Advice on Writing Insanity

1) You are talking about 'Coloured' from an obviously very British/American position where it has a dark history. In other places around the world it is accepted as a non-controversial term, like Brazil (I think).

2) No one is saying, 'Don't listen to the mad people'. I've had to deal with the jokes too so I do understand, but it should only really matter when there is genuine malice behind it.

 

Colored is an old term, and only offensive in colonial countries. Insane and mad are still current terms. 'Insane laughter', 'Mad about you'. Should those phrases be 'Mentally ill laughter' and 'Mentally ill about you'? I have a blind friend who hates the pc term 'visually impaired'. I wear glasses, so I have impaired vision. His vision is not impaired, it's gone. He's blind. You're not mentally ill. Mentally ill is an umbrella-term. You're schizo, or bi-polar, OCD, or manic-depressive. You should be angry at people who use mentally ill to describe you, lumping you in with all the other mentally ill people. And what do you care if some ignoramus thinks that mentally ill means 'foaming at the mouth nutzo madcap'? Have some self-respect and ignore the ignorant.

 

It's because of self-respect that I don't like letting ignorance go unchecked. It's because people 'let it go' that legislatures, legal systems, and insurance companies are allowed to act according to ignorance, prejudice, and fear.

 

You have introduced me to one of my new fave comedians. ^__^

I also happen to be technically mentally ill (As I told you in a previous post), although oddly enough that being used to describe me actually bothers me. Insane or mad doesn't because those terms are so completely subjective and thrown around so easily that they barely mean much of anything anymore. Someone calls me insane I say, hell yeah I'm insane. You can't survive in this world anymore without being a little crazy. Anyone who says they're not at least a little nuts is either lying or in denial.

And again, it's not that you being offended by the terms that is the problem. It's the fact that you were rude about it. If you had been polite to start with the whole thing could have been avoided. And sometimes people are offended by things that just don't offend 95% of the populace. If someone tells me their offended by the color blue I'm not going to stop wearing blue since it's not offensive to 95% of people (And dammit, I love blue). I know that's a bit silly for an example and less personal than using the term insane, but my point is that it's virtually the same situation. You are offended by a term that honestly causes most people to be confused as to why someone thinks it's offensive. It's such a broad spectrum term that you really can't pin it down to any one mental illness anyway.

You just gotta learn to relax and pick battles that actually matter. The mentally ill are not treated the way we were even fifty years ago. I don't know about your experience but I've never once been made fun of for my disabilities. For God's sake it's damn near trendy to be mentally ill. You're gonna find jerks everywhere, but you can't treat everyone who says something quasi offensive like they are one. The other day I was eating dinner with my mother in law and I casually mentioned to my husband that I found out one of my fave actresses is gay. I didn't care that she was gay. I was just pointing out a fact to my husband that I thought was interesting. My mother in law told me it was not appropriate dinner conversation and that I need to mind my manners. Not one person in my life at home (My mother in law lives six states away) has a problem with gay people but apparently my MIL does. I was quite honestly shocked at her reaction. I decided to be quiet about it because my MIL can be very headstrong and the fight just wasn't worth it, but anyone else I would have asked if they had a problem with gay people and pointed out that it made me mad.

You have to understand that sometimes you're going to be offended by something that most people see as silly. Even other mentally ill people on this forum are telling you it's silly. If it bothers you so much you honestly should just leave the thread. There's no point in this other than stiring up animosity where it's not warrented.

 

Over here, the government isn't part of the ignoramus - I'm sorry to hear that in your part the ignorant rule the legislature, legal systems and insurance companies.

 

I did leave the thread - but others continued to address me here and in another 'discussion' - and with personal attacks, I might add. And again, in polite company, having someone state that they were offended by something and having other terms which weren't offensive readily available, would usually mean that people would use the non-offensive terms. But after I brought it up, it was ignored. So yes, that upset me.

But I'll shut up and go stand in the corner now.

 

I hope you don't consider my posts a personal attack - I would say the same things I post here straight to your face, and stand by them.

It wasn't ignored, it was refuted. People respond that 'madness/insanity' does not equate 'mental illness'. You're not the only person in this thread with a mental illness, however, you seem to be the only one offended by the terms 'mad' and 'insane'. It could be that this issue is too close to home for you and you're incapable of the distance necessary to discuss this without becoming emotional. If so, I understand that, but I also understand that that doesn't mean people have to change in order not to offend your delicate sensibilities. Like the Youtube film I quoted - if you're offended, then be offended. Nothing happens, it might be painful to you, but you cannot go through life willing everyone around you to adjust so you won't be offended. You could, however, try to ignore offending remarks and blame them on ignorance.

I think that upsetting you is not the aim of this thread, but perhaps you could do what I do when I see something upsetting on the television. Change the channel.

 

Love the comedian, very awesome. But this thread is still going because (at least I hope anyway) some people are still offering insight and help on how I can write this character.

 

I personally say for a great criminally insane reference you should check out the Joker from the 90s Batman series.

 

I believe I understand your points as well as funkybassmannick's but I fail to see where the two of you disagree.

EDIT: I didn't realize there were two more pages of this, and I think I understand the point of disagreement now, so feel free to disregard this.

 

This thread has obviously been overworked, but I think I'll add my two cents anyway, because it pleases me. I personally love playing characters with neurotic disorders, and when it comes to this "madness" you say..I don't believe there's any such thing as "true madness". There are obsessions, psychiatric disorders, and personality flaws..but no "true madness". And someone that spouts off random sentences needs a basis for what he's saying and doing, otherwise he wont be a well built character--he'll be more of an amateur, undeveloped character.
At least, this is my opinion on the matter. Which may or may not be worth your consideration.
In conclusion, you should decide what's driven him insane, or what mental disorder he has and then research it like nothing else. There's plenty of information on the internet about disorders. And there are books! So many books. Check the library.

 

Watch the japanese anime movie Paprika, and you'll understand what insanity is. (Great movie btw)

 

Whatever you decide to do. Either choose a particular sickness or make it fictional. You could write it from a sympathetic approach. He/ she doesn't necessarily have to be a monster. I'm choosing on writing an insane guy myself for one of my pieces and I was thinking on what if the readers could actually sympathise with this guy instead of making him/ her a character you'd love to hate.

 

that's good advice, clipsey.

 

That's a good reference songbird but it all depends on whether he wants to make his character realistic or not.