree house. Esther thinks that Daniel sees her killed Sister Abigail. She also tries to harm Max with release the hand-brake of their car. Even
though that’s not the direct act like she threatens Daniel, it is also the aggressive act.
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www.thefreedictionary.comaggressive. Accessed on January 10, 2011
Picture 6
After analyze Esther’s negative character, the writer can conclude that Esther is a psychopath. Even though it doesn’t show in the beginning in
film, but when she pulls her classmate and kills her sister, that show that Esther has a problem with her psyche. She has a mental disorder called
psychopath. The writer can conclude that she is a psychopath after analyze her character.
Esther’s characters above such as liar, lack of remorse and guilty feeling and empathy, manipulative, impulsive and aggressive is the
individual’s character that has a psychiatric problem named psychopath. It also shows when Esther kills the bird easily. For psychopath, cut the
chickens head and cut off the human head is no different. Esther also can manipulate her information about herself and she can manipulate her face
because psychopath also often shows dramatic emotions even though they are not serious. They also do not have a physiological response that is
normally associated with fear, such as hand sweating, palpitations, dry mouth, tense and trembling. For psychopaths this does not apply.
Therefore, the psychopath is often referred to as cold man with no reaction. Besides liar and manipulate, a real psychopath also impulsive
and control their emotion. For psychopath, the time is too narrow to weigh the merits of the action they would do and they do not try to care about
what is done much less to think about the future. Sufferers also easily triggered anger in the trivial thing, easily ignited to disappointment,
failure, criticism, and easy to attack others just because of small things. Then, after analyze the characteristic of main character, the writer would
like to analyze the causes of Esther’s psychopath problem with uses the psychoanalysis theory by Sigmund Freud.
C. Esther’s Psychopath in Psychoanalysis
