Breakout Room 2 Notes: The Secret Garden
Salem: Mary is not a favorable character. She is not the most sympathetic- seems like a spoiled brat. Mary’s parents treated her like he was a burden.
Arden: Colin is led to believe that everyone around him wants him dead. Martha seems like a good person.
Faith: People with disabilities are being portrayed in such a way that they are compared to animals. Ex. Ben Weatherstaff. Lots of dehumanization in this text and past ones.
Haley/Faith: Mr. Craven thinks Colin is just like him and won’t want to live with a disability. Projection of his own issues onto his son can be seen all throughout the text.
Arden: Self-loathing is pervasive throughout the text.
Faith: Every person handles disability differently and a solution or coping mechanism that works for one person may feel like a hinderance to another.
Salem: The portrayal of disability in this book is problematic. There seems to be a theme of forcing disability onto one’s children due to internalized ableism. What are the authors intentions? Is it no longer ableist because there is a deeper meaning to it?
Haley: A caregiver can heavily influence a disabled person in their care’s sense of self and self-image. This can be seen in Colin’s case.
Arden: Mary’s outlook causes her to want to help Colin.
Salem: It’s reasonable that Colin’s caregivers get frustrated with his neediness and demands. He can be irrational at times.
