For a long time, we have been attracted to watching several dramas or movies about the subject of amnesia, including such as Stairways of Heaven. Winter Sonnet, Wife, Glass Shoes, Gangster's Wife 2, Memento, Born Identity. And lately Last dance with me on television and Moment to Remember, Daddy-long-legs, Butterfly effect on big screen. In particular, two of these experienced a lot of popularity. These are Stairs to Heaven and Winter Sonnet.
The former is about a love story of two men and a woman who has amnesia caused by a car accident. The latter is about a man who had amnesia caused by an car accident and who then fell in love again with the lover of 10 years ago. But after having another car accident, he gradually recovered his memory. Also in Moment to Remember which played lately on screen, we see another heartbroken man who is watching his lover losing her memory, along with him and their love. Through experience in watching these movies, it seems to us that amnesia is a kind of common disease, happening all around us. What's more, we seem to assume amnesia is not a serious disease anymore by embellishing it, even if it is a serious and uncommon disease in reality. By the way, why are we so affected and touched by these dramas or movies? "Most of the stories about amnesia are so-called "plain-as-the-sun", but they always show a dramatic reverse in the end, creating strong and touching emotions in us. This is why we cannot help being fascinated by them. We also have a mind that we want to forget, and try to escape from reality. Although the past is not always beautiful and unforgettable, we console ourselves by selectively forgetting or beautifying it. This process might be necessary for a happy life. During this sort of psychological process, amnesia-subjected dramas or movies has a lot of attraction." said Professor Ahn Eui-jin from Department of Media and Information in YU.
And then, is it possible for amnesia to happen in reality, like on television or the big screen? Seen from a medical view, it is somewhat different in reality.
■■Total memory loss, Dissociative Amnesia, and Fugue (don't know who his/her identity) does happen, but it is uncommon. Even if people do not seem to think it is a serious disease, but it is true it is rare. However, selective loss of memory is seen comparatively more often. Selective memory loss occurs when he/she forgets what he/she does not want to remember, caused by an accident or a shock. For example, in one drama Lovers in Paris, the actor Lee Dong-gun, is a character with this kind of amnesia. In this case, it is a matter of his/her own will. If he/she has the desire to remember the past, he/she can do so in several days. But most patients tend to reject treatment itself for the recovery of their memory, so they can not be healed. In the nutshell, amnesia as shown in dramas or movies is partly fiction, so we should not confuse it with reality." said Professor Lee Jong-bum from YU college of medicine.
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