Taxi Driver and How Loneliness Destroys Your Mind

I rewatched Taxi Driver yesterday only to be reminded that what I call a mirror in the video is actually a window. I wrote the script for this video mostly by memory and somehow mixed things up on this part, the point remains the same though. If you like Taxi Driver and relate to movies about lonely and broken men, I now have a video about Buffalo '66 that is available on the channel: https://youtu.be/k06_5GFNrqw

Travis Bickle is the most relatable film character in history for me personally. I've struggled with loneliness my whole life. Loneliness really does erode away your mind. I talk to myself like crazy everywhere even in public. It's a coping mechanism for the loneliness. People look at me like I'm crazy. Its therapeutic for me. It's harder than people think to break free of loneliness. Once you become lonely, you get stuck in it. It hurts. UPDATE: 1K likes holy sht.

Because of how alienated our society is today.This movie is more relevant than ever.

Loneliness is not necessarily about being alone, it's the feeling of not being able to connect with anyone. You cen feel lonely even in a room full of people.

I think it's very important to note that Travis' loneliness is much more subtle and psychological than it is physical or based on proximity to the other characters. He has friends he hangs out with, is able to hold down a full time job and is even able to charm Cybil Shepard and take her out on a date. He is a self sufficient individual able to afford to support himself and isn't some weak pushover as he's actually capable of defending himself. He is not a craven and actually I'm unsure if he ever truly shows fear at any point in the film. What makes him such a tragic character is his loneliness and hopelessness IN SPITE of those factors, because he is unable to truly connect with or understand people, nor they him or he himself. I also love how NYC itself seems to be an ironic metaphor for human loneliness and isolation; there is nothing more lonely than an overpopulated city.

"A lot of taxi driver is Travis writing in his diary then going out and being weird to people" he's literally me.

Looking back I love how he can have a whole apartment to himself with just like, a job in New York 😂

"Loneliness has distanced him so far from reality" - this hits home for many. People forget how to truly interact and end up feeding into their own narratives of sadness and defeats...

Loneliness is kind of wierd. On one end I’m comfortable and actually happy being alone because I don’t set expectations with anyone. Yet, on the other end sometimes I do just want to feel like the comfort and joy of stability with individuals. It’s almost as if my child version wants the love never received, my teenage self wants revenge and my adult self wants peace. However, seeing Travis be so pathetic makes me want to not put myself through that again.

What’s so captivating about taxi driver for me is Robert De Niro’s performance. In that movie, Travis Pickle doesn’t feel like a role some actor is performing, it feels like watching an actual person go through life struggles. To embody a character so well Robert must have been able to relate to the character in a deep level.

Travis is like that because he only sees the bad in the society. He cannot fit in to a group because he always finds the bad sides of people. His need of extreme security and certainty outweighs his need to fit in to a group. Loneliness doesn't stem from being alone, it stems from feeling like nobody understands you, it stems from feeling like you are an alien.

I love being alone. People in this world are awful. When I get off work I just don't want to see anybody. I live a peaceful drama free solitude life.

I wish people would talk more about the incredibly deep shame that comes with being unable to connect and have healthy relationships with others. It causes the individual to believe that there is something inherently wrong and bad about themselves, and because shame is one of the most painful emotions, a lot of people are unwilling to look at it or sit with it,, so they go through life a fraction of the human they could be. So instead of feeling and dealing with the shame, it drives many maladaptive and self-destructive behaviors that push others away further, thus reinforcing the idea that there is something wrong with oneself. Shame can ruin a person's life, and it can be a relief to turn that anger outwards onto others. It looks like Travis really hates other people, but really he hates them because he assumes they know there is something deeply wrong with him. He hates them because he can never ever feel safe with them, he is always diminishing himself, he is always afraid of rejection, he is always low in the social caste and thus falls through the cracks of the capitalist profit machine. There is a sickness in this world that manifests from being cast to the side, it is a sickness of shame. In fact, shame is what drives most mental disorders from PTSD to personality disorders. I think at the root of Travis' hatred, you'll find that deep shame. Me as a 26-year-old woman, despite having a significant other and some good people in my life, I resonate very much with Travis. I've been getting worse lately. I've thought of ending my life to spare others of my toxic influence. Dealing with this stuff is so much easier said than done, often it feels impossible. I am stuck in a hole, gazing up at people who are climbing mountains. I am in hell and everyone else is in paradise, and I'm very tired.

Being lonely bests dealing with narcissists

I really like your analysis of Taxi Driver. Specifically the “if you gamble your happiness on your relationship with others rather than the relationship you have with yourself you're always going to have this self destructive sense of loneliness”

His loneliness has distanced himself so far from reality, that his loneliness ends up being the reason he cannot have what he wants - that's deep man, real deep. And I know I don't just speak for myself.

watching taxi driver while having not had any meaningful social contact in months while your friends drive away from you at all turns despite you desperately trying to keep them and just giving up eventually goes hard

My dad said I'm basically Travis Bickle, then i realized he basically called me insane

I grew up in a narcissistic family so when i moved out the ability to be alone was literally so euphoric just ordering pizza and watching a documentary about ancient rome on Saturday evening was so amazing it was all i needed to really love life. But being completely alone for prolonged periods isn't good just some even semi meaningful people to associate with is important.

I've been an introvert my whole life. (A real introvert - someone who receives energy from being alone rather than being with others.) I've never had a problem talking to or approaching others. I've even been complemented many times on my listening skills, comedic style, empathy, and ability to give genuine advice. I've also been criticized for traits that I feel were a misunderstanding of how I feel I am (he's helping others because he wants something, he listens because he's nosy, he doesn't make as many mistakes, so he thinks he's better than others etc.) Even after trying to explain these away, they still come up from time to time. It only takes one person to start some rumor and have others go along with it even if those same people always got along with you. I feel lonely often. I try to keep myself busy with projects to deflect from these feelings because no matter how often I've attempted to transition my encounters with others to anything else, it never goes anywhere. I'm 32 and a part of me feels that people might think that I must be someone to avoid since I have no friends (social proof), but I honestly can't say what the reason is exactly.