In the three-part series “Brave and Afraid” by Boston Globe journalist Jenny Russell, the reader has an opportunity to see the everyday struggles of mental illness through the narrative of Michael Bourne, the stigmatized and Peggy, the normal. Through the sociological perspective, the perception of Mike creates an image that impacts the greater society. His illness affects his daily life and the life of those around him. Both characters deal with an inner struggle of what the definition of normal is. Mike is struggling to let his illness take over and behave in ways he is expected to. Peggy, on the other hand, struggles with the desire for her son to return to the charming 17-year old boy she once knew and the “courtesy stigma” she now faces.
In the article by Goffman, “Stigma and Social Identity,” introduce the concept of “mixed contacts.” The article defines this concept as the “moments when the stigmatized and normal are in the same “social situation”...in …show more content…
As her son struggles to fit in, she struggles with the obligation to share his stigma that is projected from society. In social settings, they are a unit. The “courtesy stigma,” introduced in Goffman’s article, is her connection to the shadow of her son’s actions (Goffman, 30). When neighbors avoid him, they avoid her as well.
Peggy’s internal conflict is the acceptance of this shared “courtesy stigma” and the memories she has of her son being an average teenager. Although her current reality is far from the peaceful memories in her head, she hopes that one day he will wake up the same boy he was at age 17. Her eternal hope for her son to be normal once again would materialize, there would be less stigma projected onto her and her son. In this position in society, she is stuck between understanding her son’s illness and his contradicting
In the article by Goffman, “Stigma and Social Identity,” introduce the concept of “mixed contacts.” The article defines this concept as the “moments when the stigmatized and normal are in the same “social situation”...in …show more content…
As her son struggles to fit in, she struggles with the obligation to share his stigma that is projected from society. In social settings, they are a unit. The “courtesy stigma,” introduced in Goffman’s article, is her connection to the shadow of her son’s actions (Goffman, 30). When neighbors avoid him, they avoid her as well.
Peggy’s internal conflict is the acceptance of this shared “courtesy stigma” and the memories she has of her son being an average teenager. Although her current reality is far from the peaceful memories in her head, she hopes that one day he will wake up the same boy he was at age 17. Her eternal hope for her son to be normal once again would materialize, there would be less stigma projected onto her and her son. In this position in society, she is stuck between understanding her son’s illness and his contradicting