Positive Psychology visits Peta Tikva, Israel

Maria Elwan

Eng 440
October 2, 2012
Journal & Log 7

The Band’s Visit –  “Positive Psychology Visits Peta Tikva, Israel”

In the film, The Bands Visit I initially saw Dina as the Positive Psychology figure. She was very optimistic and friendly to the band members. She empathized with their situation and was the one who arranged for the band members to be taken in for the evening. Then as the film progressed the director reveals her loneliness and feelings of inadequacy when she tell Tawfiq, “There, I thought tonight would be a special Big Arab Words night, and I’ve screwed it up again.”  But all in all I thought she was the most Positive Psychology figure.

The overall feeling of the film was that of an unconscious loneliness amongst most or all of the characters. It was a window into very personal relationship issues with the Israeli couple (birthday girl) and their problems over the husband being out of work for a year. The film also had a Freudian hint of homosexuality and the “return of the repressed” when Tawfiq tells Dina that his son had done some very foolish things, and Tawfiq couldn’t understand how gentle his son was, causing the son to commit suicide. Tawfiq then felt guilty that his actions had also killed the wife.

The film also brought out the ‘Archetype’ showing the similarities of these two perceived enemies, the Egyptians and Israelis, and how there is actually a kinship and bond formed from “an alleged collective unconscious found in all people (Berger 124).

Freudian sublimation is also present in Tawfiq who rechannels his sexual desire for Dina to conform to his societal (Egyptian) demands. He feels that he is a representative of Egypt, and does not want to do anything to soil the Egyptian reputation. Tawfiq also demonstrates ‘positive psychology’ he is pretty optimistic and accepting of his situation, and believes the band’s troubles will be resolved in due time.

Condensation (“the representation of a single word or image which takes one many different meanings” was used with the reference to the American musician Chet Baker (Berger 11).  Discussing Baker was bonding the two nationalities in music, even though they may have enjoyed different things about the music, and their minds held different images of it.  Their love of music and these musicians transcended the hostilities between them. Dina even commented how years ago her Israeli village street would be empty on Friday afternoon because that’s when the TV played Egyptian movies. Music and movies was used as a symbol of many different thoughts that brings pleasure.

Last but not least there was Khaled, sweet, narcissistic, sexual Khaled. He had what Freud would call a healthy dose of narcissism. He loved himself as much as he loved women. This film was very endearing and heartwarming. You come away with the positive psychology that there is yet hope for the world, if they two enemies can sit down at a table and break bread together. I guess that’s spoken also in a true positive psychology mode.