Guest blog by LyssaXluv As a new part of my high school’s English curriculum we must answer questions about our independent reading books and post them to a website;
shelfari.com.
Part of these online assignments is to offer critique to other students, and to be introduced to new novels that students may like. As I scanned over my classmate’s picks I notice a handful of novels on the lives of awkward protagonists suffering from one mental illness or another.
One classmate Reading ‘
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime’, told from the point of view of a boy with autism. This is a book I read as a seventh or eighth grader and remember liking it.
Another classmate was reading a story about a man who attempts suicide after the death of his friend, resulting in his stay in a psych ward. The character copes by abusing his prescription medications Ativan and Seroquel. This novel is titled ‘
The Boy detective Fails’.
And yet another student explains the journey a delusional girl in the hospital after a ‘traumatic’ event who copes by abusing the drug Oxycontin in the novel “
After the Wreck, I Picked Myself Up, Spread My Wings, and Flew Away”.
Since seventh grade I have been surrounded by books similar to ones listed above, have been urged to read them and, sadly, have given praise to the novels and recommended them to my friends.
An old friend called me a few months ago and asked me to recommend a book for her. Her reasoning was I “always had the best books.”
I asked her what kind of books she liked. She replied by saying, “Ya know, like ‘
The Perks of Being a Wallflower’ and stuff like that.” Confidently, I can say, 80% of teens reading this post will have known of this book, and roughly 60% will consider it one of their favorites, or at least ‘that is such a good book’.
For those who haven’t read the book: Protagonist Charlie is, for a lack of better words, a very messed up teen. He struggles to find friends, has been witness to a girl’s rape, and experiments with pot.
His favorite poem is about suicide. He is a very ‘quirky’ character with very honest words... that teens really feel they can relate to? Or is it more that teens feel the life Charlie lives is ‘interesting’?
I looked at my shelf to pick something out for her, and couldn’t find anything pleasant.
The widely popular novel
‘Go Ask Alice’ (drug abuse) stuck out and so did the classic
‘The Catcher in The Rye’.
I saw:
- ‘Crank’ (drug abuse),
- ‘Running with Scissors’ (gay boy with mentally ill mother who ends up living with her psychiatrist),
- ‘It’s Kind of a Funny Story’ (male teen who attempts suicide and is in the psych ward for 5 days),
- ‘Pure Sunshine’ (teens who use acid),
- ‘Prozac Nation’ (memoir of a women who suffers from clinical depression),
- ‘The Bell Jar’ (main character goes insane),
- ‘Wasted: Memoirs of Anorexia and Bulimia’ (as the title says),
- ‘Madness’ (bipolar disorder),
- ‘Speak’ (main character is raped and suffers from depression) ,
- ‘Cut’ (self injury),
- ‘A Million Little Pieces’ (drug and alcohol abuse)... I’m sure there were others.
My reactions to this horrible sight:
-Shame -- Have I nothing pleasant to read? Why would I recommend such sad and disturbing novels to friends, why would I want them to be influenced by this material?
-Guilt -- Having read nearly all of the books on my shelf before my own serious struggle with mental illness begun, I must consider the possibility that I subconsciously mirrored my behaviors off of these characters, thus partially causing, or at least enhancing, my mental illness. Did these books ‘give me ideas?’
- ‘These all are popular books... so it’s not just me that is ‘sick’”
And most importantly
- Are many of these new novels written simply because they are marketable to teens? Is mental illness the new ‘cool’ thing?
On the back folds of many of my books I have found some type of remark, either implying or saying straight out, that the author had to do a lot of research for his/her novel.
Why would they need to research? Why would they choose this specific topic?
‘Prozac Nation’,
‘Madness’,
‘Wasted’,
‘Go Ask Alice’, and ‘
The Bell Jar’ are the only books I have read that I feel are realistic to the topics at hand. The first three listed are memoirs which thoroughly and accurately describe their specific topic, and most importantly stress that mental illness never has a quick fix and that their suffering has never really ended.
‘Go Ask Alice’ is a recovered diary. It has been a popular best seller for years. Have today’s authors chosen to write about drug abuse because of
‘Go Ask Alice’s' success?
'The Bell Jar' is written by Sylvia Plath; a women who suffered from great mental illness herself.
And well, many of the other novels....
They depict mental illness as a ‘quick fix’ and more of a learning experience than a traumatic life changing disease. These novels don’t accurately describe hospital stays. These novels don’t accurately describe recovery. In 210 pages, one could never capture diseases of such complex nature.
Mental illness in adolescents is rising, and so is the amount of books of this nature.
Are teens over-diagnosed of mental illness? Do Teens subconsciously want the problems their favorite character has?
From these novels, are teens learning to cope with their problems in a self-destructive fashion that they otherwise would not be aware of? Are new authors wrongfully writing novels about mental solely because they will sell well? Am I over-reacting? What is your take on this? If you read books like these, why do you like them? Do books of these nature cause teens to be more accepting of peers who do suffer from mental illness?
I do understand that responsibility is always shared, and the questions I have asked above will have answers such as ‘it’s a combination’. I also understand that in the premise of every book a problem must be present, but why must this problem be a half-assed summary of what mental illness is? I am in no way blaming one side or the other, but wondering if my observations hold any truth at all.
If this truly is a problem, what can we do?
Comments (70)
I love go ask alice.
The books are meant to be read in a fictitious manner or will have a very specific disclaimer inside. Along with the disclaimer, there are usually resources in the back of the book so that the reader may seek help if needed.
I also own several of the books that you listed, and there's nothing wrong with that. I like the books because it's interesting to read about a life so different from my own and it's a way of exploring another person's mind.
I absolutely love exploring the world of the mind, including the disordered parts. I have several psychiatric conditions including Generalized Anxiety Disorder, mild OCD, clinical depression, EDNOS (eating disorder not otherwise specified), and I struggle with self-injury. I think that these books can be good tools to help people better understand mental illnesses thereby leading them to be more accepting/tolerant/empathetic towards people who suffer from these conditions. Unfortunately, these books can also serve as somewhat of a trigger for people who have an underlying mental condition that has not manifested itself yet. I would urge caution when reading these books, and I would recommend talking to a psychologist/counselor if you feel you may be suffering from a mental illness.
I love half the books you've mentioned, the rest I haven't read. Crank is on my list to read.. and that whole series. It makes me feel as if my life isnt so bad. I was always the teen who said 'my life is so horrible!!!'. It give me a reality check and shows me where I am. Plus its a confidence booster as well, saying that you can do it. And sometimes you really do need help. Except for Go Ask Alice of course, but that book showed me, even if i had the chance to i would never ever go to drugs. I mean it was drilled so much into our head anyways when we were kids. But look what happened to this girl and its a true story.
I dont think its a problem, I think these books show reality thats hidden. Obviously you and others had problems, but who really talks about suiside and self muilation, and depression. No one, because theres something wrong and they don't want to get help. I think these books show that its alright to get help, and sometimes you need it.
I agree with raved. I mean, after all, EVERY good book follows the 'fall in love with a character- put him up in a tree - throw rocks at him - get him down' theme. It does seem like there's a lot more of these type books out there now days, but maybe it's just because they're getting more publicity. It seems like everyone you talk to has a relative or knows someone who is bipolar. As Raved said, it's a way of exploring another person's mind. Understanding life from that perspective. It also helps to know, when you yourself are going through tough times, that people have gone through MUCH WORSE and survived.
I can see where you're coming from too though... that it's almost 'cool' to have mental disorders and the more screwed up you are the cooler you are... but for anyone who really does have to battle with eating disorders or true cut to the core self hatred, they know it's no fantasy. And as for this faddish obsession with mental illnesses, it'll pass. ...but right now I think doctors are making too much money off of it for it to go away any time soon.
i like the bell jar and speak.
what about perks of being a wallflower???
Hasn't it always been like this? If it wasn't mental illness, it would be something else traumatic. Rape and murder and insanity have been themes for a very long time. Oedipus the King wasn't exactly sunshine and lollipops.
I think it may be like a train wreck. It's gory, but you still can't look away. I don't think reading about illness (mental or otherwise) will actually give you that illness if you weren't going to get it anyway. For example, if you're not prone to eating disorders, reading about an anorexic girl isn't going to make you anorexic. However, if you're already suffering from some kind of illness, reading about it might just be more fuel for the fire.
i love most of those books. but i have read plenty of pleasant novels too.
the problem is that pleasant novels don't make you think. and they generally don't teach you much about acceptance.
Honestly, (Besides my obsession with Twilight...and I mean obsession lost count of how many times I've read it) Most of my books are like the ones you mentioned. Three months ago I finally got Go Ask Alice and I liked it (though I will say it was kinda corny because of some of the things they said in the 70's). While I have other books that have nothing to do with mental illness, I don't find myself rereading them like I do the ones that are concerned with mental illness, drug abuse, eating disorders, cutting, etc. In my opinion, the characters in these books are more interesting, Some of the titles I can give you are
Ordinary People by Judith GuestSpeak and Twisted by Laurie Halse AndersonCrank and Impulse by Ellen HopkinsPerfect and Lush by Natasha Friend I think you may be overreacting just a little. Considering you can find 100% of the same thing on television and the internet. I'll tell you I started cutting (don't worry, I am good now, I stopped) before I even knew there were books like these. So they didn't influence me. Though once I read Impulse ( one of the characters is a cutter, with bipolar disorder >.>) It sounded similar to how I felt when I did it. I guess it was kind of comforting. I don't know. But I don't think its the books alone if anything actually INFLUENCES mental illness, besides their own situation and what's going on around them.
Maybe I'm just twisted, but I like reading books about mental illness, see no problem with doing so, and thankfully have the mental capacity to figure out which ones are realistic.
Since I don't see it as a problem, I can't offer any solutions. Write more interesting "happy" books?
I'd rather read a book about mental illness (which requires thought) than rot my brain out watching most television.
I have read some of these books as well as others. I think the reasons a lot of people like them is that they can in some way relate to the character. Everyone has problems and sometimes it is nice to be able to relate to someone even if it is a fictional character. One book I have read that I absolutely love is 'Thirteen Reasons Why' by Jay Asher.
I admit I have read some of those books, but it is a shame that many books that teens read are about depressing subjects. Although some should be because it keeps the minds of teens open to the horrors that may exist in the world, why can't we read happy books too?
the book go ask alice sucks!!
I don't think it's really a "problem". I think these books play a vital role in making society aware of these illnesses at a younger age, which is important. And it helps people in similar sitautions to feel like they're not alone.
I don't think mental illness is "the new cool thing." I think the authors of these books are possibly trying to shed some light and make mental illness less stigmatized. And perhaps offer a sympathy and understanding to the youth who are struggling with these things. No one wants to feel alone in their pain, and no one wants to feel crazy, so I think these books are helpful in that respect.
Besides Catcher in the Rhye and Crank, I've not heard much or wasn't even aware of most of those books...and I'm still technically a teen.
I've battled depression, I've had suicidal friends, people I know who're on drugs, plus I've known a few cutters.
...I really don't go looking for books on mental illness directed to my generation, because I've seen ENOUGH and I know I'm still sensitive to the subject due to my own experiences.
Some of my books touch on drugs, cutters, depression, and madness...but that's 'cause I like stories that go into human nature, and I like the scifi and horror genres. I also like "end of the world" type stories...and you know those're never pretty.
If these books are the top ones right now, I think that...for the most part, they just reflect the times. Often, teens are overdiagnosed with "problems"...I've seen that happen too. Especially when the school gets involved and say, "ZOMG YOU NEED DRUGS".
But that's met with the rest of the time, teens going undiagnosed...and how crazy this world of ours is in the mundanest of senses.
Maybe a handful of kids here and there think it makes them "cool", but I'd like to think that in general most of us don't.
I have read every book mentioned, but I have also read a lot of other books not related to mental illness, self-harm, ED, etc. But i understand where you are coming from. They do leave an impression, as does depressing and dark music.
It's hard to decide what came first for me... The books and music and then my cutting and bulimia? Or my own problems and then a subconscious fascination with similar problems?
They might go hand in hand. It does seem more prevalent, but that may be a coincidence because these days, everything is more prevalent. Cancer, homosexuality, etc. I think this is just the time where we are focusing on this subject-- the outcome might be positive as a way of awareness and a better access to help.
When historians look back, what exactly will they say?
i really dont see it as a problem, it depends on the person reading the book and what they take from it. but reading the book crank made me never ever want to do any drugs.
yuuppppp i agree
theres alot of books that arent about mentally illness
@StarGuard@xanga - Really?
I've noticed that it's becoming "cool" to have a mental illness. The thing is, they think it's cool primarily when they don't have one, and have no idea what people who DO have it go through. I've talked to so many people who'll randomly put in "Oh yah, I have bipolar disorder it sucks."
I think a lot of people probably do mirror what their favorite characters do. Theirs aren't real (unless it was dormant for the most part beforehand) though. It's about like how some people will take phrases that their favorite characters say, and use them in real life. Except in this case they're going further than that. Which links back to how they think it's cool.
As you've said, these books don't even begin to depict how it really, and honestly is. The cold hard truth is warmed up to seem "pleasant" or "cool". No, that's certainly not good. They'll want to be like the character, and in turn force themselves to be miserable and unhealthy.
Teenagers are over diagnosed with mental illnesses. This doesn't necessarily have to do with what they read, all of the time. Tons of therapists and psychiatrists just don't look into it that far before smacking a label on them. Half of the time they don't even know all of the symptoms to make an informed decision. That's not 100% their fault.
There are tons of kids out there who need to be more disciplined by their parents. (Technically it's too late to be enforcing 'the law' when the kids are teenagers though, if you never done so before.) Many of these kids who are taken to therapists and diagnosed with all sorts of things are only going through typical teenage phases. Some of them are faking it, too. But the question is; what is there to do about it?
Read The Alchemist by Paolo Coelho. It's fantastic, and actually a pleasant story.
For the record, ...Pieces is a fraud. It's supposedly autobiographical, but the author forged most of it.
I'm sick and tired of this sort of thing, and the whole culture surrounding it.
I am first off, not at all surprised that Twilight obsessors have tons of these kinds of books. Seems fitting. I've read Go Ask Alice. And it was moving. However, I don't really find myself attracted to those kinds of books. I see enough of those kind of people in real life, i don't need my fantasy worlds to be filled with them.
Mental disorders are becoming a more "mainstream" thing, which in my opinion, is utterly ridiculous. Yes it needs exposure and some of the people ACTUALLY need help, and really do have chemical imbalances. But i feel that there are so many teens out there that are exaggerating their situations and, for some reason, do not know how to deal with life. Really, for most of them, life isn't so bad. Parents that love them, roof over their heads, food, more opportunities then they could ever imagine and STILL they feel like their lives are "empty". High School isn't the end of the world. Hardly even the beginning.
Sorry for the rant. At any rate, there are far too many of these books i think. There are so many better written, more relatable and moving books out there. And for whomever said 'pleasant' books dont make you think... that is UTTER crock. First off, most books, just about ALL of them have something unpleasant in them, the catalyst, the problem. Secondly, even pleasent books, well written ones, can make you think. that is the whole POINT of books; they are subversive!
I've read most of those books & i loved all of them. I was forced to read a random book for my English class last year and it was about a girl who wrote in her school newspaper as an undercover girl and helped people. Then a movie star came to her school and she had to help him be disguised. I mean it was okay but it was nothing compared to CRANK or BURN or Go Ask Alice. I read a book over the summer called "The Delivery Man" it's about a guy who has always had this girl friend since he was little. They were always friends him, her, his sister. As they grew up they did a lot of shit together. They hooked-up, they all got high and caused chaos. His sister died and that basically changed everything for him. He changed his ways and became a painter and met someone he fell in love with. He was supposed to move out to New York with her but he kept putting it off. He got into this business that his best girlfriend got him into which was driving girls to their clients to have sex. He gets in too deep here he can't get out. It's really good & twisted. BUY ITTT!