Discourse and Madness in Shadows in the Sun

Abstract

This article is on the narrativization of mental illness regarding Gayathri Ramprasad’s memoir Shadows in the Sun (2014). Ramprasad’s rendition of her depression becomes an act of defiance because the production of discourse by a madwoman is a relatively new phenomenon. Ramprasad not only produces discourse but also intends it to be healing for people with depression. This is because Ramprasad herself benefitted from first-hand narratives of depression. Whether the putative healing effect of storytelling can be reckoned originating from romanticizing depression by making it look desirable is the research question addressed in this article.