Examination of Wonder Film in the Context of Social Stigma and Internal Stigma Towards Individual Differences

Abstract

Stigma is the perception of a person or group as worthless due to their characteristics, such as ethnicity, illness, a physical or mental disability, and exclusion from social approval. Stigma is studied in two dimensions, social and internal stigma. The aim of this research is to examine the stigma of individual differences by film analysis. Films are a powerful educational tool in the internalization of values such as love, respect, kindliness and sensitivity by students. The 2017 film Wonder has been examined because it contains both these values and the theme of stigma towards individual differences. In the film, which tells a true life story, Auggie Pullman, who was born with Treacher Collins syndrome, has a congenital deformation on his face. Auggie, who has been unable to recover despite undergoing surgery many times, is walking around in an astronaut's headdress due to this deformation on his face. Deciding to go to school like her other peers, Auggie encounters problems brought on by stigma in the process. Trying to overcome these problems with the support of his family and teachers, Auggie is ultimately socially accepted by his peers with the breaking down of prejudices and is elected the most successful student of the year. The pattern of the research was determined as a case study, which is one of the qualitative research patterns. The content analysis method was used in the analysis of the data. The film set for research examined the phenomenon of stigma over the life of a ten-year-old child. The findings of the research were collected under three themes: social stigma, internal stigma and protective factors. The findings were discussed in the light of the literature and recommendations were presented to researchers and educators.