The Looking Glass (#1)

Something that stood out to me while reading "The Looking Glass" in class last week was how Nellie's mental state was displayed throughout the short story. At first glance, a lot of the descriptions of Nellie seem to be overly dramatic. But when put into the frame of mental illnesses, it all fits. Her features are described as being tense, pale and motionless. This is reflective of what her anxiety levels were at the time. The whole short story is set in a dreamlike state which makes me think of hallucinations: another common symptom of certain mental illnesses. Her hallucinations were very vivid, symbolizing that her mind was full of worry and disarray. These feelings of discontent did not seem to come about for no reason. For example, the extensive "journey" of her going to Dr. Stepan Likitch seems to reflect her own fears of illness and those around her becoming ill. Nellie's mental well being seems to be controlled by her thoughts of how events will affect her. For example, when Nellie says, "Then she saw against the grey background how her husband every spring was in straits for money to pay the interest for the mortgage to the bank" (Chekhov 3) she is sure to mention that she would be the one getting the short end of the stick rather than her husband who is actually... dying. Nellie also mentions her children during her hallucination, but not necessarily in a motherly way. She talks about them being like a daunting burden on her shoulders. Nellie really shows how her mental state is deteriorating because everything is focused on solely her. The last line, "'I must have fallen asleep,' she thought with a sigh of relief" (Chekhov 3) gives a sense of confusion and an odd sense of content given what she had just endured in her mind. 

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