Many people define themselves by traits that they possess that are outside of their control. This sense of identity is often fixed, and the perceived fluidity of their identity evolves as a result of their experiences changing their perception of the world. This is exemplified in Lauren Slater’s “Three Spheres”, which tells the story of the author’s own experience with mental illness and how it shaped the course of the rest of her life. Although a person’s nature does impact their personality, as shown in the innate quality of Slater’s mental illness, the way that they are nurtured also has a great impact. “Three Spheres” best shows the character of the author due to its illustration of her experience and the impacts of both the way she was
…show more content…
In her patients, Slater sees “pain pain pain the patient brings [her] back to… [their] arms [her] arms the wound is one” (Slater 14). Slater’s use of dramatic tone and rhetoric in describing her history of mental health issues creates a sense of dramatic importance and emphasis on the mental health issues themselves. Through this self-identification, Slater shows how her past experiences with mental illness shaped her own perception of the world around her. Throughout the piece, Slater continually references her past experiences, both with her mother and with mental health, and uses a tone that conveys her fear and fragility in the position she currently inhabits. If Slater were not so stubbornly convinced that she was cured, the institution would likely be a trigger for her mental illness that she could not overcome. Slater has to constantly repeat that “[she is] not that girl any longer… [she] found some sort of way into recovery” (Slater 10) as she goes about her business, constantly fearing that she will regress or that she is not fully cured. It is Slater’s past that most completely defines her, and while she can believe that she has overcome it, the hysteria that she invokes whenever she hints that her past could still be lurking around the corner reveals that she is still living with the burden of her history every
In her patients, Slater sees “pain pain pain the patient brings [her] back to… [their] arms [her] arms the wound is one” (Slater 14). Slater’s use of dramatic tone and rhetoric in describing her history of mental health issues creates a sense of dramatic importance and emphasis on the mental health issues themselves. Through this self-identification, Slater shows how her past experiences with mental illness shaped her own perception of the world around her. Throughout the piece, Slater continually references her past experiences, both with her mother and with mental health, and uses a tone that conveys her fear and fragility in the position she currently inhabits. If Slater were not so stubbornly convinced that she was cured, the institution would likely be a trigger for her mental illness that she could not overcome. Slater has to constantly repeat that “[she is] not that girl any longer… [she] found some sort of way into recovery” (Slater 10) as she goes about her business, constantly fearing that she will regress or that she is not fully cured. It is Slater’s past that most completely defines her, and while she can believe that she has overcome it, the hysteria that she invokes whenever she hints that her past could still be lurking around the corner reveals that she is still living with the burden of her history every