Reviving Opheli Saving The Selves Of Adolescent Girls

Reviving Ophelia: Saving the Selves of Adolescent Girls, is author, Mary Pipher’s attempt to understand her experiences in therapy with adolescent girls (Pipher, p. 11). In the text adolescence is described as a border between childhood and adulthood (Pipher, p. 292). In her quest to understand adolescent girls, Pipher attempts to answer these questions: Why are so many girls in therapy in the 1990s? Why are there more self-mutilators? What is the meaning of lip, nose and eyebrow piercings? How do I help thirteen-year-olds deal with herpes or genital warts? Why are drugs and alcohol so common in the stories of seventh-graders? Why do so many girls hate their parents? (Pipher, p. 11-12). These questions are answered through self-reflection, stories from clients, and interviews with adolescent girls at different levels of maturation. Running Theme Pipher’s theme throughout the book is the character of Ophelia, a fictional character from Shakespeare’s Hamlet. Ophelia is outwardly portrayed as an obedient, loyal, lovelorn girl. She does what she is told, when she is told, no matter the sacrifice to herself. Basically, Ophelia has no control over her own body, relationships, or her choices (Shmoop Editorial Team). Her every move is controlled by someone else, usually a male figure in her life, little is ever revealed about her inner turmoil. Eventually, Ophelia snaps—just like a lot of people who spend their lives obeying other people without any sense ofShow MoreRelatedReviving Opheli Saving The Selves Of Adolescent Girls881 Words   |  4 PagesWhile reading Mary Pipher’s, â€Å"Reviving Ophelia: Saving the Selves of Adolescent Girls† and Dan Kindlon and Michael Thompson’s, â€Å"Raising Cain: Protecting the Emotional Life of Boys,† I got a better understanding of the minds ets of teenagers in todays society. I learned that countless girls and boys have the same inner battles and do not even realize it. The two songs I chose that best represent ideas of woman and manhood are â€Å"Unpretty,† by TLC and â€Å"Stan,† by Eminem. I believe these songs support many