"Darl had a little spy-glass he got in France at the war."
by, Shannon Marlatt and Olivia Kastick and Alex
image url: http://worldwaroneboardgame.files.wordpress.com/2012/08/battle_of_broodseinde_silhouetted_troops_marching_wwi_never_see_high_resolution_desktop_2374x1832_wallpaper-1054499-long.jpg
Darl's descent into madness may have a legitimate cause. Evidence of his time spent as a soldier in WWI indicate that his mental stability was affected by his combat experiences. In his time, Darl's disease would have been little known, and not well understood.
The history of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) began during WWI. At the beginning of the war, the psychological distress of soldiers was thought to be the result of concussions caused by the impact of shells. As a result it was termed “shell shock”. It was characterized as a dazed, disoriented state many soldiers experience during combat or shortly thereafter. Later on in the war, even soldiers who had never been exposed to exploding shells were experiencing similar symptoms. The general assumption was that these soldiers were weak and cowardly, and very little treatment was given to help them.
However, there were some psychiatrists who viewed shell shock as a condition that went beyond the simple “shock” of facing an exploding shell. The believed that shell shock was the result of the extreme emotional and psychological stress that soldiers encountered in the face of a mine explosion, being shot at, and seeing their comrades wounded and killed. They were plagued by their actions in combat, and could not escape the memory of them nor the conviction that if they had acted differently fewer of their comrades might’ve died. The psychologist described these disturbances as characterized by instability and exaggeration of emotion rather than by ineffective or impaired reason, as the soldier struggles to come to terms with himself and the horrors of war.
By the end of WWI, psychiatrists began to believe that what had been known as “shell shock” was the result of emotional problems rather than physical injury of the brain. Although this realization was a step forward in the conceptualization and treatment of PTSD, psychiatrists continued to believe that soldiers who were “weak” were predisposed to the condition. There also continued to be doubts among some people about the legitimacy of the condition. It wasn’t until the 1980s that PTSD would become a widely accepted psychological condition.
PTSD was first conceptualized during WWI, and this is thought to be because of the very different nature of this war from previous ones. The stress of being stuck in trenches, unable to move or do anything to improve your condition/safety is thought to have been a major cause of PTSD.
"World War I." History of PTSD. WordPress, 2014. Web. 08 Dec. 2014.
From this evidence, Darl displays many of the symptoms of shell shock. Throughout the novel, Darl continuously showed signs of paranoia, confusion, difficulty concentrating, hearing things, and more. He not only acts out based on symptoms of shell shock, but also signs of his training from war. Darl is extremely observant, brave, honorable, and broken from common human emotion.
For example, when Darl hears Addie's body rotting, he believes that he is hearing her voice calling for help. This may be an old memory of him hearing voices calling for his help while he was in combat. Towards the end of the novel, Darl also refers to narrating his actions with the word "we" rather than "I". This could show that Darl may believe that he is representing his family as if he would represent his country or his regiment. Darl Bundren also frequently gets confused on what is considered dangerous and what isn't. The river scene in the book displays his natural instinct to flee from loud, overpowering danger. He instinctively jumped off the wagon even though he caused a lot of danger from his actions.
The fire also represents danger confusion, but it also shows Darl's need to allow another fellow soldier to die with dignity. Darl's choice to burn the barn with his mother's coffin inside could be considered his last gift to his mother. He wanted her to die with honor, not have her rotting body get dragged around. Darl also displays difficulty concentrating. At the beginning of the novel, Darl gets very distracted when Anse asks him where Jewel is. Darl does not end up answering this very simple question for another page and a half. Finally, the buzzards could remind Darl of the enemy. Continuously throughout the novel, Darl and Vardaman are constantly counting the buzzards in the sky. They have this need to find out where they live, and how they can get rid of them.
The history of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) began during WWI. At the beginning of the war, the psychological distress of soldiers was thought to be the result of concussions caused by the impact of shells. As a result it was termed “shell shock”. It was characterized as a dazed, disoriented state many soldiers experience during combat or shortly thereafter. Later on in the war, even soldiers who had never been exposed to exploding shells were experiencing similar symptoms. The general assumption was that these soldiers were weak and cowardly, and very little treatment was given to help them.
However, there were some psychiatrists who viewed shell shock as a condition that went beyond the simple “shock” of facing an exploding shell. The believed that shell shock was the result of the extreme emotional and psychological stress that soldiers encountered in the face of a mine explosion, being shot at, and seeing their comrades wounded and killed. They were plagued by their actions in combat, and could not escape the memory of them nor the conviction that if they had acted differently fewer of their comrades might’ve died. The psychologist described these disturbances as characterized by instability and exaggeration of emotion rather than by ineffective or impaired reason, as the soldier struggles to come to terms with himself and the horrors of war.
By the end of WWI, psychiatrists began to believe that what had been known as “shell shock” was the result of emotional problems rather than physical injury of the brain. Although this realization was a step forward in the conceptualization and treatment of PTSD, psychiatrists continued to believe that soldiers who were “weak” were predisposed to the condition. There also continued to be doubts among some people about the legitimacy of the condition. It wasn’t until the 1980s that PTSD would become a widely accepted psychological condition.
PTSD was first conceptualized during WWI, and this is thought to be because of the very different nature of this war from previous ones. The stress of being stuck in trenches, unable to move or do anything to improve your condition/safety is thought to have been a major cause of PTSD.
"World War I." History of PTSD. WordPress, 2014. Web. 08 Dec. 2014.
From this evidence, Darl displays many of the symptoms of shell shock. Throughout the novel, Darl continuously showed signs of paranoia, confusion, difficulty concentrating, hearing things, and more. He not only acts out based on symptoms of shell shock, but also signs of his training from war. Darl is extremely observant, brave, honorable, and broken from common human emotion.
For example, when Darl hears Addie's body rotting, he believes that he is hearing her voice calling for help. This may be an old memory of him hearing voices calling for his help while he was in combat. Towards the end of the novel, Darl also refers to narrating his actions with the word "we" rather than "I". This could show that Darl may believe that he is representing his family as if he would represent his country or his regiment. Darl Bundren also frequently gets confused on what is considered dangerous and what isn't. The river scene in the book displays his natural instinct to flee from loud, overpowering danger. He instinctively jumped off the wagon even though he caused a lot of danger from his actions.
The fire also represents danger confusion, but it also shows Darl's need to allow another fellow soldier to die with dignity. Darl's choice to burn the barn with his mother's coffin inside could be considered his last gift to his mother. He wanted her to die with honor, not have her rotting body get dragged around. Darl also displays difficulty concentrating. At the beginning of the novel, Darl gets very distracted when Anse asks him where Jewel is. Darl does not end up answering this very simple question for another page and a half. Finally, the buzzards could remind Darl of the enemy. Continuously throughout the novel, Darl and Vardaman are constantly counting the buzzards in the sky. They have this need to find out where they live, and how they can get rid of them.