Interpersonal Interactions In Films
From the Good Will Hunting film, Will was a character who was talented in mathematics, but his involvement in bad behaviors would not allow him to pursue his talent. To forgo jail Will agreed to study mathematics and undergo therapy sessions (Sant, 1998). However, Will played with the minds of therapists before he finally met psychologist Sean McGuire who would help him. The psychologist was from the same part of the town with Will, and Wills behavior never turned him down. Will was a talented man in mathematics, but he was destroying his talent through turning down real-world ideas. Sean comes in, whereby he aims to help Will deal with his ego and solve his problems in dealing with people and become intimate with them. Will was an introvert, and associating with people was a significant challenge for him (Sant, 1998). Therefore, Sean was the ideal person to help would since they were brought up in the same background where they experienced child abuse in South Boston, and so he could understand. Sean assisted Will to realize that he was a victim of an inner demon that was driving him and that he should accept that it was not his fault, which made Will to break into tears.
In the conversation between Will and Sean, both verbal and non-verbal communication, was used. Oral communication was majorly used, which was in the form of face to face, whereby the characters used the spoken word to deliver their messages (INTERPERSONAL COMMUNICATION, 2019). The three components of verbal communication, which include, the person who creates communication, the communication itself, and the person who receives the conversation, were outlined in the scene. For example, the conversation in the scene was initiated by psychologist Sean whose interest was understanding the problems of Will to help him. To make the discussion useful, some factors such as voice modulation, clarity of the speech, speed, volume was also used. The verbal communication made conveying thoughts and feelings in the conversation faster and easier. However, nonverbal communication was used in the conversation. For instance, Sean demonstrated empathy towards wills situation since he could understand him and the factors that had led him to be an introvert. Additionally, there was also the use of facial expressions and body language in the scene. For instance, Will was emotional after psychologist Sean told him that he was a victim of an inner demon.
Through the use of verbal and nonverbal communication to convey the characters’ thoughts and feelings, the outcome of the conversation was positive. Sean was willing to listen, and the intolerable behaviors of Will did not move him, and through the discussion, he understood the situation of Will since, at some point, he was also a victim of child abuse. Sean helped Will know that he had an inner force that was driving him, and it made it hard for him to relate with other people (Sant, 1998). It is evident that Sean used his communication skills well to read and understand the mind of Will as compared to the other therapists that Will had mocked. Considering that Will was a poor communicator who did not have a good intimate relationship with other people, then it is evident that the verbal and non-verbal communication used in the conversation was effective since Will opened up, found a solution.