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How a psychologist thinks about your favorite

Film & TV characters.

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Welcome to Characters On The Couch, my Film & Television site, where I delve into character psychology. If you’re interested in psychology, film, or a combination of the two, I bring my insights into your favorite contemporary and classic characters. I hope to help you understand their deeper psychological motivations (and, maybe, even your own).

When you think about truly iconic films, do you wonder what gives them such staying power? Is it the time of your life when you watched them? Is it the costumes or images that seemed unforgettable? Did one or more characters align with your struggles or painful experiences? Did you feel along with them?  Or maybe, it’s simply that the film pulled at your heart and caused you to explore emotions in a new and profound way?

I say it’s all of the above. And, in the same way, when these meaningful elements are missing, a story becomes forgettable. I hope this site will encourage you to transform your story, personal or in writing, into magic by finding the human thread that links it and you to a universal experience.

Everything in life ties us back to complex emotions and the rhythm and language of feelings and psychology. I'll offer your that language of feeling in my blog as I write about the human struggles in each film.

MAD MEN Season 7 Episode 3
Love, Lies, and Misunderstandings
Do Don and Megan Have a Chance?

Do Don and Megan have a chance in Mad Men Season 7 Episode 3? Good relationships take trust and trust allows relationships to strengthen over time. As we’ve watched Don Draper over the years, we know he’s lied to people in his life for complicated reasons. After suffering a series of humiliating defeats in Mad…

Read More about MAD MEN Season 7 Episode 3 Love, Lies, and MisunderstandingsDo Don and Megan Have a Chance?

MAD MEN Season 7: The Women
Revolution or Evolution?

Bob Dylan’s song, “The Times They Are A-Changin’” defined the 60’s and the Cultural Revolution taking place. These times were especially momentous for women in their roles in the workplace and as wives. Enter the world of Mad Men  – and we are in the culture that fueled the fires for Friedan’s 1963 book, The Feminine Mystique. The Women’s…

Read More about MAD MEN Season 7: The WomenRevolution or Evolution?

MAD MEN Season 7 Episode 1
Where Are Joan, Peggy, Megan, and Don in 1969?

Could Sterling, Cooper, and Partners of Mad Men fame be an even worse environment for – and especially the women – as we enter Mad Men Season 7 in 1969? Each of the main characters seems poised for the struggle of their lives – as Mad Men’s psychologically-minded creator Matthew Weiner hints: “This season is…

Read More about MAD MEN Season 7 Episode 1Where Are Joan, Peggy, Megan, and Don in 1969?