Mental Illness And Objection In James Mangold's Girl Interrupted

James Mangold’s Girl, Interrupted (1999), a film adaptation of Susanna Kaysen’s memoir, follows Susanna’s experience at Claymoore, a psychiatric hospital from the late 1960s. It explores mental illness among young women within an institutional setting, a typical site of authority and abjection. Girl, Interrupted portrays mental illness and abjection in female adolescents using the traditional structure of institution films.

Abjection, as defined by French philosopher Julia Kristeva, “arises from the process of a child becoming autonomous of his or her mother” (Pheasant-Kelly 5). In other words, it is the human reaction to a threatened breakdown in meaning caused by a loss of distinction or crossing of borders. While Kristeva’s theory specifically

Immediately, Susanna is introduced as a nurturing, maternal figure, while Lisa is more mentally unstable. The opening scenes feature fast cuts between flashbacks and the linear storyline; they seamlessly bleed into each other using overlapping audio. This structure deepens the audience’s connection to Susanna by reconstructing her internal perspective, as she complains about her wandering mind and time jumps later in therapy. This point of view is enhanced through the use of voiceover narration, which also evokes a biographical framework as an homage to the film’s source

The eating disorders of Daisy and fellow patient Janet represent abjection because they police and limit what enters their body, and their refusal to eat simply creates more boundaries. Shortly after Daisy leaves the hospital, Susanna and Lisa escape to visit her apartment, and this getaway represents abjection because they are crossing the border from institution to real life. Daisy’s kitchen and outfit are brightly yellow, and much like her delicately feminine name, they contrast the scene’s darker topic. Lisa exposes Daisy’s self-harm scars and suggests that Daisy enjoys her father’s sexual assault. Since blood is exiting the body, self-harm scars are representations of abjection. For young women, self-harm can represent taking control over one’s body by targeting their anger inwards, especially during the adolescent process of identity