VIRGINA WOOLF’S MAJOR DEPRESSIVE DISORDER IN THE HOURS

VIRGINA WOOLF’S MAJOR DEPRESSIVE DISORDER IN THE HOURS 2 Virginia Woolf’s Major Depressive Disorder in The Hours The concept of mental health and the subsequent topic of mental illness is a popu lar theme within the realm of psychology. However, not only are psychological disorders discussed within the subfield of clinical psychology but discussed within modern culture as well. Most notably, in film and in television. In the Academy-Award winning movie The Hours, directed by Stephen Daldry and based on Micheal Cunningham’s Pulitzer prize winning novel of the same name, the story simultaneously follows three different women living in three distinctly different time periods as well as locations. These three women, Virginia Woolf, Laura Brown, and Clarissa Vaughan, all share a commonality that brings these characters together, that of depression. Virginia Woolf is forced to live in isolation due to her being perceived as an unstable person by not only the greater society at large but by her own husband. Specifically, in the case of Virginia Woolf, one can detect the mental illness known as major depressive disorder due Woolf’s overall long persistent feeling of sadness and hopelessness as indicated through her behavior of restless sleep, agitation, and social isolation among traits