Justice in Its kind of a funny story

Craig is a confused teenager who just can’t seem to get things straight inside his head. Most of the book takes place in 3 north; a mental institute Craig checks himself into after having called a suicide hotline. One very important social action I noticed was the fairness with which mental patients are treated.

Justice was served for Craig, as an individual, but on a whole, within mental hospitals in our world, impartiality and fairness is not given to the patients. Craig grew as an individual and learned to not let the stress of life overwhelm him from his experiences at 3 north.  Not only did Craig begin on the road of bettering himself in the ward, all of the doctors treated Craig with respect, and gave him a voice in his healing process.

However, in reality, mental institutes don’t treat their patients with dignity, they are thought of as animals. Recovering psych patients have filed lawsuits in the past for mal-practice and abuse. This really says something about our civilization, that we as a people chose to pick on and demoralize some of the most vulnerable members in our society.  The staff at these facilities are churlish bullies who doubt that the people admitted are in fact people. What I mean by this is that justice does not exist when dealing with someone in a mental hospital; it is a tyrannical dictatorship, which overrules the individual voices of convalescents.

Even within the small community at 3 north the admitted members can’t have a pizza party because the staff is unwilling to pay for it.  None of the doctors or nurses really expects anyone to raise the money in the first place, and don’t want to take time away from their schedules to make the party. I think that the staff is the antagonist to justice in this situation because they rarely give the patients freedom. I understand that someone who is a danger to themselves as well as others does not deserve or should obtain the amount of liberty as someone who is well functioning, but they also shouldn’t be silenced. Humble is always sharing his ideas, but Smitty and the rest of the staff never allow him to fully express himself, especially in art, he is always told to be quiet.

The rehabilitation programs that America offers today to those who are struggling with their mental health are in bad conditions, with most patients too drugged out to function properly, thus they do not cause any issues. Some would say that this system could never be run flawlessly because there are so many different types of mental disabilities, and so many different treatments. So, these people accept the government run system the way it is.

Also, I recognize that it is difficult sympathize with patients who are not rational, and that people who can’t understand things as well as others cause a dilemma for the rest of the population. This being said, some members of society may find it convenient to keep people who are mentally unstable in a controlled environment that keeps them away from life, putting them on medications that shut down their minds. Does sweeping something under the rug really get rid of it? I think ignoring the fact that some people need support and help to function is something they are entitled to, rather than being precluded from the world.

Although Craig is treated fairly at the hospital, in his every-day life before he is admitted nobody knows how to deal with him, nobody can understand what he wants, which is to get better.  Within the system, he is understood and feels accepted, shouldn’t all patients?

Its kind of a funny story "Social Actions"

'Its kind of a funny story by Ned Vizzini is an interesting portrayal of growing up and dealing with a mental disease. The main character Craig has depression and is forced to think of reasons to live each day he rises out of bed. A major issue Craig deals with on a daily basis is the stress from the world. Grades, friends, future, money, school, family, happiness, and jobs, are Craig’s “Tentacles”, which strangle him, thus stopping him from experiencing new things and going on adventures. 

This issue of stress could be related to the mentality that worrying about something helps you control it. The fears society has of the unexplainable and uncontrollable put a halt to their liberty as an individual. Our fears push us down and silence our interest in life. Craig does this too, his mind “cycles” and his fears of the future, as well as the present envelop his being, crushing him under the weight and pressure he puts himself through.  He puts so much time and effort into worrying about his future that he does nothing to prevent what he is afraid of in the first place, instead of doing his homework, he thinks about what will happen if he does not do any work, how that will destroy his very being.

A deeper issue within this idea could be that being afraid of life stops you from living. The fears and worries people put in front of themselves barricade their life, shutting off opportunities and experiences.  The fears Craig has holds him back from eating and socializing, he constantly feels an outcast by even his closest friends Aaron and Nia.  I think from this isolation Craig developed a fear of commitment within relationships and interactions with other people, since he was so afraid he withdrew himself from reality, creating different situations in his mind, making mock conversations with himself about how he is perceived.

Craig hates himself, or rather who he thinks he has become and constantly looks at other people for approval. Due to this lack of confidence Craig is consistently disappointed in the world, and digs deeper within his therapy sessions to find a cause for his depression. Maybe the reason why Craig feels so lost is because he doesn’t know who he is. It’s difficult to be comfortable with the challenges in life if you are always under scrutiny. Craig really internalizes these feelings of hopelessness and being lost within himself, impeding him to accept both his good and bad traits.

I think this struggle with identity is such a difficult thing to overcome because you can’t change who you are, you don’t get to choose your life, you get to live it. With the realization of this Craig begins to thrive off of all of the things he does, he learns from his own pitfalls that he is not going to think about ways to make things right, he will comport himself through life, always growing and prospering through tolerance of forthcomings and acceptance of the rough edges of life.

Bridge To Terabithia Expanding entry

Pg. 6 "Jess is so young to be drinking black coffee, he is treated older than he actually is."

Jess’ mom has high expectations for him because he is perceived to be the “man” of the house considering his father is never home. I feel like this title pigeon holes Jess’ identity and creativity, thus he never feels free to express himself because all of his time is eaten up by the work that is forced upon him. Even though Jess could have run all morning long, improving his stamina, as well as boosting his self esteem, he was forced to pick beans, milk the cow, and take care of Joyce Anne.  There are so many limitations and constraints in Jess’ life that he feels he has no control over.  His mom constantly relies on him in order for the house to keep running, and his sisters manipulate him on a daily basis, solely because he has a reputation to uphold.

I feel like Jess is walking a narrow path, that leads to nowhere but his father’s current conditions. Maybe Jess wants to break free from the conforming reality that envelops his being, but he can’t muster the strength to break the boundaries without Leslie’s help. I can relate this to our world, in which so many people live in shadows of their peers, feeling guilty if they indulge in their own interests. This idea of individualism reminds me of a poem by Nikki Giovanni called Drum, where the poet states “ life is a drum, tight and hard, and I’m going to beat out my own rhythm.” I think we all have our own rhythm to figure out.

In ‘Bridge to Terabithia’ I believe that Jess’ personal struggle with identity, and self-acceptance permits him to acquire Leslie as a friend. I think one of the main reasons they become friends is because Leslie accepts Jess for who he is and who he wants to be. When Jess plays with Leslie in Terabithia, she doesn’t expect anything of him, she only wants him to play along and keep the idea of Terabithia alive. From this, I think Jess gathers some life perspective, because he begins to understand that he has to do what makes him jovial, before turning him self into what the society categorizes him as being. For example, Jess’ dad sees Jess as a mature adult, too old now for compassion and support. This classification of Jess’ maturity stifles his inner child, which he later releases in Terabithia.  Jess hides so much of himself from everyone around him. However, when he comes to Terabithia, where nobody recognizes him as Jess Aarons, this is where he is truly and utterly himself.

Similar to Jess Aarons, I think we sometimes need to hide behind another identity to fully be ourselves.  A lot of people, especially in the youth culture and technological age use Facebook and social networking websites to reveal another dimension to their personality. I know from personal experience that there are people I talk to online, that I am not friendly with in reality. I think there is something about that idea that you don’t have to be the same person online, as you are in real life. Facebook allows a lot of society to unleash their inner beliefs, perspectives and ideas. With groups to join and pages to like, as well as statuses to update, there is plenty of opportunity to express yourself fully online. Maybe Facebook is like our Terabithia.

Through both the book, and our society, I feel as if we break the civilization’s boundaries through other realms and identities, in order to completely find ourselves.