The book Silver Water by Amy Bloom revolves around a girl, Rose, who becomes mentally ill at an early age. The theme of the narration is that of mental illness and how it has a significant impact on the patient’s life and that of their family. It also shows that mental illness is a big problem that affects not only the life of the patient but also the people around them. The topic of the book, Silver Water, supports its theme by using water to signify attributes of calmness and serenity. However, such attributes can be camouflaged by “silver,” which changes the color of the water and makes it impure. The word “silver” is representative of the mental illness suffered by Rose and how it adversely affected her life. Therefore, the book paints Rose’s life as one that has been negatively affected by mental illness from one of beautiful, wonderful girl that are full of promise to one that is filled with violence, self-injury, desperation, gloom, and eventual death.
The theme of the book shows how mental illness has a negative impact on Rose’s life and the life of her family. It not only controls her life but is also a huge burden to her family. Before the illness, Rose is depicted as a cheerful girl that is well-liked by her peers. She also acts as a role model to her younger sister, Violet, who loves has musical talent so much. However, the psychotic breakdown makes her behavior change and become more erratic. She has a brief transition of recovery after getting the right treatment from Dr. Thorne. During this period, she begins to take her meds and returns to her “singing at the A.M.E. Zion Church, down the street from the halfway house” (Weebly 2). The statement demonstrates that she is a normal girl that is full of life and happiness.
However, the illness makes this once-innocent girl become aggressive and violent. There are many instances in the book that capture her violent and aggressive behavior due to her mental condition. A case in point is when she is evicted from the halfway house after throwing another patient down the stairs (Weebly 3). There is also another instance when her aggressive behavior leads her to self-injury by banging her head against the kitchen floor. She even goes ahead and physically attacks her mother, who is trying to stop her from hurting herself. She was doing this because her mother had told her to go to her room to change her wet pants (Weebly 4). These incidents show a rapid deterioration of her condition, which end when she eventually takes her own life by taking pills. Her transformation is for the worse because she has become a danger to herself and to others around her.
The change that is attributed to Rose due to her mental condition is significant in understanding the story because it shows how devastating mental illness can be to the life of a patient and those around them. The story attempts to show the negative effects of mental illness on society and how it can completely destroy the life of an individual and create many other problems for the family and other people in society. It brings to light the sufferings and tribulations that such patients and their families undergo in their attempt to deal with the problem. It also underscores the importance of receiving the right kind of treatment in dealing with such patients to improve their conditions and lighten the burden that their families have to bear.
Work Cited
Weebly. Amy Bloom’s “Silver Water” Available at : Silver Water (weebly.com)