Interlude: The Circles of Hell

The interlude entitles ‘The Circles of Hell’ which occurs half way through the memoir is a very interesting part of it. I mentioned earlier that there is theme of being left in the dark, for both the mental patient and their families. However, the darkness for mental patients differs from their family’s darkness. The family is tormented by unknown facts, by the treatment, and other complications of the matter before them. The person with the mental illness, such as Liv, experiences darkness in his mind, as well as the darkness around him. The Circles of Hell is Clem’s way of immersing the reader into what is happening in Liv’s mind. This part of the memoir may be a fantasized part because Clem has not experienced schizophrenia or any mental illness himself, but he is writing this through the observation of Liv’s journey. “You wake up one day uncertain, sad, confused, and are diagnosed with a mental illness.” (Clem 135). Clem words these segments quite simply so that the reader can understand, but in the mind of a person with a mental condition, it can be much more complicated than that. Clem’s second circle deals with the social struggles of a person with a mental condition; saying that they are “Oppressed by cares and concerns, unable focus upon the necessities of life, you lose your job.” (Clem 137). Circle three deals with loneliness and how “Your moods and behaviors alienate family and friends, who now abandon you.” (Clem 139). Circle four deals with the materialistic issues of a person with a mental condition, saying “Your lack of income that you can’t continue to pay the rent or keep up with taxes, maintain car payments, afford groceries – or anything really.” (Clem 141). Circle five is the melting point at which a person with a mental condition is cornered. “Fearful, uncertain of where to turn, untreated, you become feral. You roam the city, living in improvised stick shelters and hillside hollows.” (Clem 143). This is rock bottom and the ultimate destination for untreated people with mental conditions. Notice how ‘You’ is used in each of these circles. By using ‘You’ instead of ‘they’ Clem is referring to the mental patient as the reader, so in this way, he is putting you, the reader in the mind of the mental patient.