Effects of Mental Illness

Michaela Berger

Ms. Pahomov

English 2

25 March 2019

Effects of Mental Illness

How does trauma affect everyone in different ways? In Lord of the Flies, by William Golding, a group of boys experience a series of events that lead to chaos among them. After a devastating plane crash, several boys aged 6 to about 12 must learn to survive on an island with no adults and thus no authority. From this crash, the boys’ emotions change and their behavior begins to reflect it. Their experiences on the island caused the boys to become vulnerable, crude, and even violent. A traumatic event can lead to mental and emotional illnesses, which may affect their relationships with other people.

To begin, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, or PTSD, is a mental illness where a person has behavioral or emotional issues recovering from a traumatic event. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in an article about PTSD in children, symptoms of children with PTSD include acting helpless, hopeless or withdrawn, and nightmares and sleep problems. If they have PTSD, performing tasks, like interacting with others or doing something independently can become difficult. This is especially if they do not have access to treatment. A world health report done in 2001 by the World Health Organization (WHO) states that only one-third of all of the people diagnosed with mental disorders seek treatment. The majority of the time, it is because of the stigma of having a mental illness. People affected with illnesses like PTSD do not want to be judged or have others know that they go to therapy because of a mental illness they have. Other times, it is due to limited access or not being able to afford treatment. If people are not treated or do not have access to treatment, their symptoms will only worsen. Their mental and emotional health could deteriorate. In children, their actions and relationships with both adults and other children can take a drastic, negative turn.

In Golding’s novel, the boys begin to experience symptoms of PTSD from their plane crash. Specifically, their behavior reflects several of the more common ones as told by the CDC such as sleepwalking, nightmares, and vulnerability. For example, the younger boys on the island who are around six years old, show signs of sleep issues. This is witnessed by Jack, Ralph, and Simon, “They dream. You can hear ‘em… They talk and scream. The littluns,” (Golding 52). When Ralph says this, he demonstrates how the “littluns” are showing a common symptom of PTSD. Since the littluns are very young, they have a limited understanding of the severity of the plane crash compared to what the older boys know. Another consequence of their young age is that they have a different perception of the intensity of events. The littluns’ upset behavior and vulnerable actions show they are experiencing anxiety because of what happened in the plane crash.

A person diagnosed with PTSD often experiences emotional management issues. The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs notes that a common symptom of PTSD is stress and anger. Having this accumulated anger can affect other people. Anger is reported to be a very common response to trauma. Temperament helps release some of the negative feelings a person with PTSD may have and helps them cope with stress. However, using anger as a main coping strategy will rarely help in the long run. Someone who resorts to solving problems with anger will use this method more often, which can lead to longer and more intense rages. It will affect other’s opinions of that person because they use their temper as an outlet. For example, U.S. veterans often experience PTSD, especially symptoms of anger. A helpguide.org article notes how anger corresponds to the fight or flight response veterans get (Smith et al). The rush of adrenaline gives them energy, so they need to blow off steam or become rageful. They are on guard at all time, which especially causes this irritability. It can prevent veterans from getting jobs, which can later lead to homelessness. Not only does this anger affect other people, but it affects how they live.

Using anger as a coping mechanism is a common trait among the boys in Lord of The Flies. Jack, the self-designated head of the hunters, often uses the rageful coping method to deal with some of the stressors of being on the island. Golding describes Jack’s angry actions, “Then Jack leapt to his feet, slashed off a great hunk of meat, and flung it down at Simon's feet. ‘Eat! Damn you!’ He glared at Simon,” (74). This quote reveals some of the aggression portrayed by the character Jack. He was angered by the actions of the other characters, but also faced some internal struggle. Although he uses yelling at the boys to show them the kind of power he has, he is really doing it because of the trauma he experienced from the plane crash. Jack releases his frustration on the boys as a way to cope with this stress. His anger affects his fellow hunters in order to get them to work together, even if it is intimidating. Early in the book, he asserts his dominance with sternness, which leads to him having some power over the boys. Contrary to what the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs says, using this assertiveness causes people to want to follow him. Although it does intimidate the boys and come off as rude, Jack is able to form a cohesive group of boys with similar, angry motives.

To conclude, a traumatic event can really affect one’s actions and relationships. It can have a negative impact on their mental and emotional health. When a traumatic event happens, the ones who experience it can have impacted behavior and even sleep issues. It affects the people surrounding the victim and can eventually hurt the environment they are in. Mental illnesses like Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder impact so many individuals, yet very little is done about it. Only a fraction of the people diagnosed yearly is treated. Mental health issues are so often overlooked when it really affects so many people today.

Works Cited

Golding, William. Lord of the Flies. Penguin Books, 2006

“Mental Disorders Affect One in Four People.” World Health Organization, World Health Organization, 29 July 2013, www.who.int/whr/2001/media_centre/press_release/en/.

“National Center for PTSD.” PTSD, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, 3 Aug. 2018, www.ptsd.va.gov/understand/related/anger.asp.

“Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.” National Institute of Mental Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Feb. 2016, www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/post-traumatic-stress-disorder-ptsd/index.shtml.

“Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder in Children | CDC.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 12 Mar. 2019, www.cdc.gov/childrensmentalhealth/ptsd.html.

Smith, Melinda, et al. “PTSD in Military Veterans.” HelpGuide.org, Oct. 2018, www.helpguide.org/articles/ptsd-trauma/ptsd-in-military-veterans.htm/.