In Nightwalk, by Aleem Hossain, it is clear the narrator has some type of mental illness. The hallucinations, brimming rage, psychotic depression, and many other problems show that he, the narrator, has a severe schizoaffective disorder. A schizoaffective disorder is where people have symptoms of both schizophrenia (have changes in behavior and other symptoms -- including delusions and hallucinations -- that last longer than 6 months. It usually affects them at work or school, as well as their relationships) and a mood disorder, like depression (feelings of severe despondency and dejection) or bipolar disorder (a mental disorder marked by alternating periods of elation and depression). The suicidal thoughts and quick behavioral changes show …show more content…
The story states,” on my way to the stairs, I grabbed the big butcher knife hanging from the wall. I passed my mother and she asked me about the vase. I don't stop, nor do I answer her. I slam the door to my room and run my fingers up and down the cool, peaceful blade. I hold it to my skin, feeling it's steel. Throwing off my shoes, I climb into bed with my clothes on. I reach for the blanket, needing its self-erasing blackness, but I can't reach it.” Here, the narrator wants help, the narrator wants to find a place for themselves and their cruel, meaningless world, but they cannot get the help they need, why the narrator most likely has undiagnosed depression. The text also states,” I don’t really want its shaggy wool softness. Instead, I clutched the beautiful hard dagger against my throat. I pause, remembering the velvety blackness of a night I no longer have a place in.” The shows that the narrator is extremely depressed and suicidal. Depression and suicidal thoughts are a few of the many symptoms of schizoaffective disorder, which this narrator clearly has a severe case of. Living in a world where you are considered an outsider, loner, or freak is no easy task. Escaping from reality through delusion might be a person's only choice if this is happening to them. But this narrator's escape from reality is an evil, chaotic one. The suicidal thoughts, psychotic depression,