As Defined By Merriam-Webster, Insanity Is “A Severely

As defined by Merriam-Webster, insanity is â€Å"a severely disordered state of the mind usually occurring as a specific disorder†. The stories A Tell Tale Heart by Edgar Allen Poe and A Long Day’s Journey Into Night by Eugene O’Neill revolve around the development of their deeply flawed characters with severe mental instabilities. The damage done to the characters around them is matched only by the mental disturbance of each of the characters. The perversion of the character’s minds is so severe, that each has convinced themselves that throughout most of each story, their actions are not the root cause of the turmoil around them. (ADD A BETTER TOPIC SENTENCE) A Tell Tale Heart begins with the exclamation from the narrator â€Å"the disease†¦show more content†¦He would become the victim of an â€Å"irresistible impulse†...† (Text 1). This corruption of the mind can drive people to commit crimes as morally corrupt as murder without understanding how terrible their actions are. To the narrator, to attack the blind eye that disturbs him so and murdering the old man are two separate events. In A Long Day’s Journey Into Night by contrast, the mother in the story, named Mary, begins a normal woman concerned with the wellbeing of her son who was recently been diagnosed with what was commonly called consumption, but is now referred to as tuberculosis. Because she is so anxious about her son’s worsening health, â€Å"Mary withdraws, via morphine, into a happier past† (Text 2). As the play progresses, Mary’s worsening mental state is reflected by her worsening appearance, climaxing near the end of the work, when she ends the night, eyes glassy, wedding gown half worn, high on morphine regressing back to her happiest day, her wedding day. In her state she has completely disassociated herself from her surroundings, so much so that she forgets to ask her son, returning from the doctor what the diagnosis was. Her addiction causes her state to worsen throughout the play, damaging the relationships of those around her, culminating in a complete disconnection from reality. Each of these characters suffer from mental instabilities resulting in damage to the peopleShow MoreRelatedthis is a college paper on MENTAL ILLNESS AS A SOCIAL PROBLEM3884 Words   |  16 Pagesorder such as a sociopath who becomes a serial killer. The number of individual in society with these disorders is small, but they constitute a serious social problem because they are so violent and irrational. A more widespread social problem is severely mental ill individuals who cannot care for themselves without special attention. These individuals include people who are mentally ill and chemically addicted, and are likely to be indigent and homeless. Mental ill individuals experience a variety