Reading Responses

Bryce Bradshaw

English 1A

9/4/19

The Roots of Mental Illness

In Kristen Weir’s article “The Roots of Mental Illness”, she writes about how researchers will now have an easier time finding the underlying problems with mental illness. In the article several medical and psychological source try to lend their hand on what mental illness truly is. Some of their theories are fairly new after previous theories have been disproven. In the end however they can’t seem to pinpoint the exact reason either as seen by this quote “In the unusual case where normal traits come together in a certain configuration, you may be maladaptive to society….Call it a mental disorder if you want, but there’s no smoking gun”(Weir). I believe it is that quote the summarizes the root of mental illness.

I believe this because in the earlier in the article some had theorize as to why mental illnesses are a thing. However they just were theories that had yet to be proven. the many years of studying mental illness breakthroughs have been made. That however is the problem though. Over a hundred years later researchers still don’t quite know the reason and I think that quote summarizes the researchers thoughts as well main idea of the article.