Behind the Story: Girl, Interrupted

              Hello, today I am going to take you to the world of Susanna Kaysen. She is an amazing author, who wrote a biography about the time when she was sent to live at McLean hospital. The book was call “Girl, Interrupted and was publication in 1993 by Turtle Bay Books. In this story Susanna talks about how not even spending half an hour with this new doctor of hers, and he ships her off the Hospital for crazy people; where she stay for two years. Susanna often takes us in to the world of mental ill and how they see the see the world.  As Kayen describe it, it’s like there in their own world, they can see normal world and even predict thing going to happen the normal world by living in there own little place there mind create. Anther point Kaysen describes is there two types of crazy. One is when you’re depress or sad or done with life, then everything goes slow around you and you think lot of you propose in this world. The other is when you are overworking, doing anything to much or too fast in a continuative paste, in life and instead of questioning yourself, you just let lose then things go fast for you until you can’t handle it and try keep with the pate in another world. Susanna continue make strong point like this though out the book. She named the book after a panting of a girl being interrupted from her music. She name it this because this is what she was feeling inside her, while because depress. She was interrupted from her normal life because she got wooed by her English teacher. While living in the McLean hospital, Susanna meets many interesting people and describe there experiences in the hospital; while learning things about her own self as well.

Some of the main people she meet were Lisa, Georgina, Wade, Lisa Cody, Polly, Daisy, Valerie, Dr. Wick, and Melvin. Lisa is this happy, excited, and very energetic sociopath, and not afraid to show it. Lisa often brings life to this sometime slow and boring place where Susanna lives. Georgina was one of Susanna best friends, and one of the healthiest people in the hospital. Georgina’s boyfriend Wade had anger issues problem and when he was sent away from ward to a more secured place because he’s rage tantrums, are when Georgina show her more insane side of her because her lack of seeing him. Lisa Cody was the second Lisa in there ward, and she was sociopath too like the original Lisa. The original Lisa like have a second Lisa just like her, so she tries her best to show up the new Lisa (Lisa Cody); it work Lisa Cody is a real Junkie now. Polly is a figure, whom all the people in there ward look up to. Polly had the gut to set herself on fire, which one in the Ward could ever think of trying. Polly is also a nice mother figure to the people coming in to the hospital. Daisy is this chicken obsess girl, who come to the hospital from the holiday includeing her birthday. Daisy’s father spoils her with money, but also rapes her because he somehow develops feeling for her.  Valerie is the head nurse, which Susanna is very fond of as so the other people in the ward. Dr. Wick is the female doctor for all the girl patients at the ward, and Susanna sees her as very old-fashioned. Last but definitely not least is Melvin, he is Susanna’s therapist. He help Susanna sort out many of her problems. If you want to find out more come read the book.

“Scar tissue has no character. It's not like skin. It doesn't show age or illness or pallor or tan. It has no pores, no hair, no wrinkles. It's like a slip cover. It shields and disguises what's beneath. That's why we grow it; we have something to hide. ” (Kaysen 20-23)

Susanna said this when she saw Polly and how her skin is burn off because she set herself on fire. Susanna was envying how now, her skin is gone, she has a shield to cover what she feeling inside or emotion that she want to keep hidden. Susanna want to hide her emotion too, but can’t because people sees her skin; how she scratches her pimples and has a depressive face on it reveal her fear and sadness, which she tries so hard to hide. I love this quote so much because, for me, it defines the whole book and relate to everybody. We all have feeling or memories; we want to hide but continue to remember as we look in a mirror. If we had no skin show to how we are different and no scares to show what happens behind close doors (cutting yourself, get beating/abuse, ECT...) to us, people wouldn’t feel so insecure. It defines the book because Susanna is trying to find her self after being interrupted, but hard for her to find her true self while she can’t forget about her past as she look in the mirror and thinks other can see right though her also because her skin.