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Great changes in man can be wrought by crisis—once that crisis can be recognized and understood.
—Norman Cousins
Crisis is everywhere. In the newspapers, on television; we hear it in the streets. Just the mere mention of “the economic crisis” can get people shaking in their boots. However, these are small glitches, soon solved by society and governments. But what about the times that your crisis is personal, not easily swept away? In this month’s issue of Crazy English Reader we’ll be looking at mental crisis, and the different ways it can manifest.
Who are we? How do we define ourselves? Most have experienced a self-identity crisis at some point, and Mary Terszak is no different. In Having Fair Skin, she addresses the complexities of growing up as a white-Aborigine in Australia—and of dealing with the psychological problems arising from that. Left alone and uncared for, psychological crises can have drastic and terrible results. Teen Suicides in India discusses one of the worst case scenarios: the loss of a young life, and the fact that, in most cases, it could have been avoided.
But what about the times that it’s unavoidable? Emotional crisis can hit at anytime, but it can hit especially hard when we start to lose pride in ourselves. Laura A. Munson’s personal anecdote, Those Aren’t Fighting Words, Dear, demonstrates how to deal with a loved one who is experiencing a mid-life, emotional crisis.
Finally, we take a look at a darker kind of crisis—the morality crisis. The Dregs of a Deadly Scandal takes us back to 1986, Italy, when the country’s wine was put under international scrutiny due to the unethical actions of a small number of vintners. And this is only an example; we are beginning to see more of these morality crises worldwide, plunging us, more often than not, into crises of trust.
But there’s always hope. Although they can be harmful and terrible, we must face mental crises head on. We must embrace the challenges they offer and believe in both ourselves and our loved ones to get us through. For, we are never truly alone when facing our crises. We just need to be brave enough to ask.
危机无处不在。报纸上、电视上,大街上,我们都会看到或听到这个词。仅仅是提及“经济危机”,就能让人吓得发抖。然而,这些是“小故障”,不久就可以被社会和政府解决。但是当你个人出现“危机”且这种危机并不容易被消除时,你该怎么办?在这期CR里,我们将一起关注“精神危机”以及它可能出现的不同情形。
我们是谁?我们如何定义自我?大多数人在某个时候都经历过这种身份认同危机,玛 丽·特扎克也不例外。在《浅肤色的疑惑》一文中,她提到,自己作为一个浅肤色的澳洲土著人长大的复杂身世,以及如何应对由此而产生的种种心理问题。如若被置之不理或毫不关心,心理危机可能会导致严重而可怕的后果。《反思印度青少年自杀潮》一文探讨了其中最糟糕的一种情形:年轻生命的凋零。而事实上,在大部分自杀事件中,悲剧本来是可以避免的。
然而,当危机不可避免时,又该如何应对?情感危机会随时来袭,但是当我们开始失去自尊时,它带来的打击尤其令人痛苦。劳拉·A·曼森的个人经历——《亲爱的,那些不是挑衅的话语》一文讲述了,当你的爱人正在经历中年情感危机时,你应该如何去应对。
最后,我们来看看一种更具威胁性的“危机”——道德危机。《意大利“毒酒”风波》一文把我们带回到1986年的意大利,当时,由于少数葡萄酒商的不道德行为,该国的酒遭到了世界各国的详细审查。而这只是其中的一个例子而已,我们在世界范围内看到了更多类似的道德危机事件,这往往使得我们陷入种种信任危机。
不过,希望总是有的。尽管这些精神危机危害极大且令人感到可怕,但是我们必须直面它们。我们应当迎接它们带来的种种挑战,并相信自己和我们所爱的人能够帮助我们度过重重难关。因为,面临危机时,我们从来不是真的在独自“奋战”。我们只需要勇敢的去寻求帮助。
—Norman Cousins
Crisis is everywhere. In the newspapers, on television; we hear it in the streets. Just the mere mention of “the economic crisis” can get people shaking in their boots. However, these are small glitches, soon solved by society and governments. But what about the times that your crisis is personal, not easily swept away? In this month’s issue of Crazy English Reader we’ll be looking at mental crisis, and the different ways it can manifest.
Who are we? How do we define ourselves? Most have experienced a self-identity crisis at some point, and Mary Terszak is no different. In Having Fair Skin, she addresses the complexities of growing up as a white-Aborigine in Australia—and of dealing with the psychological problems arising from that. Left alone and uncared for, psychological crises can have drastic and terrible results. Teen Suicides in India discusses one of the worst case scenarios: the loss of a young life, and the fact that, in most cases, it could have been avoided.
But what about the times that it’s unavoidable? Emotional crisis can hit at anytime, but it can hit especially hard when we start to lose pride in ourselves. Laura A. Munson’s personal anecdote, Those Aren’t Fighting Words, Dear, demonstrates how to deal with a loved one who is experiencing a mid-life, emotional crisis.
Finally, we take a look at a darker kind of crisis—the morality crisis. The Dregs of a Deadly Scandal takes us back to 1986, Italy, when the country’s wine was put under international scrutiny due to the unethical actions of a small number of vintners. And this is only an example; we are beginning to see more of these morality crises worldwide, plunging us, more often than not, into crises of trust.
But there’s always hope. Although they can be harmful and terrible, we must face mental crises head on. We must embrace the challenges they offer and believe in both ourselves and our loved ones to get us through. For, we are never truly alone when facing our crises. We just need to be brave enough to ask.
危机无处不在。报纸上、电视上,大街上,我们都会看到或听到这个词。仅仅是提及“经济危机”,就能让人吓得发抖。然而,这些是“小故障”,不久就可以被社会和政府解决。但是当你个人出现“危机”且这种危机并不容易被消除时,你该怎么办?在这期CR里,我们将一起关注“精神危机”以及它可能出现的不同情形。
我们是谁?我们如何定义自我?大多数人在某个时候都经历过这种身份认同危机,玛 丽·特扎克也不例外。在《浅肤色的疑惑》一文中,她提到,自己作为一个浅肤色的澳洲土著人长大的复杂身世,以及如何应对由此而产生的种种心理问题。如若被置之不理或毫不关心,心理危机可能会导致严重而可怕的后果。《反思印度青少年自杀潮》一文探讨了其中最糟糕的一种情形:年轻生命的凋零。而事实上,在大部分自杀事件中,悲剧本来是可以避免的。
然而,当危机不可避免时,又该如何应对?情感危机会随时来袭,但是当我们开始失去自尊时,它带来的打击尤其令人痛苦。劳拉·A·曼森的个人经历——《亲爱的,那些不是挑衅的话语》一文讲述了,当你的爱人正在经历中年情感危机时,你应该如何去应对。
最后,我们来看看一种更具威胁性的“危机”——道德危机。《意大利“毒酒”风波》一文把我们带回到1986年的意大利,当时,由于少数葡萄酒商的不道德行为,该国的酒遭到了世界各国的详细审查。而这只是其中的一个例子而已,我们在世界范围内看到了更多类似的道德危机事件,这往往使得我们陷入种种信任危机。
不过,希望总是有的。尽管这些精神危机危害极大且令人感到可怕,但是我们必须直面它们。我们应当迎接它们带来的种种挑战,并相信自己和我们所爱的人能够帮助我们度过重重难关。因为,面临危机时,我们从来不是真的在独自“奋战”。我们只需要勇敢的去寻求帮助。