Do you ever wonder if the way you see blue is the way everyone else sees the same blue? Is there any way of really ever knowing this? We all might be seeing different versions of colors, the world in general, and ourselves. It's nearly impossible to know if others see us the way we see ourselves.
For the mentally ill, this struggle is amplified.
In I Never Promised You a Rose Garden, Deborah sees a version of herself that is poisonous. She also sees a version of reality that exists only for her, in her own mind. What happens when you live in a reality that is entirely different from the "actual" reality other people experience?
Questions About Versions of Reality
- Is there any way to know if you see reality in the same way as those around you?
- What causes Deborah to start to believe she's poisonous to others?
- How is Yr more appealing to Deborah than Earth? Why?
- How does the Collect operate in Deborah's mind?
Chew on This
Sometimes the world seems to reflect what we hate most about ourselves.
Reality is subjective by nature; mental illness just adds another layer of subjectivity.