Many Hollywood hits have recurring themes of organizational behavior in them. Sometimes the themes are hidden and are not crystal clear. However, after watching Invictus and The Invisible War three main topics became clear. Each of these films displays characteristics of motivation, stress, and leadership in different ways. However, the message about these three topics is clear.
Background
Invictus tells the true story of how Nelson Mandela joined powers with the captain of South Africa’s rugby team, Francois Pienaar, to help unite their divided nation. South Africa was a deeply divided nation throughout its history. The nation was racially divided and unstable.
The Invisible War is a ...view middle of the document...
Mandela addressed this right away and stated that he needed the best people possible to help him lead the country. His motivation was clear throughout the entire film and he believed in his goal even in the face of adversity.
Mandela knew that uniting the divided nation would not be an easy task, which was why he enlisted the help of the Pienaar. As captain of the South African rugby team, Pienaar’s motivation at first was to motivate his team to be the best team they could be. However, after meeting with Mandela, it became clear that Pienaar’s motivation shifted and he wanted to unite the divided nation as well and win the World Cup to achieve this goal.
All of the main characters in The Invisible War were motivated to join the armed forces for all different reasons. Some of the characters were drawn to careers in the armed forces because of their family members that were in the military before them. Other characters were drawn to the military to escape the lives they had and make something positive out of their circumstances. While the motivation was different, the driving force was there and all of the women in this film joined the United States military successfully.
Stress
Nelson Mandela dealt with great amounts of stress throughout most of his life. His parents passed away at a young age and he became an orphan. Mandela fought his way through school and even opened up the first black law firm in South Africa. Mandela was banned, convicted, and imprisoned for 27 years before rising to become the President of South Africa. However, being President of a divided nation was also stressful for Mandela. He collapsed due to exhaustion in the film. This was due to his environment and trying to get his job done with the limited time he had.
Francois Pienaar did not have such a tumultuous past. Pienaar came from a wealthy family and attended private schools his entire life. However, Pienaar faced the difficulty in uniting his divided team before he could attempt to help unite the nation. Pienaar’s family did not agree with Mandela being President which put Pienaar in a stressful position between doing what his family wanted and doing what his country needed. Pienaar’s teammates did not agree with him as well. He had to fight them every step of the way and make them participate in activities that they wanted nothing to do with. As captain, Pienaar began to question himself in the face of such great difficulty. However, he persevered and dealt with the stress in his workplace quite successfully.
All of the main characters in The Invisible War faced unbelievably stressful circumstances while at work. They faced workplace aggression in the forms of bullying, sexual harassment, and violence. The women featured in this film were all raped. The attackers were people that they worked with on a daily basis and in some cases, they were their managers. The women were then told not to report...
