Picture: 1960s Dentist

I selected this photo because it illustrates the setting of a dentist's office. Susanna has to visit the dentist's office to get her wisdom teeth removed. The reason this is so important is because Susanna freaks out when she wakes up from the anesthesia. She wants to know how long she was out, "It's my time and I need to know how much it was" (109). Susanna keeps stressing that she needs to know how much time elapsed during her surgery: "'See Valerie, I've lost some time, and I need to know how much. I need to know.' Then I started crying." (109)

Picture: Brain Neuron

I chose this picture because it illustrates a brain neuron. Brain neurons bring up many questions for Susanna. To show her depiction of brain neurons, Susanna creates a conversation between two "interpreter" or neurons. She is trying to help the reader understand how she views insanity: one interpreter is always being managed by another interpreter. Normally, if an interpreter, neuron, makes a mistake, the superior interpreter will fix it. However, if you are insane, the superior interpreter will not fix the mistake.

Picture: Hand

I chose this picture because it symbolizes the bones in Susanna’s hand. At one point during her stay at McLean, Susanna had a breakdown and needed to know if she had bones...obviously she does have bones but in her mind she needed proof, an x-ray or some kind of visual evidence, to show that her hand had bones.

Picture: 1960s hospital

I selected this photo because it gives you an idea of what hospitals in the 1960s were like. Given this, the reader can visualize Susanna in the hospital with the other patients, living out her two years of treatment at McLean.

Links (2)

1. Movie: movie:http://www.vidivodo.com/460121/girl-interrupted-trailer
2. History of mental illness: http://www.mentalwellness.com/mentalwellness/history.html
3. Symptoms: http://www.bpdfamily.com/bpdresources/nk_a102.htm
4. Cure: http://psychcentral.com/lib/2007/borderline-personality-disorder-treatment/
5. Map of psychiatric hospitals in U.S.: http://maps.google.com/maps?client=safari&rls=en&q=psychiatric+hospital&oe=UTF-8&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&hl=en&tab=wl