Guilt In Good Will Hunting

Director Gus Van Sant's gripping drama Good Will Hunting is a journey into the heart and the mind of a young janitor Will at MIT, who has an uncanny genius for mathematics and most intellectual things in life, yet who has a serious identity crisis. Several themes abound in the movie, but the one that stands out, as we explore the psychology of the protagonist, is guilt. When an unresolved past remorse from childhood goes unchallenged, that very guilt psychologically shapes into adult life with catastrophic impact upon all aspects of life, and the resolution of the guilt can be profoundly difficult to achieve. The influence of guilt in children can take a serious toll growing into adulthood. If children are mistreated, physically and/or mentally, throughout the childhood years, it is more likely for them to cultivate a feeling that they actually deserve ill-treatment at the hands of their adult caretakers. Consequently, they can easily end up as someone who is guilt-ridden, and remain oblivious to his or her true identity and potential in life.
A remorseful mind also becomes the biggest hurdle to his or her own true potential if that issue is not resolved in time. Past remorse …show more content…
There is this "It's not your fault" scene where Will is pushed hard to accept the fact that he is not to be blamed for the ill doings that has occurred in his past. Will tries to resist, but Sean continues to insist Will to challenge his past demons. Finally, Will can't mentally fight off Sean and confesses his past that he is not responsible for what has troubled him throughout his childhood, exclaiming: "I know, I know, I know." This confession shatters all his wrong beliefs about his guilt, and Will is transformed as an