I Never Promised You a Rose Garden
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In the novel, I Never Promised You a Rose Garden (1964) by Joanne Greenberg (who previously used the pen name "Hannah Green"), Deborah Blau is an adolescent girl who is diagnosed and begins treatment for schizophrenia at the age of sixteen. Although the story takes place directly after World War II, when little about schizophrenia was known, and some of the treatments described in the novel may not be used anymore, the therapy sessions with Dr. Fried do seem to dovetail with growing trends concerning correct treatment for those with schizophrenia, a diagnosis that accurately fits Deborah Blau. Both the book and those trends indicate that the more the patient is involved in the recovery process, and the more hope and motivation involved in the therapy, the more likely that the recovery process will be successful and the patient able to live a productive and independent life. This paper will use the novel, I Never Promised You a Rose Garden, to discuss the nature of schizophrenia and the hope that therapy can provide, comparing the process to current data found in the American Psychological Association Monitor on Psychology (2000). The book opens as the unbelieving parents are bringing their daughter to the mental hospital, while trying to pretend that this is nothing more than a weekend outing. However, while they feel they are trying to placate her and make it easier for her, she sees the act as one more lie, and despises them for it (Greenberg, 1964). Dr. Fried, Debora
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lost because of this lack of respect for the mentally ill. The recovery movement also finds resistance to their claims that those with schizophrenia may recover because few professionals will listen to the testimonies of former patients. Doctors assert that the patients must have been "misdiagnosed" in the beginning. Additionally, as one psychologist puts it, "We just think 'Those people are crazy and they can't provide a valid assessment of what's going on in their lives.' I think we tend to discount people" (McGuire, 2000, p. 3).
It is important to point out at this time that Deborah Blau was not misdiagnosed. Her profile does fit into the definition of schizophrenia. Traditionally, using the current Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM), general symptoms of schizophrenia have included the hearing of voices, delusions, hallucinations, disorganized speech, and confused thinking, however, "efforts to trace its etiology have been stymied by the many forms the disease takes" (McGuire, 2000, p. 1). In Yr, Deborah has created a world so real to her that there her hallucinations are not only visual, but affect her tactile, auditory, and olfactory senses as well. She will "disappear" for a while and then "come back" and be luc
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Approximate Word count = 1254
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page)
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