Comparing The Five Stages Of Grief In Drums, Girls And Dangerous Pie

Imagine this, one of your family members has to go to an emergency room just for a bloody nose that bled a lot longer than one normally should, a lot longer. During the hospital visit the doctors come across cancer cells. You realize for the past week that family member has been complaining about how there body hurts and you realize how much of a fool you are for not catching on to them not feeling well. You would immediately start griefing about how that family member might die. During the story Drums ,Girls & Dangerous Pie Steven goes through the 5 stages of grief because of his brother, Jeffrey getting cancer. One of the 5 stages of grief that Steven goes through is Denial. One example is when Jeffrey, his brother, gets diagnosed with

On (Sonnenblick 43) Steven is pretty angry that his brother just got diagnosed with cancer, so when his parents mention how there is going to be an adjustment in their daily schedules and Steven freaks about it by comparing an adjustment to getting a new car but his brother getting cancer and his mom having to quit her job is life changing. This shows anger because Steven is mad about the news of Jeffrey’s cancer already and his parents using a poor choice of words just makes it worse. On (Sonnenblick 126) Steven gets angry when someone rats him out to the teachers about Jeffrey’s illness. “Yes I’m fine, I’m more than fine, I’m peachy. I love getting led into a teacher meeting and dragged over the coals by half the grown-ups in the school because SOME GIRL ratted me out. … About Jeffrey’s cancer!” This shows anger because Steven was mad about having to go into a teacher meeting in the first place and then he realized that someone ratted to the teachers about Jeffrey’s cancer. Steven got reminded about how his brother may die so he got pretty mad. Another of the 5 stages of grief that Steven went through in Drums, Girls & Dangerous Pie, is bargaining. On (Sonnenblick 80) Steven is bargaining with God to think he is helping Jeffrey. He says things like, “If I don’t eat these cookies, then Jeffrey will get better. This shows bargaining because he is literally trying to convince himself that he is bargaining with

On (Sonnenblick 241) Mrs. Galley who is Stevens Guidance Counselor gives him a book on child cancer, and tells him to think of what he can change instead of pondering on what he can’t. Steven does end up reading the book. This does show acceptance because he is accepting the fact that Jeffrey has cancer by reading a book of hoe childhood cancer works. On (Sonnenblick 266) Steven accepts his brother’s cancer by being completely ok and not upset when Jeffrey gets installed into a room and tested on. “Jeffrey got installed into a room, his IV’s got hung and I stayed with him until he fell asleep for a nap. This shows acceptance because reading this part feels like he is just describing his chill non-upset reactions to his brother getting tested as part of the cancer