Summary Of Jim Stevens's Schizophrenia

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Jim Stevens “Schizophrenia” is about a house that is afflicted with mental illness. The house is a representation of the illness and mirrors the family as a whole. The entire poem is a metaphor comparing the house to a family. Jim Stevens creates such a vivid image in the readers mind of what this house sounds, looks, smells and even feels like. There is no reason a reader should read this poem and not have a better understanding of the mental illness of schizophrenia and how it affects not only the person but the family as a whole. Both the homes and the families are thought of as a place of safety and love, but in this family, due to a terrible disease, love is hard to find. It is a constant uphill struggle to try and love someone when you can’t help them. Often times, when we can’t help someone, we blame ourselves, which only causes more stress and distance. The line, “It was the house that suffered most.” (Line 1), illustrates that, although the person diagnosed with schizophrenia was probably suffering, it was the family, as a whole, that suffered the most. “The roof tiles flying off…” (line 18), in this line, the family, much like the house, is falling apart. It is harder to watch a loved one perish then…show more content…
One of the scariest things about schizophrenia is the uncertainty of how the person will act in any given situation. Much like in the poem, schizophrenia is a lot of chaos and confusion with little understanding from those closest to you. “Certain doors were locked at night,” (line 5). This line informs the reader that members of the household are afraid of the schizophrenic, and afraid of what the schizophrenic is capable of doing while everyone else is asleep. Schizophrenia is a mental illness for which there is no cure. Although there are medicines that help the symptoms of the illness, the person still continues to suffer. There is nothing more devastating than being afraid of loved
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