Psychological problems of physical acquired defect deaf blind character in William Gibson’s Miracle Worker

Everybody knows that either psychology or literature are two different science’s disciplines. We know that literature is related to the fiction world such: drama, novel, poems, essay which are classified as the art, whereas psychology is referred to scientific study concerning with the human behave and mental process. Although they are different, but both are having the similarity that is literature and psychology are started from humankind and life as the analysis source.

Miracle Worker which is written by William Gibson is a drama that tells about Helen Keller, a young girl who losses her sight and hearing senses since nineteenth month because of an illness that is diagnosed as acute congestion of stomach and brain. This physical exceptional condition creates many difficulties and limits which affect to the psychological condition of the child. It also influences Helen’s emotion and behavior that seems to be naughty, wild, quick tempered and uncivilized child. Therefore, the family tries to find the solution to overcome Helen’s psychological problems. Education intervenes is the effort to solve Helen’s psychological problems, and during the learning process the methods which are applied is indicated as psycho pedagogic principles. Thus, this study is aimed at finding the psychological problems of Helen Keller, the causes and effects of Helen’s exceptional condition. Then, the researcher tries to describe the education intervenes that is indicated as Psycho pedagogic principles to solve Helen’s psychological problems.

To achieve the above objectives of the study, this study is categorized as literary criticism since this study is emphasized on the analysis of a literary work. The primary data of this study are collected from William Gibson’s Miracle Worker. The researcher applies a psychological approach especially Kirk’s theories which are talking about the psychological perspective of exceptional children.

Based on the result of analysis, Psychological problems of Helen Keller which are portrayed in the drama i.e. feeling different from other children, very depended on other people, easy to be angry, isolated, and unable to control the emotion. After identifying and analyzing the efforts of education intervenes to solve Helen’s psychological problems, the researcher finds that learning methods which are applied in the process of education is containing the psycho pedagogic principles such: Aids Principle, Readiness Principle, Individual Services Principle, Skill Principle, Love and Affection Principle, Self Supporting, Self Care, Self Help, and Self Concept.