Joined: 9/8/2013
Posts: 7
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My character, Elizabeth, in House Guests (posted in Literary Fiction) suffers from psychosis. I never say that in the story, but just portray how she acts and how the people around her react to her.
Could I get feed-back from you all on this?
I'm really interested in how mentally ill people are shunted aside and treated as sub-human and why we do that. Let me know if you find the character interesting at all.
Thanks!
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Bottom line, people fear those afflicted with mental illness, because they mistrust them or assume the person is violent. I haven't read your story, but the level of stigma attached to the illness depends on the time period, country, and the race/culture of your character. This level of stigma will also influence how the individual copes with their illness and how their friends and family will react to them.
Stigma means that society labels people with mental illness as beneath them and view mental illness as a weakness, a condition that brings shame to the individual afflicted. Since people don't understand mental illness, it makes them feel uncomfortable, causing them to avoid those afflicted.
With the recent shootings in the U.S. I wouldn't be surprised if this stigma worsens, because you will find the gunmen usually had some type of mental condition. For example, the recent navy yard shooting, the gunmen is reported has having borderline schizophrenia. This fact, again, is one of the reasons why people are wary of individuals with mental illness because they fear they might last out.
I would suggest looking up recent news articles on these various shootings and see how the reporters portray mental illness, which might help you in developing the attitude toward your character. I'm not saying your character would act like these individuals did, I'm saying this could provide insight into society's attitude toward mental illness. I'm familiar with mental illness, because my mother is a nurse who used to work in the state mental hospital, I have some relatives with bipolar disorder and depression, I've dealt with PTSD and depression, and my boyfriend had an uncle with schizophrenia.
Also remember, people with mental illness see the world differently, and many of them are more creative, sympathetic, and driven. Examples include Abraham Lincoln, who suffered from severe depression (fascinating book on this: Lincoln's Melancholy by Joshua Wolf Shenk). Charles Dickens and Ernest Hemingway both had depression, Winston Churchill, Beethoven, and Van Gogh all had bipolar disorder. There are many, many more examples, but that's all I can think of off the top of my head.
--edited by Toni Smalley on 9/18/2013, 4:53 PM--
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Joined: 8/18/2013
Posts: 31
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We have some kind of half way house not far from where I work. Several of these people walk by every day to the grocery down the street, I notice them as they pass by. Recently one stopped at our picnic table while I was on break to talk to me. He said some pretty shocking and disturbing things, including saying he has been accused of murder. This gave me pause and I looked up from my laptop. I said "Really, that wasn't nice. What made them say that?" Truth was I was somewhat creeped out, and I sure many people would have run. Something about this guy made me think he just blurted things out, fragmented memories of conversations maybe. Asking the question made him realize what he said and his explanation was as I thought. His mind was recounting something and really not talking to me but at me. So I relaxed and let him talk, now he comes to look for me. Frankly many times I don't get what he is saying but he is pleased to just talk.
It seems he has told others about me now I have another man who used to walk by talking to himself. I would watch him thinking maybe he had a blue tooth, but no he just rattles on as he talks. So when he stopped and sat down, he kept his back to me, but called me by my name. The conversation started out normal, as I would answer questions he would go off to another direction. Such as I said the name Mary. He would say I had two sister in laws named Mary. Mary married to John died in 1993, she worked at Kroger, she was five foot two, and graduated in 1975. This happened several times and I realized he was much like the Rain Man, he is a savant of sorts. I asked him if he could turn around so I could hear him better, he began to shake his head violently. I assured him it was fine he didn't have to.
I am the only one at work that will talk to them, and I guess I get it, for one it takes time and patience. I don't think people take the time to understand them, let's face it many are afraid of anyone different or odd. I would think it makes them afraid to talk to people, maybe making them even more anti-social and withdrawn. I like talking to people that are different, I really am interested. I can see others looking the other way and picking up their pace. We just don't take time to treat people humanely. Some just don't have that ability to do that with "normal" people, let alone people who are challenged. Heck most people these days don't take the time to look up from their I-phone to have any human contact.
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