Can people with mental illness teach us something new about our American society?
*Argue which work of literature did a better job, your choice book/s or the play and why?
*What new information have you learned after you finished your book? How did it change your perspective about your character/s?
*You may incorporate feminism, and historical elements to the book you just finished reading--any changes in society in the last 20-30 years in regards to mental illness?
*What did you learn about yourself as well?
*What aspects of your main character show he/she still has leadership qualities, even with this illness.
For full credit, you MUST have quotations as support of your points from both recent texts, you MUST show reading and avoid online summary info, you MUST respond to a minimum of 2 posts. Points will be deducted for those students who wait until the last 12-24 hours, for spelling problems, repeating information already stated, confusing responses, attacking classmates verbally, simply agreeing without saying much of anything, or off-topic commentary.
I expect you will have completed your reading, so avoid repeating things you already said during the discussion.
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DATABASES NOT YET REQUIRED FOR THIS BLOG, but your argument will be judged harshly, so be prepared to defend yourself!
**This blog will end at 8 a.m. on 10/14. Remember that starting on the last 12-24 hours prior will result in loss of points since your discussion will be limited.
------APA documentation must be used----
DATABASES NOT YET REQUIRED FOR THIS BLOG, but your argument will be judged harshly, so be prepared to defend yourself!
**This blog will end at 8 a.m. on 10/14. Remember that starting on the last 12-24 hours prior will result in loss of points since your discussion will be limited.
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ReplyDeleteI feel that people with mental illnesses can teach us something about society, in my fictional book "The Girls Interrupted" she has a mental illness (which I am unsure of what it is exactly because it hasn't been diagnosed yet). She is a prime example of how unfair American society can be sometimes, especially with mental illnesses and the stigma around it. "So when we went to Bailey's in Waverly Square with our retinue of nurses, the arrangement of atoms in our molecule was more complex than it appeared to the engineers' wives sipping coffee at the counter and graciously pretending not to look at us" (Kaysen, 1993, p.50). These wives judging them is the perfect example of the social stigma I had mentioned before. In a lot of cases situations like these happen in real life, and it is not just. I would also say that there are many ties between women and how they are treated in both books I've read, one being "A Thousand Splendid Suns". I feel in both books the main characters have to endure some kind of hardship. Now Mariam and Lila do not have a mental illness but they both had struggled in a way that I feel connects them to Susanna. On page 19 Mariam's mother says "it's our lot in life, Mariam. Women like us. we endure. It's all we have. Do you understand" (Hosseini, 2007). In a way I feel that Susanna is also "enduring" her fate as well. I feel that people could learn a lot from reading either of these books, but on the topic of mental illness itself "The Girl Interrupted" definitely does a better job with helping the reader understand these illnesses.
ReplyDeleteAgree with the rest but she is diagnosed with borderline personality disorder, in case you missed that. (Kaysen, 19923, p.20). -from Logan
DeleteI also consider that both Laila and Mariam are suffering from major trauma (borderline rape), which makes one of them really withdraw from other people for much of the book. It may not be a "mental disorder" but I really feel like it makes the women in both texts not all what they could be if they were not "suffering" as such.
Delete[Mrs. Nayback above there]
DeleteTo add to that, in both books, "A Thousand Splendid Suns" and "The Girl Interrupted". The main characters have a lot in common even though these books are about two different subjects. Mariam and Laila were pretty much forced to live together, do chores together, cook together, and they started to bond over being trapped by Rasheed. "From that night on Mariam and Laila did their chores together. they sat in the kitchen and rolled dough, chopped green onions, minced garlic, offered bits of cucumber to Aziza..." (Hosseini, 2007, p.251). In a way Lisa, Susanna, and Georgina are all trapped in the McLean hospital, doing things together with the little freedom they have and making the most out of it. Even if it is just sitting in the TV room. "At the end of the terrible hall, the terrible TV room. We liked it. At least, we preferred it to the living room. It was messy, noisy, smoky, and most important, it was on the left lunatic side of things. (Kaysen, 1993, p.47). It was like the people in the hospital bonded because of their differences from the staff, the way Mariam and Laila bonded over Rasheed. The things both Rasheed and the McLean hospital staff had in common is they were keeping the characters captive in a way.
DeleteComment to Mrs Nayback from -Monique Brisson
DeleteThis is an excellent observation---people are often drawn together for comfort during trauma or post trauma. Even if they don't like each other very much. It's a survival skill.
DeleteIn fact, I think we need to try to do that for people with mental illnesses (however temporary). It doesn't help them to shun them or to treat them as "whack" or different.
You may be on to something for your final paper in this course!
I wouldn't say that Mariam and Laila did not experience Mental Illness, they both did endure extreme abuse, negligence, rape, and overall awful living conditions. Due to the fact that women are treated poorly and given little to no medical care in Afghanistan, receiving a mental illness diagnoses or treatment for that would be unfathomable. I do believe as well that these women did exhibit signs of depression, although I am no expert on it.
DeleteI would have been depressed if I had to endure half of what those women did. Same with Susanna---I need contact with my family. Do you notice them withdrawing from others, seeking self harm, or emotionally shutting down?
DeleteI like the connection you made between the two books. Is there also a social stigma towards poor women in A thousand Splendid Suns, just like there is a stigma towards people with a mental illness? And how do the two situations relate if there is a social stigma? -Josiah
DeleteI think there isn't a so-called "social stigma" against mental illness in "A Thousand Splendid Suns", I think it is more plain discrimination against women in general. But I do think both Susanna Mariam and Lila relate on an emotional level with their trauma.
DeleteThis is from Monique Brisson
ReplyDeleteLogan, did you mean the main character or the other woman who is REALLY controlling (Lisa)? Sometimes I think that Susannah isn't sure how to feel. She seems like if she feels it is "wrong" or that she should feel and she does not. I am guessing depression, but once you two get further in the book, let me know your diagnosis. I do wish Susannah got more support. I have had several students have to be in this type of hospital setting to get help and they got it. It's an illness like any other, just not as clearly visible.
ReplyDeleteI believe people with mental illness can absolutely still be considered leaders. In the book “Sunrise Over Fallujah” the main character Birdy suffers from pretty bad anxiety overseas but he still finds ways to show leadership. “Mama said that I shouldn’t be the hero type. I don’t know. Maybe you have to be a hero type to deal with the bigger things that happen to you. At least you have to be bigger than life to fit all the things inside you that you didn’t know you could absorb before.”(Myers, 2008, p.280). This quote helps show that even though he is fighting through his anxiety he is still exemplifying courage and heroicness which are two necessary traits to be an effective leader. I also believe in my new book “The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell”, the main character Sam has shown leadership qualities despite being labeled as an outcast due to his unusual eye color. Although it is never revealed, the reader is lead to believe that Sam goes through some form of anxiety and depression. Due to the loneliness Sam is only fortunate enough to have one friend named Ernie but, is willing to do anything for him which I believe defines him as a leader. “Batemans’s face was a mask of anger and fury as he pulled back his fist a second time, about to deliver a lethal uppercut I was sure would remove his head. Then something inside me snapped. I leaped from the top bleacher onto Bateman’s back causing him to stumble off balance, though he immediately remained upright. Almost immediately I realized both the insanity of my decision and my shortsightedness; there was seemingly no way to get off without encountering a raging bull.”(Dugoni, 2018, pp. 50-51). This experience shows Sam has great loyalty and passion for the people he cares about exhibiting signs of being a leader. I feel that both main characters in the stories I’ve read have shown great leadership skills despite suffering from mental illness.
ReplyDeleteDo you think it's hard for you characters to show these skills? The book said Sam almost attacks someone but stops himself, could that be sam struggling to show leadership? Or maybe he is only learning the skills and is not a great leader yet.
DeleteIn your first book was there any feminism incorporated? Also to support you though that Birdy shows heroicness you could not that he was awarded with a Purple Heart for wounding his leg in combat.
Delete-Logan
I think Sam does struggle at showing leadership at some points in the book. I think he doesn't want to feel like more of an outcast than he already is. He kind of struggles in silence until he grows up.
DeleteThere is some feminism at certain points but not much. There are women in the army who have the same respect as men. There is a point where a women colonel is about to get raped but that is the worst thing that happens to women in the book.
DeleteDo you think Birdy has more anxiety or tons of adrenaline? Are any of his signs also part of PTSD (which typically we would see outside of war). How are some of the ways our bodies and minds react to trauma similar to mental illness?
ReplyDeleteI like how you are seeing positive aspects in both characters so far. Here in America we tend to "pick on" or label people to stigmatize them. Do you feel Sam or Birdy have been labeled in some ways? Does that impact how they see themselves or how others see them? Leaders need to have respect and it's hard to get respect when people are stigmatized.
I personally think that Birdy's high strung mindset is more anxiety opposed to depression. Some of his anxiety symptoms do go along with PTSD such as the nightmares he experiences and his hallucinations of bombs blowing off in the distance. Mental illness and trauma symptoms are very similar in terms of the human brain. The mind almost gets "brainwashed" experiencing trauma causes a major change in thinking. Certain mental illnesses have similar symptoms in changing the human thought process. I feel like Birdy was just accepted by his peers in the war. Sam on the other hand is absolutely labeled as a "weird" kid due to his eyes which is extremely unfair. I think it impacts how Sam views his own personal actions to try and just be accepted or approved by other people in life.
DeleteThe book "Where the Crawdads Sing" by Delia Owens portrays how mental illness can highlight flaws in the tolerance and inclusivity of our American society. The main character, Catherine “Kya” Clark, is abandoned by her family and left to fend for herself in the marsh. Although she teaches herself to survive in the wild, she is burdened with the grief of constant rejection. Alone, sad, and scared, young Kya is offered no support by townspeople, on account of her “different” nature. She is nicknamed “Marsh Girl” and Teresa White, a town local, shouts to her daughter as she approaches Kya “ ‘Meryl Lynn, dahlin’, don’t go near that girl, ya hear me. She’s dirty’ ” (Owens, 2018 pg. 66). This is an example of how our American society outcasts and rejects those with mental illness, failing to provide the necessary support to prevent these illness’ from occurring.
ReplyDeleteAlthough our society is at fault for this rejection, there are other locations where this is more extreme. In the book “A Thousand Splendid Suns” by Khaled Hosseini, the main character, Mariam, is not given a voice to speak out about mental illness. She grew up in Afghanistan with a verbally abusive mother, and a negligent father, who later gave her away to an older, abusive husband. In this society women were not given the right to choose their own path, or speak up about mental illness. As Lailia, Mariams only friend, invisions Mariam in her childhood kolba she describes her as “A woman who will be like a rock in a riverbed, enduring without complaint, her grace not sullied but shaped by the turbulence that washes over her.” (Hosseini, 2007 pg. 401). Mariam was very depressed from a long line of abandonment and never given and outlet for her pain. This speaks volumes on how the lack of rights of Afghanistan women affects their mental health.
Excellent ideas about depression. How can you tell that either or both Kya or Mariam are depressed? What symptoms did you notice?
DeleteIs it harder for them to be leaders with this depression? If not, what are you noticing about their behavior as the women age and deal with their abuse/loneliness?
Also, message me your real name so I can mark down.
Elizabeth- They both express feeling hopeless in solitude, lonely, which I believe to be a symptom of depression. It does seem to be harder for them to be leaders for others, being denied and rejected by their loved ones in life has driven both of these women to be independant to an extent in which selflessness is not a trait they can possess. They have both been trained to not rely on others and therefore look out for themselves. ( ps. the initial response was me as well)
DeleteIreland- Kya expresses the feeling of loneliness almost right away after the last one of her siblings left. As time goes on for her and her birthday comes around and her mother doesn't come back or her father never saying anything about it being her birthday makes her feel more lonely and as they day went on she began to talk to the birds to tell them about how it was her birthday to have someone that knows. Kya's first time going to town and buying food and her nervousness "Biting her lip, wanting to run home. She couldn't reckon what she'd say to people; how she'd figure the grocery money." (Delia Owens, 2018, p15). What she is feeling in this portion of the book to me is the beginning of her having depression. These feelings are making her change to adapt to them and rely on herself not others.
DeleteIn the fictional book "Where The Crawdads Sing" Kya is left alone most of her life. She watches everyone she knows and loves leave because of an abusive father. She is abandoned and her father leaves, often not coming back for long periods of time. Kya fends for herself and teaches herself how to live alone in the marsh. On top of this Kya needs to keep herself fed and healthy. At one point the father gives Kya money for food but there is a consequence. Father told her "'This here'll get ya food fer the week. Thar ain't such thing as handouts' he said. 'Ever'thang cost sumpp'in, and fer the money ya gotta keep the house up, stove wood c'lected, and warsh the laundree.'" (Delia Owens, 2018 pg. 16) Kya becomes very independent trying to stay alive and keep her father happy. Even though Kay may not have a distinct mental illness yet in the book this shows that people with extremely hard lives and even individuals with some kind of mental illness can still live for themselves and have leadership skills.
ReplyDeleteHow does this independence shape Kya as a leader? What skills does it give her? Obviously she is alone for most her life but is there any point where she shows her leadership skills with another person or group of people?
DeleteHow does Kya's leadership roles grow or change as the book goes on? Is becoming independent making her a better leader then before?
DeleteWhat specific leadership skills does kya beginning to show over the course of the book? How does her mental illness progress further into the storyline and how was it seen in society during the time period the book is based in?
DeleteAll of Kyas struggles make her learn everything on her own, how to cook, stay healthy and in general stay alive. Kya wasn't really a leader before she went through all of this. She was shy and scared.
DeleteMy book “The Great Alone,” shows how certain remedies and activities can help those with mental illness, especially in the case of PTSD. While I have not yet finished my current book, I believe that the first several chapters are very good at representing the ways therapy and beauty can help people with mental illness. In “The Great Alone,” it is inferred from conversation that the dad of Leni Allbright (the main character), Ernt, has PTSD and hallucinations from his time in the Vietnam War. Upon arriving in Alaska, however, the family feels happy for the first time, being situated in a place of such beauty. “And with the snap whiz of the Polaroid, Dad looked up at her and smiled. ‘We’re going to be happy here, Red. Can’t you feel it?’. ‘Yeah,’ she said, and for the first time ever, she actually believed it.” (Hannah, 2018, p.45). Leni’s father finds solace and peace in a hostile environment that he has been acclimated to by war. Leni’s father had an experience similar to the ones described in the first book I read, “The Things They Carried,” being in the Vietnam War and returning to a very different America than the one they left. In “The Things They Carried,” O’Brien also experiences a similar feeling when confronting his past and returning to the places he saw during the war. “Our time was short, however, and choices had to be made, and in the end I decided to take her to this piece of ground where my friend Kiowa had died. It seemed appropriate. And, besides, I had business here.” (O’Brien, 1998, p.184). O’Brien is relieved to share his memories and get those feelings off his chest.
ReplyDeleteDo you think that being in a place of isolation is a better spot for someone experiencing PTSD than say a big city like Chicago? And if so how could we as Americans make living in a bigger more populated area easier to live in after war. Would there need to be more opportunities for therapy or maybe PTSD support groups. Personally I think that there may not be enough opportunities for support in an isolated area like Alaska. That is why I think living in a more populated area would be easier due to the many different outlets and possible therapy solutions in a bigger city.
DeleteOden - I believe that being in a hostile environment where one must have skills to survive can sometimes help more than therapy in populated areas. In both books, veterans return to America and are annoyed by the lack of understanding and treatment by the civilian population. Maybe living in a remote area where someone with a 'survival' mindset can ease back into peace while still maintaining that kind of mindset is more healthy than a sudden change in environment.
DeleteGood post! I agree with things being off his chest. Why was Kiowa's death harder for him than perhaps some others who died in the book? Also, I think you may have quite a change in Ernt when the weather begins to change. Did the people in The Things They Carried show hallucinations or examples of PTSD too?
ReplyDeleteOden - Kiowa's death was much harder for him to get over as it was so meaningless, and he feels partly responsible. And yes, Ernt does change a lot when the weather changes. In The Things They Carried, there are mentions of veterans wanting to forget the war and move on with their lives, while there is no real direct statement on PTSD, and Tim O'brien is able to quickly adapt back to civilian life , as he says, "A nice smooth glide- no flashbacks or midnight sweats." (O'brien, 1998, p.157)
DeleteI'm reading the book "Where the Crawdads Sing", this is a fictional book. In the beginning Kya was a young girl that had the guidance of her older siblings and mother but eventually they all started to leave due to an abusive father. Kya recognizes that after her last sibling left she would have to take care of herself even though she had never been taught how to. "All her life the room had been warmed from baking bread, boiling butter beans, or bubbling fish stew. Now, it was stale. quiet, and dark. 'Who's gonna cook?' she asked out loud." (Delia Owens, 2018, p14). She begins to teach herself and try to remember how her mother would do things around the house like cook, clean, tend to wounds, etc. Kya is taking over the role of the leader of the house while her father leaves for days at a time. When her father comes home she tries to make him happy and not get angry at her. She is taking over such hard responsibilities for herself at such a young age, she may not have a mental illness yet but she is having to become these roles at a very young age and gaining characteristics of a leader more she learns.
ReplyDeleteIs the main culprit of the mental illness the abusive father, the new independence and stress of learning to be alone, or a combination of the two? Do you think that when Kya develops a mental illness, she may lose her leadership qualities learned from being alone, or will they only be strengthened?
DeleteI do not yet know who started this thred.
Delete*thread
DeleteIt seems that the main culprit of the beginning of the mental illness is the abusive father. The father then leaves her alone for days at a time and leads to her loneliness and mental health issues. I believe that when she develops more of a mental illness she won't lose her leadership qualities because she needs them to survive on her own, they may be strengthened. - Ireland
DeleteOur American society can most definitely learn from peoples mental illness. I’m some cases, people may not be able to receive the help they so desperately need; such as counseling, medication, or maybe even something as little as someone who will just listen. “Please you have to help me.’ She was begging this guy, but he didn’t seem to be responding.” (Schiller, Bennet, 2011, p.36-37). This quote from “The Quiet Room” about how people with mental illness just need to be helped. The struggling person in the quote is a young woman named Lori, who has been struggling with a mental illness for years and was overall, ignored. Lori ended up overdosing on her medication all because her counselor did not want to see her at that time of night. Another quote from “A Thousand Splendid Suns” reads “Of all the hardships a person had to face, none was more punishing than the simple act of waiting.” (Hosseinni, 2007, p.113). Both of these quotes clearly state that the one thing preventing people from contentment, is not being helped, or having to wait. When in some cases, such as Loris, waiting may not be an option anymore and she attempted to take her own life. In America, we may often think of mental illnesses as something trivial or minor in comparison to maybe a combat vets injury. Thinking of mental illness in that way however; is dangerous and needs to be taken seriously. I have personally lost loved ones because of mental illness, and it taught me how precious life really is, and how a little bit of help can go a long way. People of America can definitely take away this same important teaching by people sharing experiences and talking about them just like Kevin Hines; who jump from the Golden Gate Bridge.
ReplyDeleteI do not yet know who this is.
DeleteI agree. If our society could understand the seriousness of mental illness more events, such as Lori’s, would be handled properly instead of ignored. The overdose was especially sad because being there for Lori was the therapist’s job. Lori must have demonstrated the importance of having someone to reach out to.
DeleteI agree, I am reading the same story and there are many ways that society has changed when it comes to mental illness. Certain social stigmas still remain but as we've seen in more recent years society has become more accepting to those with mental illness. Society isn't all the way their yet there is still many aspects that are not the social norm, which I feel relates to lori and her struggles.
DeleteThis is really good. Trying to show what other people feel when they interact with someone suffering from an illness would be a good thing to talk about. How does a person's mental illness affect others? How does it affect relationships?
DeleteI like how you mentioned Lori's suicide attempts to bring attention to how people who struggle with mental illness usually do not get the correct amount of care they need. Lori's therapist had failed her, after this what is the point of even having a therapist? I liked how you used this example because in today's world there are many more available options other than a therapist. Everyone is different and everyone responds to different treatments in different ways. What other kinds of options are there now than there were then?
DeleteA persons mental illness affects friends because the mental illness can make the affected person very angry and hard to be around, which can cause friends not to want to be around the ill person anymore. -Josiah
DeleteAbove threat is Josiah
DeleteThere is a new type of therapy for those people who medication or therapy doesn't work. It is called brain stimulation therapy and it works by "shocking" the brain into correct function. -Josiah
DeleteThat book sounds like it is a good example of how people try to hide their illness or at least look like they should not be suffering. In America there are many people who live good lives but still suffer from an extreme mental illness.
Delete-Zach Petersen
You make some really good points in this statement! maybe try to see the other side of this argument. Like how hard it might be to deal with people that have mental illness and find the correct treatment for all of the different kinds of mental illness.
ReplyDeleteThis was very good, I agree with a lot of what you said. What do you think connects Your main characters? Do you think it is their hardships they had to face? Or is it their problems being pushed aside? Mariam, for example had it rough from the beginning of "A Thousand Splendid Suns" . She had always been told what to do for her entire life and had been oppressed. On page 371, Mariam's execution, there is a quote that stuck with me. "One last time Mariam did what she was told" (Hosseini, 2007, p.371). I would like to know more about your character in "The Quiet Room" and how she relates to Mariam.
ReplyDeleteReply to Anonymous- from Monique Brisson
DeleteThe two main character of "A Thousand Splendid Suns" and "The Quiet Room" are similar because they both struggle dealing with other people in their life. Mariam struggles with her new husband who beats her often, and Lori is on the other end of the spectrum and is causing the struggle by alway nagging at people due to her mental illness.
Delete-Josiah
DeleteIn “Fallen Angels” Perry PTSD opens our minds to the impact of war on American society. After perry sees his friend Frank’s body mangled on the ground, perry felt numb inside (Myers, 1988, p.43). Perry’s statement shows how many American lives are forever altered by military duties.
ReplyDelete(RegBo)
DeleteThe book I am reading is The Quiet Room, in the story we meet Lori who is diagnosed with schizophrenia. Lori begins to start hearing voices during her childhood in the 1970s but, during that time period it wasn't socially acceptable to have a mental illness. “ Her experience made me doubly sure i wanted to keep my own secret. I didn’t want to be a crazy person. People shunned crazy people. They feared them” ( Schiller and Bennett, 16, 2011). This quote shows just how unaccepting it is for someone with mental illness during Lori’s time in highschool. I feel that in today's society we are beginning to become more accepting of those suffering from mental illness. One of the ideas that relates to the book along with today’s society is the belief that you can just get rid of your mental illness; “ She’s cute, she’s smart, her parents have all this money, people like her- what’s she got to be depressed about?” (Schiller and Bennett, 16, 2011). For those of us with a mental illness we know that you can’t just wake up and decide today i'm not going to have anxiety today. Why is that something we still see happening? In the story Lori begins to realize she needs help and contemplates her life choices which end up with her in the hospital. At first her family doesn’t see anything wrong, which is something I feel happens to many people in today’s society. Though I am only about halfway through my book, I feel that we will will get to see how society changes its views for lori’s condition throughout the rest of the book.
ReplyDeleteI think all of this is true and i think at some point, most people today have told or been told to "just be happy", but it's never that simple. However you only mentioned one book you read. How can people become more educated about what people with mental illness are really suffering from? How can they help those who suffer?
DeleteI agree with the statement that a lot of family members do not see the problem soon enough or even want to address the situation, but how can we stop this from happening? How can we provide people with more information and help? Is it truly Marvin and Nancy's fault for Lori's illness? Lori was brought up in a loving encouraging household, so from Lori's parents view they're wondering where they went wrong.
DeleteGood post, but no clue who wrote it. Email me so you can receive some credit. It is within the last 12-24 hours though...
DeletePeople with mental illness can definitely teach us about American Society. People with mental illness can still be useful, independent members of society with the right help/inspiration. "No, mama, I'm not the brave type. Not over here where the booming goes through you. Where explosions in the distance shake your whole body. It's hard to be brave when you can stumble across a world of hurt around any corner, where dying becomes so casual you don't even notice it sitting next to you."(Myers, 2008). In the book "Sunrise Over Fallujah", the main character, Robin finds himself freaking out all the time because of his anxiety for the war but as he finds out with the help of his friends, he is able to cope with his own mind and be a leader in that harsh reality and he also realizes that his uncle suffered from the same thing and now has great respect for how he handled Vietnam. In the book "Educated", the main character, Tara, has grown up in a household where the only thing that mattered was preparing for the 'end times' as her father put it. Tara, with the inspiration of her brother going to school, began to wonder what school would be like. "I think this is the worst possible place for you.' He'd spoken softly, but it felt as though he shouted the words, 'Where could I go?', 'Go where I went.' Tyler said 'Go to college."(Westover, 2018, p.120). Tara started to feel more independent from her father's reign over her life and eventually when she was 17, she went to school for the first time. Tara grew up knowing nothing about how the world really works and never even knew how to behave normally as she put it in the book, but with inspiration and help from her brother and closest friend, she was able to push through her father's corrupt teachings and make a new, fresh start for herself and do what she never thought she could.
ReplyDeleteGood post, but no clue who wrote it. Email me so you can receive some credit. It is within the last 12-24 hours though...
Deletequote citation: (Myers, 2008, p.125)
DeleteIn the book “The Beekeeper of Aleppo”, the plot focuses a lot on how the main two characters, Nuri and Afra’s relationship changes throughout escaping the war taking place in the homeland. Before reading this book it never truly occured to me how much strain war can put on a relationship. Most stories I have read online about the burdens of war go into how the losses of lives affect relationships. In this book, the story mainly focusing on how the characters are being affected and briefly explain how it is changing the land surrounding them. Even though Nuri was shutting down mentally throughout the book I think he showed leadership though becoming a parent figure to Mohammed (Lefteri, 2021, p.102-103). In the book “The Quiet Room”, the main character Lori was the eldest child in a family of five including her two younger brothers. Her parents Marvin and Nancy always had pushed them to be their best selves. Lori was an average American child, until her life was changed forever. Lori had developed schizophrenia and couldn’t allow anyone to know for she would be judged by her family and society. Lori was her younger brother Steven’s biggest role model. I took Steven’s view to heart due to the fact that I am an older sister to my little brother who I know looks up to me and views me as a leader (Schiller, 2011, p.56). Lori also has proven time and time again that she can fight her thoughts and will persevere in the end. The book “The Quiet Room” is a great read for anyone who is interested in what mental illness can affect in not only a person themself but to a family. The book goes into detail from many different perspectives on what is truly happening with Lori including; her mom, Steven, Lori’s father, roommates, and friends. I believe society has come a lot further in accepting mental illness than when Lori’s situation took place. Lori's parents, Marvin and Nancy, both keep Lori's illness a secret to protect her from stigmatism. In America there is still astigmatism but people are much more willing to help and more willing to understand.
ReplyDeleteGood post, but no clue who wrote it. Email me so you can receive some credit. It is within the last 12-24 hours though...
DeleteAbove is for Ellery
DeletePeople suffering from mental illnesses can teach a lot about how serious it is and how real these things are. So far I think "Girl, Interrupted" has done a better job at showing how mental illness is serious and real. While both show mental illnesses in characters, "Girl, Interrupted" is MAINLY about how people are affected by many mental illnesses. The main character Susanna, is diagnosed with borderline personality disorder: this affects the way she thinks of herself, others, and can cause relationship issues which we get a hint of from her conversation with her doctor. "'Have a boyfriend?' he asked. I nodded to this too. 'Trouble with the boyfriend?' It wasn't a question, actually; he was already nodding for me." (Kaysen, 1993, p.7) I have learned how serious trauma for the people fight it can be in "Sunrise Over Fallujah" In this book Birdy writes many letters to his Uncle Richie and in this one he writes, "At least you have to be bigger in life to fit all the things inside you that you didn't know you could absorb before. I never thought I would see the things I have seen. So many people dead. So many with their parts blown off and them bleeding and crying. I've had to cram all of these images into my head, and it's not easy." (Myers, 2008, p. 280) This made me sympathetic to Birdy's situation. There is feminism in "Sunrise Over Fallujah" surrounding the character Marla. She grew up in foster homes and group homes which is why she ended up being so tough and able to make her way in a field dominated by men. She helps Birdy throughout the book and is a strong woman.
ReplyDelete-Logan
Do you have any examples from a bit later in the book? I don't disagree, but I image we will learn much more about Susanna and her symptoms past the first 10 pages.
DeleteIt is so sad to see that there are so many examples of mental illness. There are some good examples you use throughout this. It shows that there are many examples of how mental illness is in socicity.
Delete-zach in above comment ^^
DeleteI felt that the play did a better job for me than my book. I read "The Beekeeper of Aleppo" for my first book. My essay topic regarded technology and how it affects conflict. Throughout my book the main character received many emails but from what I understood from the emails did not have a lasting effect on the character. The emails were just a form of encouragement for Nuri. During the book Nuri's wife Afra encountered a situation where she was raped. On page 247 Afra doesn't want to talk to any man because of what had happened to her. It shows how these unfortunate events can greatly affect people. It mentally takes away from a person. Nuri shows that he has leadership abilities by leading his wife Afra through their journey to escape from their country. He also sacrifices his own time to help her get ready every day.
ReplyDeleteI could see how her almost getting raped would affect her view on men. Her fear of men makes me think that she has PTSD, as men remind her of the traumatic event.
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