The intricate dystopia presented in Margaret Atwood’s Oryx and Crake follows lead character Jimmy through a series of flashbacks and current happenings. In the novel, Jimmy’s mother, Sharon, who was once an extraordinary microbiologist, is left depressed and dysfunctional. In this fictional world, she faces many troubles caused by husband, but I don’t believe these were at fault for her depression. The list of possible reasons for her depression is lengthy, but I believe that it is directly a cause of her change in environment and lifestyle, since an exceptionally intelligent person, like Sharon, should have been able handle the other changes. One plausible reason, which I believe is insignificant, is Sharon’s Husband’s “lab technician”, Ramona, …show more content…
Another explanation for her depression, which I believe also to be inconsequential, is the husband’s sudden change in morals, from a charitable attitude of helping people to one driven by financial gain. It isn’t directly stated whether this change is caused by greed or by a new to provide for his wife. The final possible reason, which I believe is the most significant factor, is Sharon’s change in environment, from an intellectually engaging job where she was helping people, to a meer housewife stuck at home. Sharon had dedicated her life to her work, and was remarkable in her field of microbiology, but ended up staying at home to care for Jimmy, which was what I believe lead to her depression. Although Sharon had experienced many traumatic changes in her life, resulting in a depressed and debilitated state, the most significant factor was her change of environment and …show more content…
The one event which most likely caused her depression is the loss of her job and the change in her lifestyle, including being confined into a house and locked inside a compound. In the text Sharon says “that she felt like a prisoner” in the compound. She talked about how tough the security was and how she felt trapped. When she made her final move of rebellion, she chose to do so by running away from the compound, and living a life away from the control of the CorpSeCorps. We can see that she feels isolated and stuck at home. She has not only lost her job, with which came her passion for helping people in her field of expertise, but she is also trapped within her house and she feels unmotivated and that her lifestyle is “meaningless in itself”. I believe she had a passion for using her talents to help people, which is why she started her own company with her husband. By losing her job, she lost this part of herself. Obviously she felt trapped by the control of the CorpSeCorps, and this is one of the reasons why she chose to run away. The isolation she experienced greatly decreases her vitality, as shown by a series of experiments done by the University of Rochester which found that “spending time outside in green, natural environments can boost your vitality—a feeling of physical and mental energy—by nearly 40%. Spending time indoors has the opposite
Depression in The Scarlet Ibis Many people wouldn’t think that it’s possible to make a story about two young brothers depressing, but “The Scarlet Ibis” by James Hurst shows that it is in fact possible. “The Scarlet Ibis” is a tale of two brothers, named William Armstrong, nicknamed Doodle, who was born disabled, and the narrator who doesn’t have a name. The tale follows the brothers through the adventures and hardships of their childhood that they got to experience together. In “The Scarlet Ibis,” author James Hurst uses Character actions, POV, and foreshadowing to enhance the story's depressing mood.
Sourdi and her sisters watch her mother's spirit and hunger for life wither away with every single crummy job she was forced to take on in order to provide for her family. "I'm tired," (Chai) she admits. Sometimes she would completely lose her sense of hope and sense of purpose. " Ma grew depressed and smoked too much and looked at us though she wished we'd never been born" (Chai). Perhaps she thinks that would have been a better option for her daughters than the life she could ever provide them
In fact, she worked so hard that her it started to take a toll on her body. She became very ill, temporarily retired, and moved to Europe for a
To what extent might “A Sorrowful Woman” be regarded as an unromantic sequel to A Secret Sorrow? In both stories, the man is extremely supportive, loving and caring to the woman. In each story he shows continual patience and persistence. In the first story, Kai must convince Faye that he loves her and still wants to marry her regardless of her capability of bearing children. He says, “Why do you think I want for my wife?
she asked. “Do? Nothing, except feel glad and happy to be alive” (78). If she felt these positive emotions, why did she not start over again with
What situations caused these emotions? She felt bad that her oldest son had to wear the same clothes over and over. Depressed from the meeting she had with the social worker, because it didn’t go the way she intended it to. Worried if she can provide for her family once she stops receiving government assistance. Also hopeful that a new job will be the start for something better for her family.
She explains that she spent almost every second day in the hospital, whether it was caused by kidney stones, an illness, or giving birth, as this was the span of years where she had all of her four daughters. Her husband was working longer days as well, which meant she had more responsibilities on the farm and with the kids at home. It felt like she was burning the candle at both ends with all of the daily stress and tasks. In terms of her life satisfaction, she rates it a seven on a scale of one to ten. She wishes she could have better health to allow her to travel and see more of the world with her husband.
The theme of James Baldwin’s, “Sonny’s Blues” is overcoming sibling conflict through love and understanding. The poetic passage I chose that best represents this theme is, “Sonny’s fingers filled the air with life, his life. But that life contained so many others. And Sonny went all the way back, he really began with the spare, flat statement of the opening phrase of the song. Then he began to make his.
In Fahrenheit 451, depression caused Guy Montag to become irrational. Ray Bradbury who is the author of Fahrenheit 451 simulated a world, where depression causes Guy Montag to choose irrational actions. Ray Bradbury shows the reader the importance of depression by creating a character named Guy Montag, who begins to question everything he has ever known, and slowly sinks into a depression. At first Guy Montag thinks that he's a happy man, an ordinary man with an ordinary job. Everyday is the same for him, except for one day in particular, when he meets Clarisse McClellan.
In Margaret Atwood’s collection, Good Bones, she alludes to real life situations through the use of satire. She shows how war is unethical. In many pieces, such as “Epaulettes” Atwood satirizes the role of men in modern society. Such a critique includes the way men treat the environment, and their leadership when they have power. Atwood believes that men are not great leaders based on their historic performance of destructive causes in the world.
In the “Siren Song” by Margaret Atwood, there is a tremendous use of literary devices to emphasize and create her theme. The theme of the “Siren Song” is one of deception and lies, the speaker talks about how the reader is “unique” (24) and how “only you, only you can” (23) help her. The siren deceives the reader by making him believe that we are the greatest heroes and that only we can save her. The poem is written in the point of view of the siren, this allows the reader to uncover the poem with them which creates a deeper more realistic story. The siren says “will you get me out of this bird suit” (11-12), Atwood’s word choice plays a big part in making the speaking siren sound like a victim that’s trapped in the form of a siren.
Confusing Happiness With Sadness According to Medical Health America,¨ 15% of teens suffer a major depressive episode, 50% suffer from using drugs. In Ray Bradbury Fahrenheit 451,depression is a major issue with Mildred. Ray Bradbury shows that happiness comes from being with family and friends, and Mildred shows that people may use drugs when they are unhappy or they have really bad depression.
August explains to Lily the effects depression can have on a person. In today's society not much is known about depression. In Sue Monk Kidd’s The Secret Life of Bees, she touches the delicate subject of depression and how it can alter a person’s perception of the world around them. There is a stigma associated with depression but the world is becoming educated on the unspoken topic and becoming more supportive of those diagnosed.
Next, Salinger unfolds how Holden allows his depression to impact his actions in The Catcher in the Rye. For example, Holden’s depression influences him to not call Jane. Multiple times in the story Holden thinks about calling Jane, but changes his mind at the last second. After Holden has a date with his old friend Sally Hayes that goes horribly wrong he meets up with his friend Carl Luce for a few drinks. After Carl leaves Holden stays until he becomes drunk and decides to give old Jane a buzz, but he states, “ But when I got inside this phone booth, I wasn’t/much in the mood anymore” (Salinger 150).
Margaret Atwood, in her novel Oryx and Crake, presents a post-apocalyptic dystopian world that revolves around a man named Snowman, formerly known as Jimmy. Along the way, Jimmy meets Oryx, a troubled young lady. Jimmy had a difficult childhood that has shaped him into the person he has become. His loss of adolescence reveals that a lack of close-loving relationships can have a great effect on one’s upbringing.