The author of ‘The Weight of Our Sky’, Hanna Alkaf came to our school to give us a talk on representation, especially with mental illness. As well as how her works were impactful, her talk had was also very interesting and insightful.
Although I had learnt to pay attention to how characters are represented in literal and non-literal works, it was surprising to see how much groups and characters could be badly misrepresented–and in a cliched way. In the case of mental illness, this is probably because many readers do not have enough knowledge to notice or criticise the misrepresentation, and therefore overlook this and settle down with a situation that is a very small part of the truth. Hanna had realised this, and chose to face this issue which was quite striking to me.
The phrase ‘fictional stories should be a mirror and a window’ also stayed with me too. Thinking about the phrase, it made me remind me of the responsibilities that writers have to do with representation. Just like we noticed in our activity in the talk, people’s impressions and thinkings are very dependent on how authors/writers/directors represents the group in their works. Therefore, I realised how important it is to try to represent groups as close as possible, especially minority groups which their misrepresentation can easily be overlooked.
And here are some comments of my peers which I found insightful:
– I had never considered the impact of using minority groups (like the disabled or the mentally ill) as the ‘poster’ for inspiration and how it would ‘feel’ to be represented that way. It is a very common but serious trope that is very easy to overlook in society and that was a surprising realisation for me. I wonder how it would feel to be made into something that ‘normal’ society would be ‘grateful’ not to have. Would the ‘positive intentions’ of making inspirational posts this way further ostracise these group? (Megna’s comment)
I now realise the true importance for Bechdel to have given an accurate account of her experience with OCD, not exaggerating it to be something that completely destroys your life, but as a condition that one has to live with. Bechdel’s account on her OCD, particularly her writing, reveals that even herself has not been completely cured of her disorder, as we can see how she is even obsessive over how descriptive and detailed her writing is. This in itself reveals so much about how mental illnesses are not something that one can be completely cured of, and that it is not something to be “cured” but something that is “healed”. (Gianina’s comment)
-Hanna’s emphasis put on writing about mental illness ‘well’, made me aware of a writer’s critical responsibility of giving a holistic and precise voice that can make all individuals in the group feel like they can resonate with. Further, more in-depth, and insightful knowledge will be delivered, therefore creating more room for people to gain empathy for these individuals. (Dhrithika’s comment)