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INTRODUCTION

A very touching story, this movie The Miracle Worker, 2000 is a remake for the film with the
same name from 1962 and 1979. This movie is based is true story, a woman named Anne
Sullivan whom was the teacher to Hellen Keller, a young girl with disabilities. Her disabilities are,
she cannot hear, talk nor see. She is blind and deaf. The main character of this movie is Hellen
Keller and Anne Sullivan. Whereas the side character of this movie is Captain Keller and Kate
Keller, Hellens parents and James Keller, Hellens brother. This movie was cast on
Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, a stunning and beautiful places for filming. The setting on this
movie is inside and outside Hellens Keller home, the garden house and the lake.

SUMMARY

The summary of this movie is, this movie is about a woman which is Anne Sullivans
struggles and efforts of teaching a 7 years old girl, a deaf and blind girl yet an active one name
Hellen to communicate and to recognize her surroundings. The characters of Anne Sullivan is,
she is patient and not easy to give up although it seems impossible to reach Hellen on how to
communicate. On the other hand, Hellen Keller whom is deaf and blind girl are a stubborn girl
and a tantrum child because she is unable to communicate with others and in addition she is too
spoiled by the people around her especially her parents. Whenever she get tantrum, her mother
and her maid will give her candy to calm her. She will get rewards after doing something wrong.
She will throw away all the things near her. So, one day, her father decided to send her to an
asylum school because he cannot stand the noises and problem Hellen made at home. Her
father is also a very stubborn man. Yet, her mother insisted to find a doctor for Hellen to cure
her illness but the Father does not want to do so. Not long after that, they found a teacher from
Perkins Institute for the Blind which is Anne Sullivan. At first Anne Sullivan insisted to teach
Hellen because she thinks that it is impossible and hopeless to teach someone with disabilities
especially the one who cannot see and cannot hear. But then, she remembered that she also
have the same problem as Hellen when she is still in her young age which is a visionary
problem and have difficulty in spelling. She had an operation before and it cured her eyes.
Looking back to her own life back then, she is willing to help Hellen. Anne is willing to teach
Hellen the sign language because she is sure that Hellen is smartest people in the house and
that she can learn the language. As she arrived at the place where Hellen is living, Hellens
father did not trust Anne that she can actually teach Hellen. He did not trust her because she
expect someone whom were blind before to teach a blind girl. Yet, Hellens mother did not give
up and she give Anne her fully trust to teach Hellen because she is very sure that Anne is the
best person to teach her. When Anne first met Hellen, she bought something for Hellen which is
a doll with eyes. Before this, Hellen only have dolls without eyes and that make her not satisfied
with it. The doll from Anne makes her happy because she thinks that the doll is the same with
her. She is able to feel the dolls eyes. Then, on that day, Anne Sullivan began teaching Hellen.
Hellen shows her tantrum behavior towards Anne Sullivan because Anne Sullivan keeps taking
away things from her and will not give it back until she is able to spell the things she wants. For
example, the first word Hellen learns is doll and cake. She teaches Hellen by using the sign
language and by using the sense of touch because that is the only way for Hellen to
communicate with the people around her. There was this scene when they were having lunch,
and Hellen could not sit still on her chair. She went walking around the table and taking away
the food from another peoples plate. Anne Sullivan could not stand watching Hellen did that. So
she keeps preventing Hellen from doing that until Hellen shows a tantrum behavior. Her father
and mother did not prevent Hellen from doing that when she is the right process for learning that
is why she keep repeat the behavior. Until Anne Sullivan were there to teach her she no longer
have the chance to do that. Yet, Hellens parents was mad and unsatisfied at Anne because
they thought that she was treating Hellen too harsh. She have no choice because Hellen was so
strong that she keeps running and hitting Anne Sullivan and that she is too spoiled by her
parents, Hellen thinks that what she did is not wrong at all that why she did that. That time, Anne
asked if she could have a time alone with Hellen so she could teach her to eat from her own
plate and to use spoon. Her father thinks that it is hopeless and that Hellen will never learn. He
also decided to fire Anne Sullivan for the behavior she had. Yet her mother insisted because she
felt that there is still hope. So, on the time Anne and Hellen are alone in the dining room, Hellen
began to do several things and behavior such us throwing away vases, spoon and food and
also walking on the table. Anne becomes worried. Her mother too because she keep on hearing
crashing sound from the dining room and is afraid if something bad will happen. Not long after
that, Hellen ran out from the dining room and went hiding. She looks very dirty and as if she is
scared. When she knows her mother is near, she went hugging her mother. Anne also come out
from the dining room and telling her mother that she succeed. Hellen is able to eat from her own
plates and fold the napkin. The day after, Anne Sullivan found a garden house where she thinks
it could be a great place for her to teach Hellen how to communicate using sign language and
because there will be just the two of them, without Hellens parents, and without being spoiled
by them. So, she asked the permission from Hellens parents if she can stay there. Anne thinks
it is because their love for Hellen that is making Hellen to be a stubborn. Because they keep
obeying what Hellen wants and they keep spoiling her. At first, Hellens father did not agreed
because he thinks that it would be the same. But, Anne keeps on debating until he agreed. Yet
she is only given two week to get Hellen knows how to communicate and to behave like a good
girl. In that two week Hellen had with Annie, she had learnt a lot from her. Such us how to
communicate. She is no longer acts like a stubborn child and shows her tantrum behavior. She
is accepting what she learns from Anne. Hellen also becomes softer and she even knows how
to knit. Anne Sullivan has become a great teacher to her. On that time, Hellen can eat from her
own plate using a spoon. For the past two weeks, Hellen has changed a lot but she needed
more time alone to learn more that. 2 weeks is not enough to teach Hellen. Returning Hellen
back to her house will make the learning useless because Annie believe that if Hellen return to
the her house she will behave like before. Turned out Annie was right. Because of the love and
been spoiled by her parent, Hellen turns to her old self again but Annie would not let it happen.
This time she does not care if she had to fight Hellens parents because thats what she need to
do in order to get Hellen to learn. There was this scene that Anne was so angry because hellen
pour out the water towards Annie, and she take Hellen to fill in the jug at the water pump. When
Hellen feels and taste the water, she us able to spell it correctly and she knows what she is
touching. This has made Anne so surprised because finally Hellen knows what is surrounding
her she knows how to spell correctly and this has made Anne successful in the teaching. In the
end of the story, Anne Sullivan thank Hellen because she is able to use the skills she taught her.
Annie Sullivan has remained Hellens teacher for the rest of her life.

THEORIES THAT IS USED IN THE MOVIE

We can relate this movie in the chapter two of psychological educational psychology which is
the cognitive and language development. The development process is divided by the biological
process, cognitive and socioemotional process. For the biological process which produce
change in the child body and underline brain development, height and weight gains, motor skills
and pubertys hormonal changes. Firstly, in the movie miracle worker, 2000 this movie shows
what motor skills that Hellen is using which is her hand for touching, nose to smell and mouth to
taste. Since she is blind and cannot hear that is the only motor skills she had. Secondly,
cognitive process, that involve changes in the childs thinking, intelligence and language. In this
movie we can relate that Hellens thinking and intelligence is high. Her desires to learn is strong
and although she is blind and deaf she is able to learn the sign language. For the language, at
first, she did not know how to communicate but after Annie taught her the sign language she is
able to recognize the things around her. For example, she is able to spell the things she touched
at the end of the story. This shows that language plays an important role in learning. If she did
not learn the sign language, it will be hard for her for the rest of her life. Thirdly, the
socioemotional process that involve changes in the childs relationship with other people,
changes in emotion and changes in personality. In this movie, we can relate that, Hellen is only
close to her mother, she is able to recognize her mother although she is blind. But, whenever
she is with another person she will act harshly. For example, when Annie first met with Hellen,
she did not like Annie very much but time after time, she began to like Annie and able recognize
Annie as her teacher and they become more closer.

Another theory that can be related with this movie is Piaget four stages of cognitive
development which is the sensorimotor stage from birth to 2 years old, the preoperational stage
from 2 to 7 years old, the concrete operational stage from 7 to 11 years old and the formal
operational stage from 11 years old and upper. In the movie, Hellen is in stage one which is the
sensorimotor stage. Her cognitive development is slow because she had her disabilities. She
only uses her sense of touch, smell and taste. Most of all, she uses her sense of touch to learn
sign language. At this age, Hellen should be at the preoperational stage but since she is disable,
the process will be slower.

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