Overcoming Depression
How would you cope with the feeling
of misery and secrecy? How would you deal with the gut wrenching emotions of misery
and gloominess? How would you feel if you were completely alone, with no
one to confide in? In the novel Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson, Melinda Sardino
is attempting to conquer her grief and sadness, after experiencing a horrific
incident over the summer. She has become silent and glum, with no one
willing to facilitate her grief. Overcoming depression is a major theme in
Speak, as well as many other dramatic books and stories.
Overcoming sadness is the theme of the novel,
for Melinda must deal with the fact she was raped and sexually assaulted while
attending a party, and now has no one she trusts to reveal the unpleasant event
to. After calling the police, who arrested nearly everyone drinking underage at
the celebration, she lost all of her friends. And although she has no injuries
to prove the crime was committed, Melinda bares scars on the inside. The
friendships she once had, have been destroyed, and her former acquaintances are
ignoring her. Melinda also feels uncomfortable confiding in her dysfunctional
family, whom she believes would be unable to understand her problems. She has
nobody to discuss her feelings with, except for her new selfish classmate,
Heather, who cares for no one but herself. These reasons, caused by one, sinful
action, caused Melinda to hate herself and everyone around her.
Another reason the theme of the
novel is overcoming depression is, Melinda uses painting and sculpting as a
soothing technique to let out all of her frustration and anger. Thanks to her
wise and friendly art teacher, Melinda pours her heart and soul into her work, thus
forth breaking the ongoing sadness she has felt over the course of the never-ending
school year.
The Hunger Games, by Suzanne
Collins, is another novel that discusses overcoming depression. After seventeen
year-old Katniss Everdeen is sent to the Capitol, to participate in a fight to
the death on live television, she warns her mother not to go mute again. Her
unnamed mother, became distraught after her husband died in an accidental mine
explosion; their district provides the coal for the entire nation. Katniss
makes her only parent promise to care for her younger sister Primrose, as she
enters the games. After their father had perished, Katniss took it upon herself
to provide for her family, while her mother stared into space, with a blank and
lonely expression on her face. Luckily, Miss Everdeen was able to take charge
and defeat her depression, and resume her position as caregiver of her
household. She was able to overcome her melancholy by embracing those who loved
and needed her in their time of need. Miss Everdeen even returned to her status
as District Nurse and began providing in-home health care, which in return,
gave her enough money to raise Primrose on her own while Katniss was away.
Melinda needed to gain the courage to move on and leave the past behind her, as
Katniss’ mother did.
Like The Hunger Games, Legend by
Mary Lu, represented overcoming distress in its theme. The book’s heroine,
June, grew miserable and cheerless, after her brother, Metias, a military
soldier, was murdered at a hospital while responding to a mission. After days
of silence and unhappiness, she finally was able to grieve, and put it upon
herself to avenge her sibling’s killing. She found herself curing her
depression, after wondering about what Metias would’ve wanted. She found the strength to revitalize her
emotions, as did Melinda.
Towards the end of the novel,
Melinda pours out all of her feelings into painting, and finally gains the
strength to confront her assailant. Through art, she is able to express herself
and her emotions, also overcoming her longtime anguish. She is eventually able to stand up to her rapist once he tries to
attack again; her secret is revealed to the entire student body, and Melinda is
able to resume her beautiful, joyful life.
