ERIC Number: EJ1410620
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2024
Pages: 14
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0951-8398
EISSN: EISSN-1366-5898
Staging Stories That Build Empathy for Mental Illness in Singapore: Spaces of Dialogue in "Off Centre"
International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education (QSE), v37 n2 p358-371 2024
This article examines how "Off Centre," a play by Haresh Sharma about mental health in Singapore, first devised and produced by The Necessary Stage (TNS) in 1993, provides a valuable opportunity for audiences to encounter characters labeled "mad" or "off centre" (a colloquial term in Singapore for being mentally ill), who are often looked down upon and relegated to being "useless" in the highly efficient and success-driven urban context of Singapore. It considers how audiences are challenged to respond sensitively and dialogically through a questioning process that builds empathy for persons struggling with mental health. I argue that when "Off Centre" imbricates the audience in the inner worlds of the characters to dialogue with them, it generates a pedagogical process by creating a space where sensing, listening to and questioning what happens to these characters becomes a way of learning about their battles and beliefs.
Descriptors: Foreign Countries, Mental Disorders, Empathy, Drama, Perspective Taking, Secondary Schools
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Singapore
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A