Discovering the Father’s Anima through Film: Reviving the Father-Son Relationship

Both the 1989 American film Field of Dreams and the 2008 Japanese film Departures show how the heroes discover their father’s anima in unexpected ways, thereby sparking powerful reviving of their estranged relationships. John Beebe, MD, defined the father’s anima, a relatively unappreciated concept, in 1984: “I am referring to the father’s working sense of his son’s life, the emotional attitude that the father takes toward his son. This emotional attitude is communicated to the son as his father’s sense of the younger man’s worth.” Healthcare professionals will learn mindfulness techniques of viewing and post-viewing processing of films that will enable the participant to discover the father’s anima as a way of reviving estranged father-son relationships as seen in the films. Teachings are appropriate for healthcare professionals as well as the general public. Healthcare professionals will be able to incorporate the tools and practices offered in this program in ways beneficial to clients or patients.