Dissociative Identity Disorder is formerly known as “Multiple Identity Disorder”. It exists when one person exhibits different tendencies and reactions to the same situations. My question is, “what is the difference between actors/actresses and people with dissociative identity disorder?” My answer is simple: NOTHING.
I recently thought of this question when I came across an article (link below) discussing how Leonardo DiCaprio is going to star in “The Crowded Room”, a movie based on a true story in which he is going to be a young man with 24 personalities. With the recent reading that we did on Hegel, it seems to me that the identity of an actor compared to that of a person with dissociative identity disorder is pretty much the same. I will call these people with dissociative identity disorder “patients” for simplicity. Our knowledge of actors is really similar to the knowledge we have on these patients. They show different tendencies, reactions, and emotions to different circumstances. Yes, one can argue that actors just do their jobs, and those emotions and actions are only fabricated; their true personalities are the ones they show in real life. So, let me ask you one question: how can you be so sure that those actions in real life truly reflect who they are? I mean, you believe and are touched by their on-screen performances, so they can also make you like them by acting those “ideal personalities” in real life as well. Thus, it is nonsensical to like some actresses more than others because some celebrity magazines report their “cute” or “kind” sides in real life.
Like Hegel says about sense-certainty, it is what we see via our senses. However, we don’t know what we think we know. So, the next time you are going to let the news about your favorite/most dislikes actors/actresses give you a mood swing. Ask yourself, is it really worth it to be that emotionally involved with some people that you have no true knowledge of who they actually are?
Link: http://health.usnews.com/health-news/patient-advice/articles/2015/03/12/what-is-dissociative-identity-disorder
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