How Marvel’s “Moon Knight” Dramatizes Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID)
The chief protagonist, Marc Spector, displays the typical DID symptoms of dissociation and amnesia throughout the series.
Dissociative identity disorder (DID), also known as multiple personality disorder, is a rare mental disorder in which a person develops multiple distinct identities or selves in a body. It is a psychological condition in which a person called a “host” carries several identities called “alters”, each with their own distinct personalities, memories, thoughts, and actions.
What are the Symptoms Of Dissociative Identity Disorder?
As a child, Spector had witnessed the death of his brother and experienced a harrowing childhood, which led him to develop certain alters early in life.
A mercenary by profession, Spector gets embroiled in a deadly mystery involving ancient Egyptian gods.
His fully-developed alter personalities, Steven Grant and Jake Lockley, help him survive through “their” athletic ability, advanced technology, expert combat skills, and a high tolerance for pain based on willpower, training, and experience. Throughout the series, he appears to dissociate from his realities and suffer from amnesia.
Although the conceptualization and intention behind the silver-screen portrayal of DID have been well-received, critics have panned the series’ unrealistic cinematic execution of the psychiatric condition. However, it stands as a wonderful work that helpfully raises awareness about one of the most crippling mental health disorders.