Schizophrenia, Language, and Reality Focuses

¶ … Schizophrenia, Language, and Reality" focuses on closing down some of the most recognized symptoms related to Schizophrenia. Schizophrenic speech is considered to be a main feature in patients suffering from Schizophrenia. Even thought the topic has been largely studied and specialists reached the conclusion that Schizophrenic speech is indeed different from normal speech, Brown disputes such theories.

Schizophrenics are usually associated with deviant behavior, deviant thinking, and deviant speech. While the first two associations are likely to be seen in Schizophrenics, the last is not necessarily something typical for those with the disorder. Schizophrenics are capable of constructing accurate grammatical sentences and, furthermore, they can make use of complex language. As stated by Brown, Schizophrenics are not likely to speak or think irrationally all the time, as it only depends on the conditions present.

It is nothing unusual if a certain person says something that might seem out of place as long as the matters at hand explain their behavior. However, when someone straightforwardly says something that has nothing to do with reality, it is likely for the interlocutors or other persons present to consider his or her behavior unreasonable, automatically associating the respective person with a mental illness.

Brown wants his readers to observe how people are generally inclined to be biased when considering their opinion regarding a Schizophrenic person. People always have the tendency to be subjective, especially when someone else's behavior has a direct effect on them.

Individuals normally believe that one's main interest should be their own person and their relatives, thus it might seem out of the ordinary (sometimes even insane) when someone looks into the interests of others instead of looking after themselves and after the interests of those who are close to them. To a large degree, people's inclination to relate Schizophrenia to deviant speech is a result of their education. Brown wants to emphasize the fact that a background in psychiatry is not absolutely necessary in order for one to realize that a person is mentally ill, as (in certain circumstances) it can actually affect one's capacities of giving a diagnose. Even psychiatrists prefer to relate to their teachings in most occasions, rather than attempting newer methods of assessing a person suspected of being schizophrenic.