Benjamin Roberts Analysis

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Literary critic Ben Roberts uses the common science fiction trope of memories mixed with the use of first-person narration to bring awareness towards the tragic circumstances of mental illness. Roberts uses memories to combat “I”’s attempt at surviving to convey a sense of helplessness for people with mental illness. In theory, he’s trying to convey a sense of “I” trying to achieve the peace we all are trying to find. After all, “I”’s a person just like the rest of us. Therefore, Roberts wants the reader to realize people with mental illness aren’t something to mock; they’re people who need help against the constant struggle they endure to survive.
1) Transforming of the Genre Roberts makes “I”’s memories the enemy of the story shown with
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Roberts reveals “I”’s veteran status at the end to keep the identity of his mental illness throughout ambiguous. In doing so, he makes the reader interpret their own diagnose towards “I”’s mental illness, allowing a more advanced connection to develop between reader and “I”. Therefore, the ending reveals allows the reader to conclude its PTSD, making the reader go back through the story to look for more connections pointing towards PTSD. For example, “I”’s train of thought falling into “blood was...” comes through screaming the effects of PTSD. A study done for PTSD called “Types and Number of Traumas Associated with Suicidal Ideation and Suicide Attempts in PTSD: Findings From a U.S. Nationally Representative Sample” shows, “individuals with PTSD are approximately 2–5 times more likely to attempt suicide compared to individuals who experienced a trauma, but do not have PTSD” (Amundsen & LeBouthillier & McMillan & Thibodeau, 183). The haunting elements of Roberts’ writing conveys “I”’s loss of the will to live reflecting a connection to PTSD. The most obvious example the creation of the safe space between his consciousness and his memories to hide himself from the nightmares of both. “I”’s effectively trapping himself inside his own brain to avoid dealing with the idea of living. For example, the sad ending, “Fuck. I guess my consciousness decided to break through after all. Its …show more content…
Roberts uses “I” to project a need of change towards our attitudes toward the mentally ill effectively demonstrating a new way of helping them needs developing. He wants them to have a voice instead of being pushed to the side because we don’t know to help them. The haunting statistic of “20 percent of children and adolescents in the United States suffer from a diagnosable mental illness. Tragically, in any given year, only one in five children receives mental health services: up to 80 percent fail to receive critically needed treatment ' '(Mohlam, 51) reflects Roberts’ plead with the reader to find a new way to help; 20% isn’t near good enough for the children of our country. Furthermore, this statistic projects a realization of how many adults get left without proper treatment given we usually care more about our children than we do ourselves. The insurance industry isn’t helping with their prejudice reflected in "over 95 percent of insurance plans discriminate against mental illness through higher co-pays, arbitrary treatment limits or outright exclusions. This causes inadequate care and financial disaster for those afflicted and their families” (Mohlam, 51). Therefore, the plague of mental will continue to spread itself onto the public until we take the action of trying to find a new way to deal with it. It’s truly an issue we can’t ignore

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