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Aureliana Foster

O’Meara

AP Literature

10 March 2022

Endless Loop of Events

“​​No matter the reason, revenge causes a cycle that continues and never ends. It poisons

the lives of everyone around you, close to you. Seeking revenge becomes all that you desire but

comes at a hefty price” (Aaron Gromis the author of Crescent Moon). In the play The Tragedy

of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark by William Shakespeare, the character Hamlet is confronted with

both external and internal struggles. The play begins with the sudden death of Hamlet’s father,

King Hamlet. Gertrude then quickly marries Claudius who is King Hamlet’s brother. Hamlet is

suspicious of how quickly his mother has married and is later approached by Horatio and two

other guards. Hamlet later sees the ghost of his father and is told by him that Claudius had

viciously murdered him and Hamlet needed to avenge his death. Hamlet is extremely conflicted

by this information and begins his plot in order to gain proof of this act of betrayal.Hamlet

impersonates insanity at the castle in order to monitor interactions in order to discover the truth,

but he becomes perplexed resulting numerous events of tragedies which leads to the death of

multiple people in the end as a result of justice. Hamlet faces numerous challenges and attempts

to find a solution to them but each solution results in a cynical outcome.The recurring theme of

the overwhelming acts of performing the same thing over multiple times will not solve the

problem and will only exacerbate it, leading to a never-ending cycle but however with process of

rationalization will with minimize the effects. Multiple events and characters' actions, such as the
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effect on Ophelia, the pursuit of justice but its replacement by reventage, and death, demonstrates

the theme throughout the play.

In the play Hamlet, women are controlled by men; therefore, they have minimal opinions

and decision-making. One of the main characters, Ophelia, has to deal with a variety of people

telling her what is right and what is wrong leaving a limited amount of expression she can use.

At the beginning of the play, she possesses the quality of being naive. Her brother, Laertes, and

her father, Polonius, give their insight on Hamlet and her relationship with him. They both agree

that it is not the best decision to continue a relationship and forbid the relationship with Hamlet.

In a respectful manner, she tries to change the decision her father made however, obediently

agrees to listen to them. Her family has a huge influence on her attitude to the circumstance since

she feels divided about their decision.

Affection! Pooh! You speak like a green girl,

Unsifted in such perilous circumstance.

Do you believe his tenders, as you call them?

I do not know, my Lord, what I should think.

Marry, I will teach you: think your-self a baby

I do not know, my lord, what should I think.

Marry, I'll teach you: think yourself a baby;

(1.3.101–107)

Men tell her what to do which then later it’s hard for her to make a decision for herself because,

throughout her whole life, he had direction between her father and her brother. She can’t take

control of her own life. She is stuck in a complex situation that she can not get out of because
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she loves her family and cares about Hamlet. All the men in her life view her as a helpless girl

who can not make the right decision. She expresses that Hamlet and her have a good relationship

however her father objects to the idea that there is a true feeling behind Hamlet’s gestures. Her

father refers to her as a “green girl” which shows her inexperience with love therefore there is no

right decision she can make. She carries out the conversation by being indecisive about her

decision because she is torn between her family’s perspective and her own, therefore responding

with a neutral answer. After her father questions her about Hamlet’s affection, Ophelia is

uncertain about how to carry out the situation. She asks, “I do not know, my Lord, what I should

think” which displays her family’s opinion that she wants to take in account because she is young

and experienced which causes her to want to satisfy both people leading towards consequences

due to her indecisiveness. By her not being able to make decisions for herself and being a people

pleaser, she constantly is brought up in the situation where she is controlled by the effects

emotionally and physically by men. As the situation appears it evolves into conflicts. She does

not mean for them to happen but for her not being able to make the decision on herself causes a

huge burden on her family and relationship with Hamlet. Her values for her family contributed a

huge impact on her decisions by her principle of obedience which led her in the wrong direction

due to the impurity of ideals. Her inexperience with love and how to handle relationships with

others led to a repetition of similar actions where the consequences did not get resolved. During

the Elizabethan era, there were a variety of social norms and limitations that were brought upon

women. Ophelia, a young and naive lady possessed the character trait of being obedient towards

her family and towards the kingdom. In Act 3 Scene, her father requests her to accidentally

encounter Hamlet to investigate his recent dispositions. Polonius says to Ophelia:

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Ophelia, walk you here. Gracious

So please you,

We will bestow ourselves. Read

On this book;

That show of such an exercise may colour

Your loneliness. We are oft to balme in this, –

“This too much prov’d – that with devotion’s

Visage

(3.1.43 – 47)

Ophelia values her family's authority for guidance and instruction due towards the

hierarchy of the positions and duties of authority taken by the functional society they live in.

They treat her as a child by giving her equations to her problems. In this scene, her brother is

manipulating her for his own use. Polonius disregards her feelings by using her loneliness

towards his advantage. His Narcissistic action trying to be the one to help his father to get what

he wants uses his own sister to be disobedient to Hamlet because he knows that she values her

family. He then blames her sadness on her and Hamlet’s relationship to say that he is the reason

why their relationship will not work out. In this scene, gives a further understanding to Opheila

why Hamlet is not the best option to be with due to his madness. Her obedient trait lead her to

listen to her family which consequently resulted in her shifting her and Hamlet’s relationship.

After the plan gives insight about Hamlet, Opheila is still left lonely. Even though, her family

here giving her guidance to how she handle certain situations, those commands leave her with no
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one in the end. Obedience deminstates loyalness however, it leaves no expression of emotion. By

constantly limiting one’s emotion a reacurrents of situation are bound to reappear. Ophelia is

affected by people telling her what is best for her and how she should live her life. While

absorbing information, she execute task however is not blamed for her the consequence. For

example in Act 4 Scene 7 she is presented to be innocent. As the queen was describing Ophelia’s

death she said:

And, mermaid-like, awhile they bore her up:

Which time she chanted snatches of old lauds;

As on incapable of her own distress,

Or like a creature native and indued

Unto that element: but long it could not be

Till that her garments, heavy with their drink,

Pull’d the poor wretch from her melodious lay

To muddy death.

(4.7.178–185)

When she died it was described as beautiful because it is being compared to how she looked like

a mermaid. The way Gerturde described her death created the imagery of her innocence

possessed. Her death was caused by a series of events that affected her to be unattended when

she drowned. Her family trying to tell her what was good for her caused confusion and harm she

was dealing with. With the up series of events, she was a victim even when she didn’t do
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anything she experienced the most. As each event led to another, she was used for the men to be

able to seek what task they wanted instead of realizing the effect they had at Ophelia. Her overall

character is a young naive girl who is innocent and obedient. As people took advantage of her for

their own deceitful plan it resulted in Ophelia being stuck in similar situations. Each time

Opehila was involved she would be affected by the consequences in the end.

Many of the characters idolize the idea of achieving justice however, it results in revenge.

There are a variety of ways revenge is used and different ways a person results in that category.

For example, Hamlet is told by the king that he was murdered by his uncle. Hamlet understands

that his father needs a sense of justice therefore Hamlet carefully develops a plan in order to

avenge his father.

“How strange or odd some’er I bear myself,

As I perchance hereafter shall think meet

To put an antic disposition on

That you, at such times seeing me, never shall,

With arms encumbered thus,

or this headshake,

Or by pronouncing of some doubtful phrase,

As “Well, well, we know,” or “We could an if

we would,”

(1.5.170—1.5.177).
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Hamlet’s best decision is to have people perceive himself as mad which he says will be his “antic

disposition” to confess to the king and others. He wants to psychologically confuse people and

lie about his mental state. Lying will later help develop his plan and however, in the end, results

in multiple consequences. Revenge is compelled by Hamlet telling Horatio his plan to seek

revenge, where diction of deception is presented to enhance his thoughts to create a plan. The

phrase “well, we know or we could and if we would” suggests that the situation could go

multiple ways so Claudius and other people can think that Hamlet has gone mad. Hamlet’s goal

is to use deception and secrecy on those around him to facilitate his revenge. Hamlet’s best idea

is to be dishonest to everyone instead of thinking of other ways to resolve justice, he believes

taking the route of revenge is the best way to seek justice for his father and a way for everyone in

the kingdom to know the truth. Hamlet constantly lies and manipulates a situation to get close to

what he perceives as justice but fails multiple times. He does not realize the amount of people he

is getting involved with. By deceiving the whole kingdom, there are many flaws in his plan

where it will be hard to keep the act when constantly lying. Another person that has felt the need

to take revenge is Claduis, where he seeks power and was presented as saying that he will go as

far as removing someone from the hierarchy to be in charge. He advised Laertes by saying:

“Revenge should have no bounds. But, good Laertes,

Will you do this? Keep close within your chamber.

Hamlet return'd shall know you are come home.

We'll put on those shall praise your excellence

And wager on your heads.

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He, being remiss, Most generous, and free from all contriving,

(4.7.140-145).”

King Claudius understands Laertes' emotions of wanting revenge on his father. Claudius has

been humiliated by Hamlet, therefore, revenge comes instinctively. Manipulation of diction is

found through Claudius’s word choices. For example, he uses the word “no bounds” meaning no

limits. He believes that revenge is limitless no matter how intense the circumstance is. The word

"praise" is used by Claudius in an attempt to portray revenge as a desirable choice for Laertes's

justice. Praise in its own context means to express high approval. As a manipulative character,

Claudius promotes and encourages the idea of taking revenge on Hamlet because it also fulfills

Claudius since he is the king and he can not create an image of possessing the negative emotions

of frustration and agony. The guilt still resides within him, he must pursue vengeance in a

different manner, while at the same time Laertes is able to achieve his goal of being satisfied.

Lastly, Claudius uses the word “wager” to make sure Laertes understands that there will be a

certainty of winning. Due to Claudius having the characteristics of being charismatic and

persuasive, he uses a particular word to help influence Laertes that this will be the only solution

to his emotions. Overall, Cladiuis is explaining that the plan is in a positive manner to where

revenge is seen to be acceptable due to Laertes' circumstances. Due to Polonius accidentally

being killed by Hamlet, Laertes is young and left with no guidance therefore Claudius is there to

help suggest what is right. By having that manipulative effect, he is able to convince Laertes that

can take revenge by poisoning Hamlet. Laertes is in his most vulnerable state where revenge is

the best option to seek to avenge his father. This interaction builds off another which fulfills the

consequences to be more intense and continuous. At the end of the play shows the perfect
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example of the outcome of wanting revenge another which justice is not served because

everyone died in the end.

Hamlet has been lied to multiple times and learned that people spy on him to gain insight of what

is going on with him. Claudius and Gerturde send Guliderstein to lie to him and send information

that infuriates Hamlet. He told him:

“Why, look you now, how unworthy a

thing you make of me! You would play

upon me; you would seem to know my

stops; you would pluck out the heart of my

mystery; you would sound me from my

lowest note to the top of my compass:

and there is much music, excellent voice,

in this little organ; yet cannot you make it

speak.”

(3.2.406-414)

Hamlet is a smart individual that knows his two childhood friends were sent to find what was

causing his madness. He uses a metaphor to express his anger for the deception they cause and

confronts them by comparing how Guliderstein can manipulate Hamlet and the instrument. He

says “you would pluck out the heart of my mystery”. Hamlet is referers to how Guildenstern is

focusing on the main value of life in order to solve what is going on with Hamlet. Guildenstern is

focused on accomplishing a task rather than realizing that it is not moral to be sneaky. To express
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that emotion he compares it to the range of the instruments to give an example of how much

effort he puts in to seek the information by saying “you would sound me from my lowest note to

the top of my compass” He then finalizes his metaphor, giving the idea that Hamlet is being

played just like an instrument. The instrument can be manipulated simply and Hamlet’s claim is

that lying can be easy as well. Guildenstern is loyal to the Claduis therefore he is engaging in

deceptive actions in order to achieve a piece of revenge that the Claduis seeks. As Hamlet is still

angry that he was spied upon by the queen and king this gives him another reason to continue his

plan to give his father justice. One unethical motive can give motivation to engage in a

consequence action, therefore, causing multiple events to happen.

Revenge is seen to the start of what is the later consequence that appears seeking justice.

Death is a common idea present in Hamlet and is a heavy subject of multiple outcomes that lead

up to the end result. Anger and rage is an effect that later results towards death. For example

when Polonius found out about his father he said:

How came he dead? I’ll not be juggled with.

To hell, allegiance! Vows, to the blackest devil!

Conscience and grace, to the profoundest pit!

I dare damnation. To this point I stand,

That both the worlds I give to negligence,

Let come what comes, only I’ll be reveng’d

Most thoroughly for my father.

(4.5.131—4.5.137).
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By analyzing the anger diction within the phase, Lartures is expressing his emotion of

rage. He used the words, “blackest devil, profoundest, dare”. These words help influence his

devotion of loyalty towards his father and give a disregard for consequences and other people

while in the midst of his rage-filled pursuit of revenge. His values are family and will proceed to

take revenge even if it goes against his ideals of who he is. This leads to consequences due to

another’s provocation. He also uses the words “damnation” which is a high level of frustration.

Polonius and Hamlet have the same reaction when their fathers are killed. Both of their

impulsive actions later lead to their deaths in order to seek revenge. Their motives of revenge

were irrational and created a domino effect on everyone who was involved. Going as far as

killing someone to achieve satisfaction as a piece of justice creates further consequences. Using

the analogy of the domino effect, each consequence leads to another which is the never ending

outcomes.

“At supper ... Not where he eats, but where a is eaten.

A certain convocation of politic worms are 'en at him.

Your worm is your only emperor for diet.

We fat all creatures else to fat us, and we fat ourselves for maggots.

Your fat king and your lean beggar is but variable service - two dishes, but to one table.

That's the end

(4.3.20-27)”:

To describe death he uses a metaphor as an analogy to give an idea of the corrupt

kingdom. Hamlet is able to do this by using diction to describe the irony that is involved such as
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using the word “convocation” due to the current death creating a new hierarchy by default. The

same issue happened with his father, where Claudius kills the king in order to gain more power

and to have control of the king. The view of death created an outcome of a trend of death to be

with the whole the highest power but in the end, the power does not last long if there is nothing

to feed off of. The maggots and worm symbolizes the end result of what will be left over. If one

dominates the other then there will only be one of the majority left. Death is represented by those

who will dominate and be the last one standing before the other will take over. For example, if

corruption takes over then there will only be one left over which relates towards “two dishes, but

to one table.” This creates an analogy towards Calduius killing off his brother in order to gain

power. The corporation relates to the kingdom due to having bad intentions to be in the center of

attention. The idea of death in this topic relates to how a person has to be able to feed off another

in order to gain the ultimate power. Death could be seen as a way to remove someone in a

hierarchy however, it resulted in a cynical event where it results in the continuous events.

William Shakespeare The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark presents multiple ideas

that all relate to one another. Through the characterization of Ophelia and the two big ideas of

Revenge and Death resulted in cynical outcomes of struggles. Ophelia possessed her kindness

quality traits however, it was one of the main factors that led her struggle when choosing who

she cared about more. Although she values family, she was not aware that she was being

manipulative to their own selfishness. As she continued to be an obedient daughter, she ended up

in the same routine of doing little flavors to present herself as a morally kind person. The

corruption of Elinore resulted in a domino effect of intense events. At first it started at the idea of

revenge but with obtaining revenge there are multiple factors that play a role such as lies,
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deception, and devious actions. Death can be seen as the consequence of not handling a situation

correctly. Revenge led into the idea of death due that being the only option to seek justice within

the kingdom. The intention was wrong and immoral that the solution was to not have revenge

because it was only temporary. Death was the outcome which will last forever. As humans

continue to learn how to differentiate between morals, continuously making the same mistake

over again will result in further consequences therefore it is better to racially address the

struggle.
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Social Issue

Depression can cause a state of mind issue that causes a tireless sensation of trouble and

loss of interest. It may cause a significant burdensome issue, it influences how a person feels,

thinks, and acts. This can prompt an assortment of enthusiastic and actual issues. People can

experience difficulty doing ordinary daily routines. Depression can affect children, teens, and

adults where they experience many symptoms from daily activities although if treated and caught

at an early stage this can reduce severeness (Mayo Clinic). Numerous people feel barred from

society due to social uneasiness causing the individuals to remove themselves away from others

or not go out to experience life.

Being diagnosed with depression is necessary to address due to the negative effects of

social isolation and the limits to seeking help. In act (3.1.58–62) Hamlet excludes himself from

the kingdom due to a variety of people not understanding what he is going through. His father’s

death plays a role in his decision to kill himself because he thinks there is nothing left to live for

and can remove himself from his responsibility. This can relate to modern times because being

diagnosed with a depressive disorder can have an impact on one's life negatively. Social isolation

can cause loneliness and separation from interactions with others. Barbara Sadick, a health

information provider who earned her master's in science in health and behavior studies from

Columbia University and a master's in arts in Health Advocacy from Sarah Lawrence College

concluded that humans need social interaction and it could also be seen as beneficial. Although

there are some concerns when conducting a survey claiming “ A 2018 Cigna survey indicates

that Generation Z, adults between ages 18 and 22, may be the loneliest group of Americans.

Additionally, census data reveal that more than one-fourth of Americans live alone and more
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than half are unmarried, with marriage rates and the number of children per household steadily

declining” (Sadick). Numerous individuals distance themselves from social collaborations by

detaching themselves therefore they have no connections with others. Not only do they purposely

enforce distances but they choose to be alone resulting in not meeting new people and having no

social interactions causing them to be unmarried. If they continue without receiving interactions

with others it can lead to a struggle such as the difficulty of having a job because if they distance

themselves they are not able to pay for basic expenses and it also influences emotions such as

happiness, sadness, or feeling unwanted. By not seeking help it can result in more extreme events

such which lead to those consequences. In the modern world, college students are also affected

by distress. Pawel Grygiel, a researcher to Loneliness and Depression among Polish University

Students investigate the interrelationships between loneliness and depression in a representative

sample of students. One of the conclusions was “given that depression appearing at earlier life

stages may lead to the accumulation of negative consequences through adult life, it seems

desirable that university counseling services should offer interventions targeting loneliness

among the students in order to help them to adapt to the challenges of the university education

and protect them from developing depressive symptoms” (Grygiel). Many college students

experience symptoms of depression although it may be hard for them to reach others about their

mental health because it may cause a stigma towards them. Even if they are experiencing

depression other issues such as anxiety can be correlated to their disorder therefore they could

have an unstable mindset. Universities suggest counseling services to help express their emotions

because others should be understanding of uncontrollable situations. In Hamlet this can relate

towards the constant effects of the characters emotions due to the challenges they faced. For
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example, Opelia struggled with expressing her emotions because she had to do her task in order

to show her loyalty and obedience towards the kingdom.She first struggles with her relationship

with her family due to them telling her what is right for her. Her youth results in her family

ignoring her feelings with her and Hamlet’s relationship. When she was told to spy on Hamlet

she was faced with hurtful words such as going to a nunnery in order to make herself pure. As

she was manipulated and insulted by Hamlet, her father heard the conversation between her and

Hamlet where her family completely disregarded her. As her emotions built up she left alone and

was distant from the people that she cared about. The turning point was when her father died,

therefore causing her madness. Her mental stability was not the best due to the multiple tragic

events. Her need for people was important and could have changed the outcome of events if she

felt the need of being wanted. In modern times this still occurs at all ages where many people

still need to address where they stand in mental health therefore to see if there is a need to seek

help from others.

In the modern-day and Renaissance time era, issues are still being addressed and an

ongoing avocation to minimize the severity. Seeking medical professionals and understanding

people who have a depression disorder can lead to a reduced population who deal with negative

impacts such as social isolation. People encountering depression can search for help to reduce

the amounts they possess. They require understanding from others to what they are going

through as well as expressing problems by communication. People who have high levels of

depression should seek help and have daily updates on the emotions experienced to lessen the

number of consequences that a mental illness brings

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Works Cited

Depression (Major Depressive Disorder). 3 Feb. 2018,

Depression (major depressive disorder) - Symptoms and causes - Mayo Clinic.

https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/depression/symptoms-causes/syc-2035

007. Accessed 16 February 2022.

Grygiel, Pawel, et al. “Loneliness and Depression among Polish University Students:

Preliminary Findings from a Longitudinal Study.” Bulgarian Comparative Education

Society, Bulgarian Comparative Education Society, 1 Jan. 2013, p. 14. EBSCOhost.

Accessed 17 February 2022.

Sadick, Barbara. “The Loneliness Effect.” U.S. News - The Report, Sept. 2018, pp. 46–48.

Academic Search Premier. Accessed 17 February 2022.

Shakespeare, William. The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark. New Folger’s edition.

Washington Square Press, 1992.

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Annotated Bibliography

Depression (Major Depressive Disorder). 3 Feb. 2018,

Depression (major depressive disorder) - Symptoms and causes - Mayo Clinic.

https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/depression/symptoms-causes/syc-2035

007. Accessed 16 February 2022.

The Mayo Clinic website gives an informational description of how the mental disorder

of depression can impact one’s daily living. It lists a variety of symptoms that a person

could possibly experience where they can feel miserable or unhappy. At any age

depression can occur therefore it suggests seeking help before heavy risk factors start to

increase leading to a list of consequences.

In Hamlet many of the characters possess some time of mental disorder or struggle with

a specific issue. Learning that these symptoms could increase relates towards the

consequence of mistakes they can have.

Grygiel, Pawel, et al. “Loneliness and Depression among Polish University Students:

Preliminary Findings from a Longitudinal Study.” Bulgarian Comparative Education

Society, Bulgarian Comparative Education Society, 1 Jan. 2013, p. 14. EBSCOhost.

Accessed 17 February 2022.

The data shows loneliness and depression among college students shows the excessive

amount of work they have to do, as well as trying to maintain a social life. Most college

students have to distance themselves from society due to the amount of depression or

anxiety they have.

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This can relate towards the Hamlet due towards the separation and between his

relationships with Ophelia due towards the uncontrollable situations they had. Opelia was

dealing with a lot of stress and an overwhelming situation where she had to go in between

her family and her relationship.

Sadick, Barbara. “The Loneliness Effect.” U.S. News - The Report, Sept. 2018, pp. 46–48.

Academic Search Premier. Accessed 17 February 2022.

This concluded that humans need social interaction and it could also be seen as

beneficial. Many people need to work with others because it creates difficult tasks and to

have interaction with others.

Opheila has had many people in her life that could help her out but did not seek help

because they were too focus on seeking revenge.

Galderisi, Silvana et al. “Toward a new definition of mental health.” World psychiatry : official

journal of the World Psychiatric Association (WPA) vol. 14,2 (2015): 231-3.

doi:10.1002/wps.20231

In this article, it talks about mental health and reconstructing the definition of what

mental health is. When some people think about mental health, they think about sadness,

depression, crazy, and probably mental institutions. However, this article's main purpose

is debunking the negative stigma associated with mental health. The negative stigma

towards it is one that is deeply ingrained in society. Being able to recover from an illness

should be seen as an accomplishment rather than as a failure.

Although this was a good source, it probably was not one that fit. It was an article that

talked about recovery and as good as recovery is, it is not one that was not needed in my
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social issue. Even though this article is one that falls into what I wanted to talk about, I

wanted to talk more about the effects of mental health and why it is important to ensure

that it is kept at a good thing.