Amnésia e Narradores de Javé

8/12/2019 Amnsia e Narradores de Jav

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AmnsiaeNarradores de Jav: a memria em dois tempos

Marcelino Rodrigues da Silva

Universidade Vale do Rio Verde (UninCor)

Brasil

Localice en este documento

Resumo:O trabalho uma re!le"#o sobre o tema da memria a partir de dois !ilmes$%a leitura deAmnsia (Christopher %olan& 'U& ***)& evidenciarei as di!eren+as entreacontecimento e narra+#o& e"pressas pela estrutura narrativa do !ilme& e as inter!er,nciasdo presente na rememora+#o do passado$ %a an-lise deNarradores de Jav ('lianeCa!!& Brasil& **.)& discutirei os aspectos sociais da memria& /ue se con!igura no!ilme como um terreno marcado por con!litos e negocia+0es$ rticulando as duas obras&

por !im& colocarei em !oco /uest0es como a necessidade de narrar para viver& asrela+0es entre discurso memorial1stico e identidade e a import2ncia do es/uecimentocomo mecanismo de !uncionamento da memria$Palabras clave:Memria& Memento& Ch$ %olan& %arradores de 3av& 'liane Ca!!

Em uma acep+#o ampla& /ue engloba o processo mental& a atividade discursiva e apr-tica social de resgate incessante do passado 4 a /uest#o da memria sem d5vida umtema eminentemente contempor2neo$ 6ara evidenciar essa pertin,ncia& basta lembraralgumas circunst2ncias do mundo de ho7e& em /ue os problemas relativos 8 memriaest#o claramente presentes$ %o universo das comunica+0es& por e"emplo$& as novasm1dias e tecnologias midi-ticas recriam constantemente as !ormas de perceber&acumular e interpretar as in!orma+0es sobre o passado$ %o mundo pol1tico& novos eantigos movimentos de a!irma+#o tnica& religiosa& de g,nero e de car-ter nacionalista

aparecem ou retornam com grande !or+a& invariavelmente valendo4se do apelo a umadeterminada interpreta+#o de sua tra7etria no tempo$ ' no prprio campo acad,mico&disciplinas como a histria& a an-lise do discurso& os estudos culturais e a literaturacomparada se entregam a um intenso debate sobre as di!erentes pr-ticas discursivas derecupera+#o e interpreta+#o do passado& assumindo como pressuposto o car-ter semprevic-rio& lacunar e ideolgico da linguagem$

'm !un+#o dessa contemporaneidade& resolvi estabelecer como ob7etivo deste trabalhodiscutir a /uest#o da memria a partir de duas obras cinematogr-!icas relativamenterecentes$ 'ssas obras s#o os longa4metragensNarradores de Jav& um divertido !ilme

brasileiro dirigido por 'liane Ca!! e lan+ado em **.& eAmnsia& uma produ+#o

americana em tom de suspense& dirigida por Christopher %olan e lan+ada no ano de***$


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Narradores de Javconta a histria de um povoado perdido no interior brasileiro& /uese v, 8s voltas com a constru+#o de uma usina hidreltrica em sua regi#o& o /ue levar- 8inunda+#o de todo o vale de 3av& amea+ando a prpria e"ist,ncia da comunidade$ 'm!ace desse perigo& os moradores do povoado resolvem em assemblia reali9ar umes!or+o cient1!ico; de recupera+#o e escrita de suas grandes histrias; do passado& na

esperan+a de mostrar /ue o vilare7o era um patrim


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lembran+as mais antigas de @ennA haviam sido alteradas& deslocadas e manipuladas&com a !inalidade de esconder do protagonista o !ato de era ele o assassino de sua esposa$

=o ponto de vista assumido neste trabalho& a primeira observa+#o /ue se imp0e naan-lise desses dois !ilmes o !ato de /ue& cada um 8 sua maneira& ambos temati9am o

car-ter amb1guo e parado"al da memria e& no limite& de toda atividade de conserva+#oe resgate do passado$ %as duas obras& a lembran+a das e"peri,ncias individuais ecoletivas uma necessidade vital /ue con!ere uma identidade 8s personagens&

possibilitando a sua prpria sobreviv,ncia e situando4as no mundo em /ue vivem$ Mas&ao mesmo tempo& o es!or+o da memria parece ser tambm uma busca inevitavelmentecondenada ao !racasso& pois o passado aparece nos dois !ilmes como uma miragem& /ueescapa ao olhar das personagens e inventada por elas a partir de uma perspectiva

presente$

Os moradores do vale do 3av precisam lembrar e escrever suas histrias para /ue acomunidade e suas tradi+0es n#o desapare+am& tragadas pelo avan+o implac-vel da

modernidade$ '& mesmo /ue essa escrita n#o tenha se concreti9ado& no !im das contasparece ter sido 7ustamente o es!or+o coletivo /ue por ela !oi empreendido o respons-velpela n#o dissipa+#o dos la+os entre os membros da comunidade& /ue seguem 7untos parase estabelecerem em outro territrio$ 3- no !ilme de Christopher %olan& o investigadoramnsico !a9 de suas tcnicas de memori9a+#o arti!icial a verdadeira sustenta+#o de suae"ist,ncia& permitindo4lhe manter em !oco o ob7etivo de vingar a morte da esposa& /ue

parece ser sua 5nica ra9#o de viver$

Como contraponto a esse con7unto de rela+0es entre os su7eitos e suas memrias& os dois!ilmes mostram de modo en!-tico os limites e as armadilhas da empreitadamemorial1stica$ 'mAmnsia& a prpria estrutura narrativa sublinha& pela cronologia!ragmentada e invertida& as di!eren+as entre o narrado e o vivido$ o longo do !ilme& aobsess#o do protagonista por suas tcnicas mneum


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pelos membros da comunidade$ s diversas vers0es do episdio variam e ganham novascores& sempre ao sabor dos dese7os& interesses e perspectivas da/ueles /ue as narram$

=esse modo& nos dois !ilmes& o passado s pode e"istir como uma inven+#o do presente$s !or+as e vari-veis /ue inter!erem no modo como o presente molda o passado& no

entanto& se con!iguram de modo diverso em cada um deles$ principal di!eren+a&talve9& se7a o !ato de /ue en/uantoAmnsia!ala de uma memria individual& submetida8s inter!er,ncias das necessidades psicolgicas& traumas e recalcamentos do

protagonista&Narradores de Javtrata sobretudo de uma memria coletiva& marcadapelos con!litos entre as di!erentes posi+0es enunciativas e perspectivas interpretativasdos narradores& dependendo portanto de uma opera+#o de negocia+#o /ue parece nuncachegar ao !im$

'"atamente por colocarem o problema da memria de modo di!erente& en!ati9ando4senum deles o plano individual e no outro o aspecto coletivo& os dois !ilmes resolvem demodo diverso as tens0es entre o passado e o presente& entre o vivido e o imaginado$

Mas& de certa maneira& o /ue um en!ati9a tambm pode estendido ao outro e vice4versa$Como se a memria individual e a memria coletiva !uncionassem de modo semelhantee interligado& tornando4se portanto partes de um mesmo problema$ 'ssa& ali-s& umaidia bastante e"plorada nos estudos contempor2neos sobre a memria& encontrando!undamento terico nas !ormula+0es cl-ssicas de Maurice FalbGachs& para /uemmesmo as memrias mais estritamente individuais est#o ancoradas na coletividade e nasrela+0es de pertencimento entre o indiv1duo e os di!erentes grupos sociais dos /uais ele

participa em sua vida$

'mNarradores de Jav& o /ue se acentua o car-ter con!lituoso& sub7etivo e parcial daempreitada memorial1stica& representado pelas intermin-veis arengas entre os moradoresdo vilare7o em torno da histria de Endalcio$ o mesmo tempo em /ue embargam o

processo de escrita de nt


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de!inem os seus contornos simblicos e recriam permanentemente os la+os sociais /ueos unem& articulando rela+0es de poder e mascarando os con!litos /ue inevitavelmentemarcam suas tra7etrias ao longo do tempo$

R''RH%CES BEB@EORIECS

BOSE& 'cla$Memria e sociedade: lembran+as de velhos$ S#o 6aulo: >$ $ Jueiro9&KLL$

F@BNCFS& Maurice$A memria coletiva.S#o 6aulo: Vrtice& KLL*$

6O@@& Michael$ Memria& es/uecimento& sil,ncio$Estudos Histricos$ Rio de3aneiro& v$& n$.& KLPL& p$.4KQ$

ilmes:

M%?SE$ =ire+#o de Christopher %olan& 'U& *** (KK. min$)$

%RR=OR'S =' 3V?$ =ire+#o de 'liane Ca!!& Brasil& ** (K** min$)$

Marcelino Rodrigues da Silva 2009

Espculo. Revista de estudios literarios$ Universidad Complutense de Madrid

'l UR@ de este documento eshttp:TTGGG$ucm$esTin!oTespeculoTnumero*Tmemoria$html

https://pendientedemigracion.ucm.es/info/especulo/numero40/memoria.html
https://pendientedemigracion.ucm.es/info/especulo/numero40/memoria.htmlhttps://pendientedemigracion.ucm.es/info/especulo/numero40/memoria.html


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>his paper re!lects the research and thoughts o! a student at the time the paper GasGritten !or a course at BrAn MaGr College$ @ie other materials on Serendip& it is notintended to be authoritative but rather to help others !urther develop their oGne"plorations$ Web links were active as of the time the paper was posted but are notupdated$

Contribute >houghtsW Search Serendip !or Other 6apersW Serendip Fome 6age

BiologA *& Spring **QSecond Neb 6apersOn Serendip

Memory Loss and Memento

Yinnette Sano

Mementois a contemporary movie which brings to the forefront a moderately popular

Hollywood subject, amnesia, or in this case more specifically, short term memory loss.

The movie is both uite fascinating as well as confusing as it puts one in the shoes of

the main character, !eonard, who suffers from a neurological impairment as a result of

an accident. !eonard is out to get revenge for his wife"s rape and murder, but his

condition ma#es this tas# almost impossible. The viewer is made to loo# at the movie

as the main character sees the world$ through snippets of information gathered by him

on post it notes, tattoos on his body, as well as through %olaroid shots he ta#es ofpeople and places so as to &remember& who they are. This movie presents !eo as

person who is not able to retain any short memories whatsoever. He is, however, able

to remember his past very vividly and believes that he can survive only on the basis of

instinct and if he conditions himself. 'fter viewing the movie ( decided to do some web

research to see how accurate the film was in terms of describing !eonard"s condition

and if there had in fact been some scientific investigations in this particular area.

MementoactuallA does perpetuate some o! the mAths about amnesia and short termmemorA loss$ >he character repeatedlA states to everAone he meets that he noGs Ghohe is because he does not have amnesia& and this is an incorrect usage o! the term& since

the Gord amnesia means loss o! memorA not loss o! identitA (K) $>here are manA tApeso! amnesia because memorA !ormation and brain !unction are comple"$ or e"ample&memorA can be divided into: Emmediate X recalling in!ormation !or a !eG seconds a!terlearning itY Short4term X recentlA learned in!ormation that can be recalled minutes ormore a!ter presentationY and& @ong4termXremote memorA o! events occurring longmonths or Aears ago$ OneZs identitA hoGever& is among the most durable long4termmemories& there!ore& !orgetting Gho Aou are is rare& especiallA Githout other signi!icantneurological andTor psAchiatric illness()$ @eonard su!!ers !rom Ghat is noGn asanterograde amnesia$ nterograde amnesia is a selective memorA de!icit resulting !rom

brain in7urA in Ghich the individual is severelA impaired in learning neG in!ormation$Memories !or events that occurred be!ore the in7urA maA be largelA spared& but events

that occurred since the in7urA maA be lost (K)$ >his !act is clearlA depicted in the movieas he !orgets conversations and people he has encountered& sometimes doing something
http://serendip.brynmawr.edu/http://serendip.brynmawr.edu/cgi-bin/commentshttp://serendip.brynmawr.edu/serendip/a2z.htmlhttp://serendip.brynmawr.edu/http://serendip.brynmawr.edu/bb/neuro/neuro05/http://serendip.brynmawr.edu/bb/neuro/neuro05/web2/http://serendip.brynmawr.edu/http://serendip.brynmawr.edu/http://serendip.brynmawr.edu/cgi-bin/commentshttp://serendip.brynmawr.edu/serendip/a2z.htmlhttp://serendip.brynmawr.edu/http://serendip.brynmawr.edu/bb/neuro/neuro05/http://serendip.brynmawr.edu/bb/neuro/neuro05/web2/http://serendip.brynmawr.edu/


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and then !orgetting mid4GaA GhA he is doing it$ >his disorder can come as a result o!damage to parts o! the brain such as the hippocampus and the areas Ghich are connectedGith it in the medial temporal lobes$ >his damage can arise !rom numerous things thata!!ect thousands o! people$ >hings such as stroes& brain aneurAsms& epilepsA&encephalitis& hApo"ia& l9heimerZs disease& and various other complications maA have

an e!!ect on this area o! the brain and can leave the person Gho has su!!ered anA o! theseGith nterograde amnesia$ En the movie @eonard is able to remember the incident thatcaused his condition$ En realitA& the person seldom remembers the incident that actuallA

put himTher into that situation$

En terms o! actual research done on people Gith this disorder& there is a Gell noGn caseo! a patient noGn as FM in the late KLQ*Zs$ >his man su!!ered !rom di!!icult epilepticsei9ures Ghich originated in the medial temporal lobes o! his brain$ En order to stopthese sei9ures doctors opted to remove the parts o! his medial temporal lobes Ghere thesei9ures Gere originating$ Enthe process FM lost almost tGo thirds o! his hippocampusGhich& as stated above& are critical in the !ormation o! neG memories$ FoGever& one

!orm o! memorA le!t intact in both 6atient FM and @eonard in the movie is the abilitA tolearn sills$ Called procedural memorA& it is Ghat alloGs us to learn hoG to do thingssuch as ride a bie or plaA an instrument$ BA per!orming sets o! actions (procedures)&the brain !orms a ind o! unconscious memorA o! the sills that Aou Z7ust noG hoG todo ()$ Z >he areas o! the brain outside the medial4temporal lobes are involved in

procedural memorA& Ghich is GhA an in7urA that results in anterograde amnesia doesnZta!!ect procedural memorA (.)$ $ 6rocedural memorA is central to a subplot in

Memento$s the movie progresses @eonard has !lash bacs to Ghen he himsel! Gas aninsurance investigator and Gas carrAing out a case on a man claiming amnesia$ @eonardGanted to mae sure the man Gas not !aing his memorA disorder so as to claim

bene!its !rom the insurance companA$ En the movie the man& SammA& undergoes a testseveral times in Ghich he receives a small electrical shoc Ghen he pics up a bloc o!a certain shape$ En the !ilm& SammA again and again pics up the electri!ied bloc& so asto tell us that his mind does not respond to Ghat @eonard calls conditioning&something Ghich he thins he has mastered ()$ $ FoGever regardless o! SammA beingunable to recreate short memories o! the past testing he should be able to not pic up theelectri!ied shape based upon some instinct Githin him some !eeling that is generated!rom Githin that has nothing to do Gith the hippocampus or that part o! the brain$

>he people Gho mae up our societA in manA GaAs loo to the media as their source o!accurate noGledge$ En this particular case FollAGood Gas able to get it less Grong as

!ar as portraAing the verA real and verA serious condition o! complete short termmemorA loss$ E thin that movie also did a prettA good 7ob in portraAing a di!!erentrealitA& one that comes along Gith living Githout a short term memorA and hoGcon!using& !rustrating& and 7ust sad it can be$ FoGever& it did !ail to acnoGledge the!act that although a part o! our brain maA not be !unctioning correctlA !or GhateverreasonY there are other sAstems Githin us that maA alloG us to mae the everAdaAdistinctions so as to be able to continue living$ E thin that manA times Ge tend to !orgethoG important our instincts and inherent human characteristics are especiallA Ghen the

bodATbrain has to mae up !or the lac o! a !unction$ >he past couple o! classes havedealt Gith perceptions o! realitA and hoG Ghat Ge see is not alGaAs not Ghat Aou get&in this case not seeing& or !orgetting& in a sense e/uals a di!!erent perception o! realitA$

Nebsites used:


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K) http:TTGGG$intelihealth$comTEFTihtEFTNSEFN***T.Q.*T.Q..T.Q[PL$html\d]dmtFMSContent

) http:TTGGG$rashmisinha$comTarchivesT*^*[Tmemento4memorA$html

.) http:TTGGG$memorAlossonline$comTspring**Tmemlossatmovies$htm

) http:TTGGG$neuroanatomA$Gisc$eduTcoursebooTneuro[()$pd!
http://www.intelihealth.com/IH/ihtIH/WSIHW000/35320/35323/345689.html?d=dmtHMSContenthttp://www.intelihealth.com/IH/ihtIH/WSIHW000/35320/35323/345689.html?d=dmtHMSContenthttp://www.rashmisinha.com/archives/04_06/memento-memory.htmlhttp://www.memorylossonline.com/spring2002/memlossatmovies.htmhttp://www.neuroanatomy.wisc.edu/coursebook/neuro6(2).pdfhttp://www.intelihealth.com/IH/ihtIH/WSIHW000/35320/35323/345689.html?d=dmtHMSContenthttp://www.intelihealth.com/IH/ihtIH/WSIHW000/35320/35323/345689.html?d=dmtHMSContenthttp://www.rashmisinha.com/archives/04_06/memento-memory.htmlhttp://www.memorylossonline.com/spring2002/memlossatmovies.htmhttp://www.neuroanatomy.wisc.edu/coursebook/neuro6(2).pdf


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Memento and Personal Identity

E_ve been re!lecting on issues o! 6ersonal EdentitAY last month E Grote ablog post onthis$ On SaturdaA evening E rented Memento (***)and Gatched !or the second andthird times$ >his remarable !ilm !eatures adventure& mAsterA& human drama& and!ascinating movie techni/ue$ Over4riding all o! these is the portraAal o! memorA and themind$ lthough E_ve been studAing memorA !or .* Aears& Memento gave !resh

perspectives$ E! the role o! art is to present !resh insights bA sharing the thoughts o!others& Momento is true and impressive art$

Synopsis$ On the sur!ace& Memento is a standard detective storA$ @eonard& the centralcharacter& is !ocused on !inding the man Gho& during a home invasion& murdered@eonard_s Gi!e and crushed @eonard_s sull& leaving him Gith brain damage$ >he braindamage le!t @eonard Gith severe anterograde amnesia`$ Fe remembers nothing betGeena time shortlA a!ter the attac and the present$ Fe can operate in the present;& but& once

events leave the present (Ghen theA e"it Goring memorA;)& all trace o! these activitiesis lost$

@eonard (le!t) uses tattoos and polaroid photos as memorA aids X mementos$ >eddAmaA or maA not be a !riend& and maA or maA not be trustGorthA$

>he construction o! the movie is brilliant$ >he director& Christopher %olan& presents thescenes in reverse time4series$ E! one thins o! the events o! the movie as a series in time&the last is presented !irst and the !irst& last$ >his leaves Aou& the vieGer& e"tremelAcon!used$ Nhen Aou vieG a scene& Aou don_t noG Ghat led up to it$ >he brilliance isthat Aou are vieGing the scene as @eonard vieGs it& since his brain has no store o! the

preceding events$ ou& the vieGer& !eel the con!usion& !rustration and lac o! certaintAthat @eonard must !eel everA moment$ >his cinematic tric is riveting& and helps Aouunderstand and empathi9e Gith @eonard$ ou are no longer a detached& all4noGingobserver$ ou are @eonard$

EnitiallA Ge are impressed Gith @eonard$ Fe has developed tGo clever strategies thathelp him deal Gith the disabilitA: Fe tattoos himsel! Gith !acts_Y and he annotates
http://blog.brainfacts.org/2013/07/music-and-memory/#.Uh4BIRazvkFhttp://blog.brainfacts.org/2013/07/music-and-memory/#.Uh4BIRazvkFhttp://blog.brainfacts.org/2013/07/music-and-memory/#.Uh4BIRazvkFhttp://www.imdb.com/title/tt0793424/http://blog.brainfacts.org/2013/07/mememto-and-personal-identity/memento2/http://blog.brainfacts.org/2013/07/music-and-memory/#.Uh4BIRazvkFhttp://blog.brainfacts.org/2013/07/music-and-memory/#.Uh4BIRazvkFhttp://www.imdb.com/title/tt0793424/


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polaroid pictures$ >hese memorA aids X mementos X are recorded be!ore the !acts;can leave Goring memorA$ K** o! his energA is !ocused on !inding his enemA$ Neare hope!ul and convinced that @eonard& Gith his intelligence and drive& can overcomeodds& achieve his goals& and live a !ruit!ul li!e$ But this is not to be$

Memento and the Mind >he eA diner scene:

Leonard: MemorA_s unreliable$

Leonard: @oo& memorA can change the shape o! a room& the color o! a carY andmemories can be distorted$ >heA_re 7ust an interpretationY theA_re not a record$ >heA_reirrelevant i! Aou have the !acts$

Teddy: ou reallA Gant to get this guA& don_t Aou$

Leonard: eah$ Fe illed mA Gi!e& he too aGaA mA !$$n memorA$ (pause)

Leonard: Fe destroAed mA abilitA to live$

Teddy: (!eels @eonard_s nec !or pulse) ou_re livin_

Leonard: OnlA !or revenge$

>here are several psAchological !eatures at the core o! the !ilm$ One is the accuracA o!memorA: does memorA re!lect realitA or is it a storA\ %euroscientists largelA agree that

both perception and memorA& rather than being passive responses to events in the Gorldare constructions$ Nhat Ge perceive and remember is a mi" o! raG sensorA data and

belie! about Ghat the Gorld is or should be$ >he term confabulationis used Ghen aperception or memorA is based more on belie! than realitA$ Con!abulation is a common!eature o! dementia``$ EnMementoGe are !aced Gith the /uestion o! hoG much o!@eonard_s memorA o! the past is real and hoG much constructed !rom belie!s andGishes$

second& and more important issue is the role o!memorA in personhood& in individual identitA$ MA initial insight o! the role o! memorAin personal identitA came !rom reading 3ohn @oce& the Kth centurA 'nglish
http://blog.brainfacts.org/2013/07/mememto-and-personal-identity/locke/


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philosopher$ or @oce&personal identit depends on the construction o! a consciousstorA4line o! sel!& a same continued consciousness;$ ccording to @oce& sel! dependson mind& not substance:

Sel! depends on consciousness& not on substance personal identitA consists: not in

the identitA o! substance& but& as E have said& in the identitA o! consciousness

and the relation to memorA&

Suppose E GhollA lose the memorA o! some parts o! mA li!e& beAond a possibilitA o!retrieving them& so that perhaps E shall never be conscious o! them again bsoluteoblivion separates Ghat is thus !orgotten !rom the person

Suppose E GhollA lose the memorA o! some parts o! mA li!e But i! it be possible !orthe same man to have distinct incommunicable consciousness at di!!erent times& it is

past doubt the same man Gould at di!!erent times mae di!!erent persons

Basil Smith summari9es this Gell: @oce argued that personal identitA is a matter o!our conscious memories over time$ @oce_s conception o! identitA Gas& !or me& arevelation$ But the !ull impact did not hit until E saG Memento$ BA !orcing the vieGerto imagine li!e Githout memorA& E could !eel the sense o! sel! oo9ing aGaA$ NithoutmemorA& sel! Gould be a mAsterA$ @oce proposed a concept o! personal identitA basedon memorAY Memento taes the us into the mind o! an amnestic mind and reveals theloss$

En sum& Memento taes us on a !antastic 7ourneA$ >hrough remarable cinematographAand creative storA4telling& Christopher %olan guides us through the mind o! @eonard andourselves$

XXXXXXXXXXX4

` >he brain region damaged Gas& almost certainlA& the hippocampus$ >his is indirectlAalluded to in the movie$ Could have been due directlA to a bloG to the head& or& morelielA& lac o! o"Agen to the brain$ Bilateral damage to the hippocampuscauses anterorade amnesiaidentical to the de!icit described bA @eonard$

strange !eature o! the movie is that @eonard repeatedlA mis4states his condition$ Fe

saAs he doesn_t have amnesiaY he saAs that he has a de!icit in short4term memorA$ Fehas amnesia& and its not a de!icit in short4term memorA;$ Fere is a mi"ed bag o!scienti!ic !act and error$ @eonard saAs that an amnestic can respond to conditioning$ >hee"ample presented is that an amnestic can learn to avoid touching an ob7ect Ghen thetouch leads to shoc$ >his is true$ But he incorrectlA calls this conditioned response aninstinct;$ n instinct is unlearned$ >his Gould be a conditioned (learned) response& notan instinct$

`` E visited mA grand!ather in his apartment in %eG or Gees be!ore he died$ Fesaid& 3ohn& its so nice o! Aou to go so !ar out o! Aour GaA to visit$; Fe thought Ge Gerein a beauti!ul hotel in 3apan& not his bedroom$ Nhen mA grandmother and E pointed out

that each piece o! !urniture Gas part o! his bedroom& he said that this Gas such asplendid hotel that theA replicated his bedroom$ E imagine his brain Gas giving mi"ed
http://hzt4umovies.wikispaces.com/file/view/2-Memento+and+Locke+Identity.pdfhttp://hzt4umovies.wikispaces.com/file/view/2-Memento+and+Locke+Identity.pdf


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signals: each piece o! !urniture Gas !amiliar& but& due to his dementia& the combinationGas not !amiliar$ Fe con!abulated a lovelA storA that made sense o! the con!lictingmessages$

!ote added: Mo Costandi sent a lin to an e"cellent article he Grote on MemorA and

mnesia in the Movies$ oes into detail about Memento and current neuroscienti!icvieGs o! memorA$

References:

"ohn lockeEssa concerning Human !nderstanding& boo & chapter http:TTh9tumovies$Giispaces$comT!ileTvieGT4Mementoand@oceEdentitA$pd!

#asil SmithJo"n #oc$e% &ersonal 'dentit and Memento$ En The Philosophy of!eo$noir(**) Mar Connard& ed$ (E came across this essaA bA Smith a!ter Gritingmost o! this blog post$ >he vieGs are remarablA similar$ >he essaA goes into greater

detail on the relation betGeen %olan and @oce_s vieG o! personal identitA$

3ohn ubie

http://blog.brainfacts.org/)0*+/0/memento-and-personal-identity/.wah#oh0iw

1ctober *2, )0*+
http://www.theguardian.com/science/neurophilosophy/2012/feb/13/1?CMP=twt_guhttp://www.theguardian.com/science/neurophilosophy/2012/feb/13/1?CMP=twt_guhttp://andromeda.rutgers.edu/~jlynch/Texts/locke227.htmlhttp://hzt4umovies.wikispaces.com/file/view/2-Memento+and+Locke+Identity.pdfhttp://blog.brainfacts.org/author/jkubie#.UhzSCBazvkEhttp://blog.brainfacts.org/2013/08/memento-and-personal-identity/#.UwahkoXh0iwhttp://www.theguardian.com/science/neurophilosophy/2012/feb/13/1?CMP=twt_guhttp://www.theguardian.com/science/neurophilosophy/2012/feb/13/1?CMP=twt_guhttp://andromeda.rutgers.edu/~jlynch/Texts/locke227.htmlhttp://hzt4umovies.wikispaces.com/file/view/2-Memento+and+Locke+Identity.pdfhttp://blog.brainfacts.org/author/jkubie#.UhzSCBazvkEhttp://blog.brainfacts.org/2013/08/memento-and-personal-identity/#.UwahkoXh0iw


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The Man Who Forgot Everything%osted by Steven Shapin

).3

%rint

5ore

*)

En the movie roundhog =aA&; the >V Geatherman 6hil Connors !inds himsel! livingthe same daA again and again$ >his has its advantages& as he has hundreds o! chances toget things right$ Fe can learn to spea rench& to sculpt ice& to plaA 7a99 piano& and to

become the ind o! person Gith Ghom his beauti!ul colleague Rita might !all in love$But it_s a torment& too$ n aG!ul solitude !loGs !rom the !act that he_s the onlA one in6un"sutaGneA& 6ennsAlvania& Gho noGs that something has gone terriblA Grong Gith

time$ %obodA else seems to have anA memorA o! all the previous iterations o! the daA$Nhat is a neG daA !or Rita is another o! the same !or 6hil$ >heir realities are di!!erentX
http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/bios/steven_shapin/search?contributorName=Steven%20Shapinhttps://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/books/2013/10/henry-gustav-molaison-the-man-who-forgot-everything.htmlhttp://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/books/2013/10/henry-gustav-molaison-the-man-who-forgot-everything.html?printable=true&currentPage=allhttp://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/books/2013/10/henry-gustav-molaison-the-man-who-forgot-everything.html?printable=true&currentPage=allhttp://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/books/2013/10/henry-gustav-molaison-the-man-who-forgot-everything.html#livefyrehttp://www.newyorker.com/magazine/bios/steven_shapin/search?contributorName=Steven%20Shapinhttps://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/books/2013/10/henry-gustav-molaison-the-man-who-forgot-everything.htmlhttp://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/books/2013/10/henry-gustav-molaison-the-man-who-forgot-everything.html?printable=true&currentPage=allhttp://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/books/2013/10/henry-gustav-molaison-the-man-who-forgot-everything.html#livefyre


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Ghat passes betGeen them in 6hil_s Gorld leaves no trace in hersXas are their senses o!sel!hood: 6hil noGs Rita as she cannot noG him& because he noGs her daA a!ter daAa!ter daA& Ghile she noGs him onlA todaA$ >ime& realitA& and identitA are each curated

bA memorA& but 6hil_s and Rita_s memories Gor di!!erentlA$ rom 6hil_s point o! vieG&she& and everAone else in 6un"sutaGneA& is su!!ering !rom amnesia$

mnesia comes in distinct varieties$ En retrograde amnesia&; a movie staple& victimsare unable to retrieve some or all o! their past noGledgeXNho am E\ NhA does thisGoman saA that she_s mA Gi!e\Xbut theA can accumulate memories !or everAthing thattheA e"perience a!ter the onset o! the condition$ En the less cinematicallA attractiveanterograde amnesia&; memorA o! the past is more or less intact& but those Gho su!!er!rom it can_t laA doGn neG memoriesY everA person encountered everA daA is met !orthe !irst time$ En e"tremelA un!ortunate cases& retrograde and anterograde amnesia canoccur in the same individual& Gho is then said to su!!er !rom transient global amnesia&;a condition that is& than!ullA& temporarA$ mnesias varA in their duration& scope& andoriginating events: brain in7urA& stroe& tumors& epilepsA& electroconvulsive therapA& and

psAchological trauma are common causes& Ghile drug and alcohol use& malnutrition& andchemotherapA maA plaA a part$

>here isn_t a lot that modern medicine can do !or amnesiacs$ E! cerebral bleeding orclots are involved& these maA be treated& and occupational and cognitive therapA canhelp in some cases$ UsuallA& either the condition goes aGaA or amnesiacs learn to liveGith it as best theA canXunless the notion o! learning is itsel! compromised& along GithGhat it means to have a li!e$ >hen& a !eG select amnesiacs disappear !rom sAstems o!medical treatment and reappear as star plaAers in neuroscience and cognitive

psAchologA$

6 6 6

%o star ever shone more brightlA in these areas than FenrA ustave Molaison& a patientGho& !or more than hal! a centurA& until his death& in **P& Gas noGn onlA as F$M$&and Gho is noG the sub7ect o! a boo& 6ermanent 6resent >ense; (Basic)& bA Su9anneCorin& the neuroscientist most intimatelA involved in his case$ Born in KL[ nearFart!ord& Connecticut& Molaison en7oAed Ghat seems to have been a normal Goring4class childhood until& at about the age o! ten& he began su!!ering !rom epilepsA& possiblAas a result o! a head in7urA sustained in a bicAcle accident$ >he sei9ures greG moresevere and& bA his mid4teens& he Gould !oam at the mouth and bite his tongue& Ghile his

limbs convulsed rhAthmicallA$ t high school& the teasing Gas cruel& and MolaisonapparentlA responded bA developing a blandlA polite outGard manner and becomingGithdraGn$ Fe en7oAed listening to Sousa marches and rthur od!reA on the radio&delighted in collecting guns and going shooting Gith his !ather$ En a period Gheneugenic theories still circulated& Molaison_s doctors reportedlA told him that heshouldn_t have se"& since he Gould lielA reproduce children Gho Gere similarlAdamaged$

raduating !rom school& Molaison Gored !or some Aears at loG4level mechanical 7obs&but& despite a coctail o! ma"imum4dose anti4epileptic drugs& he had little in the GaA o!an autonomous Goring or social li!e$ BA the earlA nineteen4!i!ties& an eminent local

neurosurgeon named Nilliam Beecher Scoville Gorried that the medications might bereaching dangerous levels and began thining about a more direct GaA o! controlling the


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sei9ures$ Scoville had previouslA per!ormed thirtA partial lobotomies& but the precise!orm o! the procedure on Molaison_s brain Gas Ghat the surgeon later called a !ranlAe"perimental operation&; meant to locate and e"cise the bits thought to be responsible!or his sei9ures$ On ugust Q& KLQ.& Gith a cheap 7urA4rigged hand drill& Scovillecarved tGo holes in Molaison_s sull& one 7ust above each o! his eAes$ Molaison Gas

given onlA a local anesthetic& so that he could be aGae to report on his sensations Ghendi!!erent cerebral areas Gere stimulated$ Scoville li!ted up Molaison_s !rontal lobes Githa spatula and reached !ar into the center o! his brain$ >hen& using a silver straG& Scovillesuced out !ist4si9e chuns o! the medial temporal lobes on both sides o! Molaison_s

brain$ >he e"cised tissue included most o! the sea4horse4shaped structure called thehippocampus& as Gell as the parahippocampal gArus& the uncus& the anterior temporalcorte"& and the almond4shaped amAgdala$

>he operation relieved the severitA and the !re/uencA o! Molaison_s sei9ures& but thereGas a disastrous side e!!ect$ s Scoville and a colleague noted& Molaison could nolonger !ind his GaA to the bathroom& and he seemed to recall nothing o! the daA4to4daA

events o! his hospital li!e$; Molaison_s testable intelligence remained normalY his basicpersonalitA seemed unchangedY and he could remember /uite a lot o! his past& but heGas no longer able to !orm neG memories$ Fe could remember hoG to get to the housein Ghich his !amilA previouslA lived& but not to the one to Ghich theA moved ten months

be!ore the operation Gas per!ormed$ Fe Gould use the laGn moGer one daA and nothave a clue Ghere it Gas the ne"t$ Fe could read the same maga9ine daA a!ter daAGithout shoGing anA sign that he had encountered it be!ore$ F$M$ had become astunninglA pure case o! anterograde amnesia$

Scoville later called the operation a tragic mistae; and Garned neurosurgeons never torepeat it& but neuroscience and cognitive psAchologA bene!itted hugelA$ >he operationcould not have been better designed i! the intent had been to create a neG ind o!e"perimental ob7ect that shoGed Ghere in the brain memorA lived: there Gas no otherGaA that Molaison_s brain in7uries could have occurred& and no other GaA that the

precision o! his memorA damage could have been brought about$ Molaison gavescientists a GaA to map cognitive !unctions onto brain structures$ Et became possible tosubdivide memorA into di!!erent tApes and to locate their cerebral fip Codes$

Molaison could no longer ac/uire so4called episodic memories (memorA o! discreteevents in his li!e) or semantic memories (general noGledge o! the Gorld& including themeanings o! neGlA encountered Gords)$ >hese !orms o! memorA& taen together&

constitute Ghat cognitive psAchologists call declarative memorAXthe abilitA that alloGsAou consciouslA to retrieve past happenings and !acts learned in the past$ Several Aearslater& researchers correlated evidence !rom Molaison Gith the results o! other operationsand reached a ma7or neuroscienti!ic conclusion: the capacitA to !orm neG memorieslived in the hippocampus& almost all o! Ghich Scoville had bilaterallA removed$

Molaison Gas emploAed at a sheltered Gor center near Fart!ord$ One o! his tass Gaspacing balloons into small bags& stopping Ghen the right number had been put in$ Buthe could not remember Ghat that number Gas$ E! ased to !etch a tool& he Gould !orgetGhich tool Gas needed be!ore reaching the storeY his supervisor began providing himGith a picture o! it$ 6ersonal hAgiene is also memorA4dependent& and one o! Molaison_s

caretaers too to leaving notes around the place to remind him to raise the toilet seat$Molaison could not remember Ghen he had eaten& and the cues arising !rom his stomach


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Gere rarelA su!!icient to signal that he Gas either hungrA or replete$ Fe_d tell the samestorA to the same person over and over& unaGare that he_d told it be!ore$ Molaison couldnot securelA retain memories o! the deaths o! loved ones& so each con!rontation Gith the!act o! a long4ago passing Gas as raG as the !irst$ Unable to eep in mind Ghat hadhappened to his parents& he put notes in his Gallet telling him that his !ather Gas dead

and that his mother Gas in a nursing home$ But& Githout the notes& he !ound it hard toremember Ghere his parents Gere or i! theA Gere dead or alive$

Nhen Aou ased Molaison a /uestion& he could retain it long enough to ansGerY Ghenhe Gas eating rench toast& he could remember previous mouth!uls and could see theevidence that he had started eating it$ Fis unimpaired abilitA to do these sort o! thingsillustrated a distinction& made bA Nilliam 3ames& betGeen primarA; and secondarA;memorA$ 6rimarA memorA& noG generallA noGn as Goring memorA& evidentlA did notdepend upon the structures that Scoville had removed$ >he domain o! Goring memorAis a hAbrid o! the instantaneous present and o! Ghat 3ames re!erred to as the 7ust past$;>he e"perienced present has durationY it is not a point but a plateau$ or those !eG

seconds o! the preciselA noG and the 7ust past& the present is unarchived& accessibleGithout conscious search$ BeAond that& Ge have to call up the !ragments o! past

presents$ >he plateau o! Molaison_s Goring memorA Gas betGeen thirtA and si"tAseconds longXnot verA di!!erent !rom that o! most peopleXand this Gas Ghat alloGedhim to eat a meal& read the neGspaper& solve endless crossGord pu99les& and carrA on aconversation$ But nothing that happened on the plateau o! Goring memorA stuc& andhis past presents laid doGn no sediments that could be dredged up bA anA !uture

presents$

>here Gas a sense in Ghich Molaison Gas able to learn& though it_s probablA Grong tosaA that he learned t"ings$ En a GaA that_s not ade/uatelA understood& but Ghich maAhave to do Gith the !act that some semantic learning is sustained bA structures thatScoville le!t intact& he seemed occasionallA to ac/uire odd pieces o! neG !actualnoGledgeX!or e"ample& that there Gere things called contact lenses and that there Gasa !amous person named oo Ono& though he Gas not too clear Ghat ind o! person thatGas (an important man in 3apan;)$ s he aged& he learned to use a GalerY as time Genton& he graduallA learned hoG to move around neG environments and even to ac/uireGhat seems to have been a mental map o! neG places that had& in some GaA& become!amiliar$ Fe might not have been able to supplA an ansGer to a /uestion about 7ustGhere he Gas& but he acted& so to spea& as i! he neG& and could tae account o!& itscorners and sharp edges$

En KLQ& the philosopher ilbert RAle distinguished betGeen noGing hoG;(procedural noGledge o! the sort that_s involved in riding a bie) and noGing that;(!or e"ample& the abilitA to ac/uire& archive& and retrieve !acts about hoG a bie Gors)$En one striing e"periment& Molaison Gas ased repeatedlA to trace a star in anapparatus that insured that he could see the !igure and his hand onlA in a mirror$ 'achtime he too the test& he thought that he had never done it be!ore& and Aet his accuracAmaredlA improved through iterations$ Nell& this is strange&; he said$ E thought thatthat Gould be di!!icult$ But it seems as though E_ve done it /uite Gell$; En the languageo! modern psAchologA& his improvement in the star4tracing e"periment belonged tonon4declarative; memorA: Molaison retained an abilitA to learn motor sills& so

scientists concluded that these capacities resided not in the hippocampus and nearbAstructures but elseGhere in the brain$ Molaison_s inadvertent gi!t to science Gas helping


17/26

researchers understand that memorA is not a single process& and that its variouscapacities do not reside in a single cerebral structure$

%euroscientists describe Molaison as arguablA the single most important patient everstudied in neuropsAchologA;Y his Gas the brain that changed everAthing&; the most

!amous brain in the Gorld$; Ma7or careers in neuroscience Gere built on Molaison_scondition and on access to him as an e"perimental sub7ect& and no career Gas moresubstantiallA de!ined bA Molaison than that o! Su9anne Corin$

6 6 6

Corin Grites that FenrA Molaison Gas part o! mA li!e !or decades$; ortA4si" Aears& tobe e"act$ En KL[K& as a graduate student at Mcill UniversitA& she 7oined the laboratorAo! a colleague o! Scoville_s& and met Molaison the !olloGing Aear$ !ter moving toM$E$>$ a !eG Aears later and setting up her oGn neuroscience lab& Corin began ascienti!ic and legal association Gith Molaison that_s uni/ue in the historA o! science$

>he Clinical Research Center at M$E$>$ became& Corin Grites& Molaison_s home aGaA!rom home&; and the scientists interested in investigating his brain and his behavior

became his !amilA$; BetGeen KL[[ and ***& Molaison visited Corin_s lab !i!tA4!ivetimes !or testing and observation& sometimes staAing at M$E$>$ !or Gees at a time$>hese visits became& another Griter noted& the onlA salient !eature o! his li!e$;Molaison Gound up becoming Corin_s legal responsibilitA$ Nhen he Gas admitted to along4term4care !acilitA& Molaison_s hospital chart listed Corin as the onlA interestedrelative& !riend& or contact$;

BA the late seventies& Corin legallA controlled access to the patient$ >here Gas no endo! investigators dAing !or a chance to meet Molaison& but Corin re/uired anA scientistGishing to studA Molaison to visit mA lab !irst and present the proposed research

protocol at our GeelA lab meeting$; En the course o! !i!tA Aears& about a hundredscientists got to e"periment on MolaisonY manA others Gere turned aGaA$ Nith greatdi!!icultA& the science 7ournalist 6hilip Filts persuaded Corin to grant him access& andhis moving boo MemorA_s host; (KLLQ) Gas the !irst account o! Molaison that GasGritten !or a general audience$ >he sta!! at Molaison_s care !acilitA Gas directed to eep/uiet about him& neither con!irming nor denAing the presence o! anA such person$>oGard the end o! his li!e& Molaison_s problems had come to include dementia& andCorin made arrangements !or a postmortem brain donation& Ghich she regards as a

beauti!ul !inale to his enduring contributions; to science$ Corin dra!ted a set o! rules

governing the handling o! Molaison_s death$ >heA Gere attached to his medical chart&and stipulated that she must be contacted immediatelA as death approached$

6ermanent 6resent >ense; is about Molaison_s mind as a resource !or understandinghoG human minds normallA Gor and hoG memorA is normallA processed and stored$StudAing hoG FenrA !orgot gave us a better understanding o! hoG Ge remember&;Corin Grites$ She isn_t at ease Gith e"istential /uestions& but there_s a chapter calledFenrA_s 'motional @i!e&; Ghich o!!ers her vieG that he did indeed have one$ Fe couldnot trac his oGn aging in the GaA that is& sadlA& normal !or the rest o! us$ psAchiatristGho Gas ased to e"amine Molaison reported that he did not thin o! death$; Molaisoncould recogni9e his aging !ace in the mirror& but he could not associate that changing

image Gith a historA o! his oGn bodA and mind$ Once& he Gas looing in the mirrorGhen a nurse ased him& Nhat do Aou thin about hoG Aou loo\; Fe replied& E_m


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not a boA$; Nhen Molaison Gas more than !i!tA Aears old& Corin in/uired hoG old hethought he Gas& and he responded& round thirtA$; She then got out a mirror and asedhim againY this time the ansGer Gas MaAbe !ortA$; Molaison_s aging bodA necessarilAre!lected the passage o! time& Ghile the mirror image that he saG& plaAing the role o! the

painting o! =orian raA& did not$

lmost everAone Gas a stranger to Molaison& and all social interactions Gere brie!encountersXin the moment& Githout a past and never to have a !uture$ Et_s acircumstance that one can imagine as a source o! constant terrorXNho is the stranger inmA room\ Nhere am E\Xbut Molaison coped Gith it bA adopting a genial manner&alGaAs eager to please& as i! everAone Gere an old !riend$; ll the scientists Gho metMolaison reported on his a!!able& even 7oeA& manner$ Fis emotional li!e& apart !romrare outbursts o! rage& Gas placid$ Fis boss at the sheltered Gorshop described him asa per!ect gentleman; Gho never even loos at the girls$; sed about se"ualitA&Molaison_s !ormulaic response Gas that the doctors had told him that he shouldn_t havese"ual relations$ >he psAchiatrist brought in bA Corin decided to press the matter$ Fe

ased Molaison i! he neG Ghat an erection Gas& and& Ghen the ansGer that came bacGas building&; tried another tac$ Nhat is a hard4on;\ Nithout smiling& !roGning&or anA change in !acial muscular&; Molaison shoGed that he neG per!ectlA Gell GhatGas being ased: man gets it& beloG the belt$;

Molaison recAcled his 7oes& Ghich Gas probablA 7ust as Gell !or his caretaers& since& i!Aou paused to thin about them& the e!!ect Gould be chilling$ Re!erring to Molaison_s

preoccupation Gith crossGord pu99les& Corin once said to him& ou_re the pu99leing o! the Gorld$; E_m pu99ling; Gas the response$ >aling to a scientist at the M$E$>$lab& Molaison craced a one4liner about his testing regimen: Et_s a !unnA thingXAou

7ust live and learn$ E_m living& and Aou_re learning$;

et& despite his sur!ace a!!abilitA& li!e Gasn_t easA !or him$ Over time& he came tounderstand that other people laid doGn memories and that he did not$ Fe also graspedthe !act that others_ abilitA to retrieve !rom memorA the right GaA; to behave incountless ordinarA situations Gasn_t available to him$ Nhat Gas automatic !or normal

people Gas necessarilA a matter o! deliberation !or MolaisonXhence one o! his mostcommon e"pressions: E_m having a little argument Gith mAsel!$; Fe (orried: RightnoG& E_m Gondering$ Fave E done or said anAthing amiss\ ou see& at this momenteverAthing loos clear to me& but Ghat happened 7ust be!ore\ >hat_s Ghat Gorries me$;

lthough Molaison could !orm no neG memories& !eG lives have been more archivedand memoriali9ed$ >here have alreadA been several theatre pieces about him& andColumbia 6ictures is planning a movie !rom Corin_s point o! vieG$ ()arietreportedthat& Ghen the producer Scott Rudin Gas ased GhA he Gasn_t telling the storA throughMolaison_s eAes& he ansGered& Nhoooah& that_d be sooo trippA;) En a GaA& Molaisonhad plentA o! memoriesY it_s 7ust that he couldn_t access them and& there!ore& didn_t oGnthem$ s Molaison_s relatives died o!!& Corin became& she saAs& FenrA_s sole eeper&;noG in the position o! noGing more about FenrA than anA living person&; and& o!course& vastlA more than he neG about himsel!$ Over the Aears& Corin had archivedMolaison_s medical historA& his psAchological4test results& and the traces produced bAscans o! his living brain$ She noG received bo"es o! Molaison !amilA mementos as gi!ts

!rom relatives$ >he mementos and the stories collected !rom !amilA members alloGedCorin to reconstruct those pieces o! Molaison_s preoperative historA Ghich he could no


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longer retrieveY the e"periments and observations amassed over nearlA !i!tA Aears o!science constituted an e"ternali9ed memorA o! the conscious li!e he did not noG he hadlived$

6 6 6

En 6lato_s 6haedrus& Socrates tells a storA about the 'gAptian invention o! Griting$ >hegod >heuth came to >hamus& the ing o! Upper 'gApt& Gith a brilliant neG technologA!or maing mars as records o! thoughts$ >hamus Gorried that people Gill trust to thee"ternal Gritten characters and not remember o! themselves;:

The specific which you have discovered is an aid not to memory, but to reminiscence,

and you give your disciples not truth, but only the semblance of truth$ they will be

hearers of many things and will have learned nothing$ they will appear to be omniscient

and will generally #now nothing.

>hamus Gas right$ En everAdaA li!e& Ge don_t much care Ghether Ghat Ge remember iscontained betGeen our ears or resides on a piece o! paper$ Ne relA on our partners&colleagues& and !riends to remind us o! obligationsY Ge stic 6ost4its on computers and!ridge doors to cue us to buA mil or have the car servicedY our cell phones ping toannounce coming appointments and remember all our phone numbers !or us$EncreasinglA& our memories are distributed across a landscape populated bA things andother people& and& in that respect& it_s possible to see Molaison as standing merelA at a

pathological e"treme o! memorA_s normalcA: a!ter the operation& allo! Molaison_sdeclarative memorA lived outside his oGn bodA& Ghile onlA some o! ours does$

En the classical Gorld& the celebrated ancient art o! memorA; involved using thedivided spaces o! Gell4noGn buildings as receptacles !or the ordered topics o! a publicspeech& and similar tactics Gere GidelA used Gell into the 'nlightenment$ 'ven ageneration ago& manA schools still relied on a large amount o! rote memori9ationX

poems& chronologies o! ings and /ueens& @atin declensions$ >hose memorA practicesaren_t dead& but& Gith the names and dates o! the 6lantagenet ings noG 7ust a clicaGaA& there is less and less need !or them$ Enstead& development o! memorA sills is

becoming an e"otic niche pursuit& as 3oshua oer e"plored in MoonGaling Gith'instein&; his boo about training !or the U$S$$ MemorA Championships$

>he accelerating changes in technologies o! memorA& spectacular though theA are& are a

matter o! degree rather than o! ind$ >hrough the earlA modern period and beAond&people 7otted doGn nice turns o! phrase in commonplace boos& and inserted slips ormarginal comments in printed boos& as a GaA o! coping Gith a Gorld o! in!ormationthat& as the historian nn Blair has shoGn& alreadA contained too much to noG$;Molaison and his caretaers also used little pieces o! paper as memorA prostheses& andin the *** noir !ilm Memento&; Ghich Gas inspired bA Molaison_s condition& thedetective su!!ering !rom anterograde amnesia sees to e"ternali9e his memorA throughscribbled notes& tattoos& and 6olaroid photographs$

>he Juanti!ied Sel! movement encourages everAone to !olloG Silicon ValleA utopiansin !orming a personal digital register o! everA item o! !ood consumed and everA

measurable bodilA state$ camera Gorn on the nec o! a li!elogger; recordseverAthing seen& and a digital recorder captures everAthing heard$ Et_s all thereXnothing


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!iltered& nothing lost& nothing distorted bA the messiness o! internal memorA$ Nearablecomputers lie oogle lass hold out the promise o! still more poGer!ul modes o! sel!4archiving$ Ne shall be as gods& and about ourselves Ge shall noG all things$>echnologA Gill banish !orgetting& and the stores o! unde!ormed memorA Gill live!orever in the cloud& retrievable at Gill$ >he name !or our remaining problems Gill be

search;: all Ge_ll have to do is remember Ghat Ge_re looing !or& master a !eG trics!or !inding it& and& !inallA& o!!load the initiation o! search onto e"ternal prompts that Gillremind us to remember$

6 6 6

s Molaison laA dAing& in =ecember& **P& Su9anne Corin sGung into action: hisbrain had to be chilled and scanned Ghile still in his bodA& /uiclA e"tracted !rom thesull& and then !loGn to San =iego& Ghere it Gould be care!ullA dissected and preserved$Molaison had groGn to mean something to me&; but there Gas still vitallA importantscienti!ic Gor to be done$ She Grites& MA interest in FenrA had alGaAs been primarilA

intellectualY hoG else Gould E e"plain GhA E had stood on a chair in the basement o!Mass$ eneral& ecstatic to see his brain removed e"pertlA !rom his sull\ MA role as ascientist had alGaAs been per!ectlA clear to me$; >his Gas no time !or sentiment orre!lection$

Nith Molaison_s brain nestled in a cooler& a !ilm creG !olloGed Corin and a San =iegoneuroscientist !rom the hospital to @ogan irport$ She Grites that Galing through theairport& Ge !elt lie celebrities$; >heA enacted a !ormal e"change !or the camera&; andthe brain Gas carried onto the plane$ E !elt sad to see FenrA_s brain go&; Corin Grites$Et Gas mA last goodbAe to him$; Et Gas noG the brain_s turn to become a celebritA$'mbedded in !ro9en gelatine& it Gas care!ullA sliced into tGentA4!our hundred and oneseventA4micron4thin slices& each one& as it Gas cut& rolling up lie a slice o! pale

prosciutto$; >he Ghole process Gas streamed live as a Nebcast& Ghere it had severalmillion real4time hits& and the !ootage can noG be Gatched on the Neb site o! the BrainObservatorA at the UniversitA o! Cali!ornia& San =iego$ 'ach slice is noG encased inglass& and a digiti9ed image o! it occupies a terabAte o! data$ Et has been promised thatthe images Gill be put together as a oogle 'arth4lie search engine; !or the brain$ E! itisn_t alreadA& Molaison_s noG disembodied organ Gill soon become the best4noGn

brain there has ever been& an enduring memorial to the man Gho !orgot everAthing$

Steven S"apin teac"es t"e "istor o* science at Harvard.

&"otograp" courtes o* Su+anne ,or$in.

http://www.newyor#er.com/online/blogs/boo#s/)0*+/*0/henry-gustav-molaison-the-

man-who-forgot-everything.html
http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/books/2013/10/henry-gustav-molaison-the-man-who-forgot-everything.htmlhttp://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/books/2013/10/henry-gustav-molaison-the-man-who-forgot-everything.htmlhttp://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/books/2013/10/henry-gustav-molaison-the-man-who-forgot-everything.htmlhttp://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/books/2013/10/henry-gustav-molaison-the-man-who-forgot-everything.html


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How the man who

inspired 'Memento'changed our

understanding

of memoryBA mar >ooron October KL& *K. KK:Q* am'mailamartoo%omments=onZt miss stories-ollo( "e )erge

2

in7hare

FenrA ustave Molaison Gas a man Gho couldnZt mae memories$ Better noGn toneuroscientists as FM& the late Molaison su!!ered !rom sei9ures as a Aoung man and

struggled to lead a normal li!e& but things too a dramatic shi!t a!ter he received alobotomA in ugust KLQ.$ =octors removed large chuns o! FMZs temporal lobes and
http://www.theverge.com/users/Amar%20Toormailto:[email protected]:[email protected]://twitter.com/intent/user?screen_name=amartoohttp://www.theverge.com/2013/10/19/4855370/how-the-man-who-inspired-memento-changed-our-understanding-of-memory#commentshttp://www.theverge.com/2013/10/19/4855370/how-the-man-who-inspired-memento-changed-our-understanding-of-memory#commentshttp://www.theverge.com/users/Amar%20Toormailto:[email protected]://twitter.com/intent/user?screen_name=amartoohttp://www.theverge.com/2013/10/19/4855370/how-the-man-who-inspired-memento-changed-our-understanding-of-memory#comments


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most o! his hippocampus& on the assumption that these regions Gere responsible !or thepatientZs neurological problems$ >he operation did cure FMZs sei9ures& but it le!t him ina uni/ue case o! anterograde amnesiaY he could remember his childhood and his

personalitA remained unchanged& but he could not !orm neG memories$

s Steven Shapin Grites in apiece !or theNe( /or$er this Gee& the operation le!t FMin a constant state o! discoverA and con!usion& but it also gave scientists remarable neGinsight into hoG the brain processes and stores memorA$

>he operation could not have been better designed i! the intent had been to create aneG ind o! e"perimental ob7ect that shoGed Ghere in the brain memorA lived& ShapinGrites$ Molaison gave scientists a GaA to map cognitive !unctions onto brainstructures$ Et became possible to subdivide memorA into di!!erent tApes and to locatetheir cerebral fip Codes$

http://www.theverge.com/)0*+/*0/*8/422+90/how-the-man-who-inspired-memento-

changed-our-understanding-of-memory
http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/books/2013/10/henry-gustav-molaison-the-man-who-forgot-everything.htmlhttp://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/books/2013/10/henry-gustav-molaison-the-man-who-forgot-everything.htmlhttp://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/books/2013/10/henry-gustav-molaison-the-man-who-forgot-everything.htmlhttp://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/books/2013/10/henry-gustav-molaison-the-man-who-forgot-everything.htmlhttp://www.theverge.com/2013/10/19/4855370/how-the-man-who-inspired-memento-changed-our-understanding-of-memoryhttp://www.theverge.com/2013/10/19/4855370/how-the-man-who-inspired-memento-changed-our-understanding-of-memoryhttp://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/books/2013/10/henry-gustav-molaison-the-man-who-forgot-everything.htmlhttp://www.theverge.com/2013/10/19/4855370/how-the-man-who-inspired-memento-changed-our-understanding-of-memoryhttp://www.theverge.com/2013/10/19/4855370/how-the-man-who-inspired-memento-changed-our-understanding-of-memory


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Memento

&ntroduction

Memento& directed bA Christopher %olan& is based on a short storA bA his brother&3onathan %olan& called Memento Mori;$ >he !ilm Gas released in *** and isdescribed bA %olan as a psAchological thriller about a guA Gho can_t mae neGmemories and Gho is looing !or revenge;$ Et belongs to the neo4noir !ilm genre&Githsome o! the characteristic !eatures o! bleaness& alienation& paranoia& the presence o! a!emme !atale and the lac o! a happA ending$

En an intervieG about the !ilm& %olan e"plained that he Gas verA interested in theprocess o! memorA and in the GaA it can be distorted$ Fe also stated that& in maingMemento a !ilm about an unreliable amnesic narrator& he had attempted to put theaudience into the head o! the protagonist and mae them e"perience some o! hiscon!usion& uncertaintA and paranoia;$ Et is preciselA !or this reason that E believeMemento has much to o!!er the mental health practitioner& especiallA anAone GoringGith individuals su!!ering !rom memorA impairment$

ecause memory is so deeply entwined with our sense of identity and is one of the

means by which we understand our world, this film e;plores how it might feel to be

unable to trust what we #now about ourselves, and others that we meet. ecause it

uses a comple; and unorthodo; form of story telling, 5emento challenges us, reuiring

a greater than usual degree of concentration and use of our own memory, in pursuit of

the truth. (ndeed, the film invites multiple viewings as we strive for greater

understanding, again giving us the e;perience of a person trying to wor# out the world

they are perceiving, when handicapped by an impairment of memory.

The 'ilm
http://www.impulsenine.com/homepage/pages/shortstories/memento_mori.htmhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neo-noirhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neo-noirhttp://www.impulsenine.com/homepage/pages/shortstories/memento_mori.htmhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neo-noir


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On this occasion& E do not intend to give a detailed description o! the plot but rather tooutline the comple" structure o! the storAtelling as a guide to orientate vieGers to thecomple" GaA the !ilm plaAs Gith memorA and time$ nAone Ganting an unspoiled;vieGing o! the !ilm should stop reading noG and return to the blog a!ter Gatching it$Memento is essentiallA a !ilm o! tGo parts& one !ilmed in colour and the other in blac

and Ghite& intertGined together in alternating se/uences that set out to e"plain theevents leading up to the opening scene$ >he !ilm_s opening se/uence& in colour& taesplace /uite literallA in reverse and is the onlA scene to do this$ En it& Ge Gitness therevenge illing o! >eddA& a policeman& bA @eonard& the protagonist Gho su!!ers !romanterograde amnesia$ >he se/uences !ilmed in colour& tell the storA bacGards in shortsegments that plaA !orGards& Ghereas the blac and Ghite se/uences tell a storAline thatun!olds in the conventional (that is moving !orGard in time) GaA$ Ne discover that the

blac and Ghite scenes preceded the colour se/uences in chronological time$ O!ten inthe colour scenes Ge are thrust into the action Gith @eonard& sharing his lac o!understanding about Ghat he is doing in anA particular place$ Ne verA soon learn thatthe strategA he uses to eep trac o! events& people and ob7ects& and to attempt to mae

sense o! his Gorld& is to tae polaroid photos Ghich he then annotates$ or the reallAimportant things that he Gants to remember& he has them tattooed on various parts o! his

bodA$ >he !inal blac and Ghite scene seamlesslA merges Gith the last colour se/uence&bringing the Ghole !ilm to an end as a complete piece o! storAtelling& but perhaps !ailingto provide all o! the ansGers that the vieGer maA be seeing a!ter the !irst vieGing$UltimatelA& Memento is lie a pu99le Ghose pieces can onlA be reassembled Gith thehelp o! an intact memorA$ En contrast to @eonard& Ge can use our memorA o! previousscenes to in!orm our understanding o! the conse/uences o! his actions in the scene thatGe are currentlA Gatching$

Relevance to the field of Mental (ealthMemento speci!icallA e"plores the condition o! anterograde amnesia and re!lects thedi!!icultA that su!!erers have in appreciating the passage o! time as theA struggle to e"istGith verA limited recent memorA$ or anAone Ganting to gain a better understanding o!Ghat it might !eel lie to su!!er !rom such a disabilitA& this !ilm captures some o! theaspects o! con!usion and perple"itA verA Gell$ BA maing the vieGer unsure o! Ghat totrust in Ghat theA see through @eonard_s eAes& Memento can help the vieGer toappreciate GhA such an individual maA e"perience paranoia$ >he !ilm can also o!!er astarting point !or a discussion about the di!!erent strategies that maA be emploAed to

prompt the su!!erer into recalling recent e"periences (autobiographical memories)$

>here are manA di!!erent rehabilitation techni/ues used to help individuals Githanterograde amnesia$ Some involve the use o! compensatorA techni/ues lie mobile

phone alerts or Gritten notes and diaries& others consist o! intensive trainingprogrammes involving the active participation o! the person Gith their !amilA members$Nor bA clinical neuroscientists in Cambridge& U& comparing Gritten versus visualaids !or memorA retrieval in memorA impaired individuals& has begun to suggest that therecording o! a pictorial& person4centred vieG o! events& using a Gearable camera& Ghoseimages are re4vieGed later on a computer screen& maA be an e!!ective GaA to improveautobiographical recollection and one that is superior to a Gritten diarA (BerrA '& apur

%& Nilliams @ et alY %europsAchological Rehabilitation$ **Y K(4Q):QP4[*KY >heuse o! a Gearable camera& SenseCam& as a pictorial diarA to improve autobiographicalmemorA in a patient Gith limbic encephalitis: a preliminarA report) or anAone Gantingto compare the !ictional character o! @eonard Gith a real person su!!ering !rom the same


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condition& the Gell4noGn case o! the 'nglish musicologist& Clive Nearing& Gho has asevere !orm o! anterograde amnesia& o!!ers !urther insights into the disabilitA$ Fe isunable to remember more than K*4.* seconds at a time and has no detailed memories o!his li!e be!ore herpes simple" encephalitis damaged the hippocampi in his brain (one o!the areas o! the brain involved in laAing doGn memories) more than * Aears ago$ Fe is

onlA able to recognise his Gi!e& Gho he married the Aear be!ore his illness$ Nhat isespeciallA interesting is that he retains his previous abilitA to plaA the piano& becausethis involves procedural memorA (involving other brain areas such as the basal gangliaand cerebellum)$ Fe !eatured in a BBC documentarA about hoG humans e"periencetime& Ghich can be vieGed via the Nellcome Collection Gebsite$ nother !amousamnesic patient& an merican man named FenrA Molaison& died in **P at the age o!P$ n e"cellent account o! his li!e Gith anterograde amnesia& caused as a result o!neurosurgerA !or epilepsA& is available in >he >elegraph obituarA published in ebruarA*KK$ Fe Gas studied e"tensivelA !or manA Aears& and Gas particularlA interesting

because he retained his intellectual abilities and personalitA but Gas unable to liveindependentlA or to hold doGn a 7ob$ @eonard& in the !ilm& illustrates 7ust hoG

vulnerable and open to e"ploitation someone is Githout a !unctioning short4termmemorA& Ghich can help us to understand GhA someone Gith this condition mightre/uire supervised care& o! some sort& throughout his or her li!etime$ Memento is a !ilmthat re/uires us to use our memorA to the !ull& at the same time as giving us thee"perience o! being in the Gorld Githout it$ E Gould de!initelA recommend this !ilm toanAone interested in memorA and its disorders$ urther in!ormation about Memento can

be !ound at EM=B& as can a short trailer$ >he =V= is available to purchase atama9on$co$u$ Minds on ilm blog is Gritten bA =r 3 lmeida$

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%omments

)00? is clearly inspired

by 5omento, and the protagonist suffers a similar predicament. 1verall - a good movie

too@

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt**33*00/


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(am always fascinated about how memory wor#s, 5emento is an e;cellent e;ample of

anterograde memory loss and they way memory effects our thin#ing, perception and

emotion.

http://www.priorygroup.com/professionals/results/dr-joyce-almeida

http://www.journaltocs.ac.u#/inde;.phpCactionDsearchEsub'ctionDhitsEjournal(AD)0)92EuserFuery(AD)9333EhighD*EpsD+0

EpageD29+EitemsD0EjournalGfilterD0EjournalbyD0

http://bdu.siu.edu.ar/cgi-bin/uery.plCe;pressionDeternidad

http://www.elmundo.es/elmundo/hemeroteca/)009/02/*3/n/escorpion.html
http://www.priorygroup.com/professionals/results/dr-joyce-almeidahttp://www.journaltocs.ac.uk/index.php?action=search&subAction=hits&journalID=20275&userQueryID=27666&high=1&ps=30&page=573&items=0&journal_filter=0&journalby=0http://www.journaltocs.ac.uk/index.php?action=search&subAction=hits&journalID=20275&userQueryID=27666&high=1&ps=30&page=573&items=0&journal_filter=0&journalby=0http://www.journaltocs.ac.uk/index.php?action=search&subAction=hits&journalID=20275&userQueryID=27666&high=1&ps=30&page=573&items=0&journal_filter=0&journalby=0http://bdu.siu.edu.ar/cgi-bin/query.pl?expression=eternidadhttp://www.priorygroup.com/professionals/results/dr-joyce-almeidahttp://www.journaltocs.ac.uk/index.php?action=search&subAction=hits&journalID=20275&userQueryID=27666&high=1&ps=30&page=573&items=0&journal_filter=0&journalby=0http://www.journaltocs.ac.uk/index.php?action=search&subAction=hits&journalID=20275&userQueryID=27666&high=1&ps=30&page=573&items=0&journal_filter=0&journalby=0http://www.journaltocs.ac.uk/index.php?action=search&subAction=hits&journalID=20275&userQueryID=27666&high=1&ps=30&page=573&items=0&journal_filter=0&journalby=0http://bdu.siu.edu.ar/cgi-bin/query.pl?expression=eternidad

Amnésia e Narradores de Javé

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