Spencer Wescott

ENGL-2610-401-Su17
Andrea Malouf
Critical Essay
August 2, 2017

Autobiography of a Face by Lucy Grealy

Lucinda Grealy was a talented American writer who did work in poetry and became most well

known for her autobiography. Her autobiography was titled Autobiography of a Face and

outlined some of the challenges she faced in society as a victim of cancer. At age nine Lucy was

diagnosed with a rare form of cancer called Ewing's Sarcoma. This lead to the removal of her

jaw bone leaving her with some disfigurement to her face.

This book was very interesting for me to read as it was an autobiography which gave a

unique point of view. Not to judge a book by its cover, but the title of this book is very telling of

the theme. I believe that the message Lucy was focused on was appearance and the

judgmental behavior of those around her based on her appearance. What was interesting to

me was that sometimes I think she was harder on herself than the people around her were. I

also Believe that she had bigger challenges than those directly linked to her visual appearance.

Mental disabilities are the most undiagnosed disability in the world. Approximately 20%

of Americans a diagnosed with some degree of mental disability. Mental disabilities are very

misunderstood and cannot be seen or even noticed by those it affects. Mental disabilities can

be linked to genetics but anyone can be affected. A genetic history of diagnosis does not mean
you will or will not be affected, it simply means you are potentially more prone to a diagnosis.

Some of the biggest potential causes contributing to these metal conditions are; abuse,

malnutrition, drug use, and trauma.

I believe the bulling and antagonizing Lucy endured since she was young could have had

damaging effects to her mental health. Bulling is at an all-time high in America and is on the

verge of an epidemic in public school around the country. Reports show that over 75% of kids

in America report to have being bullied while in school. There needs to be a much bigger effort

on general acceptance and education of those who are around us, because we are all different

and unique. Race, disability, and gender should not be the spur of discrimination or hatred.

I do not believe that the most effective way to put an end to bullying is by pushing

bulling to stop directly. First, we need to look at some of the causes and start there. I think

that one of the biggest causes is ignorance, on both the sending and receiving end of bullying. I

think education all around will help children become less aggressive and less venerable. Lets

face it, theres nothing scarier as a kid than the new and the unknown. When kids see

someone, who is different they might not know any other way to deal with it other than say

something that is potentially hurtful. I say potentially hurtful because I believe that in large

portion of cases of bulling the offender did not mean to hurt the person they were

communicating with.

I think that the biggest impact can be made on bulling with education on

communication. It is important for kids to have a better understanding on how, when, and

what to say to those around them. I think it is much more important for children to have more

education on how to interpret, receive and understand what people are saying to them and
about them. No one can control what those around us say or think, we can only effect how it

impacts us. I am not saying that it is ever the victims fault for being hurt, I am saying that with

more education, support, communication, and resources children can become less venerable

and thus less effected by bulling.

Some of the other most common influences to the onset of mental disability are drug

use, alcohol, and malnutrition. There is not a lot of direct evidence documenting these actions

in Lucys life, but there usually is not which is why these contributors are an epidemic around

the world. As I mentioned earlier I believed that Lucy was often harder on herself than those

around her were. She forced herself into many and repeated cosmetic surgeries, which time

after time she found to be unpleasing. I am not saying that Lucy ever abused drugs but the

chances are high. Even if she did not, the prescribed drugs administered in these procedures

can not only be highly addictive, but psychologically and physically debilitating to your brain

and other organs. It is unfortunately very possible that one of the influences behind her

repeated cosmetic surgeries was not the hope for a cosmetic recovery, but the short reward of

bliss she found in the prescription drug use that undoubtedly goes hand and hand with it.

Malnutrition is very often linked with drug use and recovery from surgical procedures and can

have some of the most damaging impacts to mental health and general well-being.

Lucy Grealy spent a large portion of her life living by the statement ''When my face gets

fixed, then I'll start living. I think that this is an ideal example of her misdirection and

misfortune. This statement sadly speaks in self-pity and despair regarding the challenges in her

life. I cannot imagine the pain and suffering she faced in her life but that statement is not one

of determination or self-respect. From someone who has had exposure to not only addiction
but disability I cant help but see these obvious signs of depression, anxiety and addiction. I

Think that some of the biggest challenges in her life were with herself, and her mental health.

Stella Yong, an activist for the disabled said So I have lived in this body a long time. I'm quite

fond of it. It does the things that I need it to do, and I've learned to use it to the best of its

capacity. That is the type of mentality everyone can benefit by observing. I believe that there

is no division between those who are disabled, and those who are not. We are all different and

we all have different challenges and different strengths, the more you learn about disabilities

the more you can feel they dont really exist as a division between us but a trait that unites us.

I think that it is most unfortunate she did not receive the support or care she actually

needed which was help building her integrity, self-worth and confidence. If she had more

support and communication available to her growing up I think that the bulling could have had

a much different effect on her life. The statement she made implies that she believes it is

someone elses responsibility to fix her. I wish I knew her because I think I would have been

able to help her believe in herself and show her that with integrity no challenge is impossible.
Sources:

NoBullying.com. "Bullying Facts, Bullying Statistics, In the News." Bullying Statistics. N.p., 19

Oct. 2016. Web. 1 Aug. 2017.

LEHMANN-HAUPTDEC, CHRISTOPHER. "Lucy Grealy, 39, Who Wrote a Memoir on Her

Disfigurement." New York Times. N.p., 21 Dec. 2002. Web. 2 Aug. 2017.

I am not your Inspiration, Thank you very much. Dir. Stella Young. Perf. Sydney. TED. TEDx, Apr.

2014. Web. 2 Aug. 2017.

BEKIEMPIS, VICTORIA . "NEARLY 1 IN 5 AMERICANS SUFFERS FROM MENTAL ILLNESS EACH

YEAR." TECH & SCIENCE. News Week, 28 Feb. 2014. Web. 1 Aug. 2017.

Grealy, Lucy. Autobiography of a Face. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin, 1994. Print.