Background Tales

Read this first: Introduction

For this post, I will take the time to give some background to why I chose to write this story & give you some facts which may be useful to your understanding of the story.

How The Title Came About

I chose the title to be The Screaming Silence because the story is about someone who is dealing with personal issues that are hard to share with others. Hence, the concept that although a person may be keeping silent about many areas in their life, they may in actual fact be screaming for help inside.

The Genre

I picked it out of the available categories listed for my Nanowrimo 2005 profile. It is under Young Adult & Youth. Being the amateur writer that I am, I thought it best to stick to a story setting that is closer to my own personal experiences, thus it is easier to imagine & carve out the plot for the story.

Why I Wrote This Story

I wanted to write a story about a young person struggling with a personal issue that is hard to disclose to other people. I chose to have my main character in the story suffer from kleptomania, because it's a rare psychological problem.

In some ways, I wrote this type of story because I identify with some of the feelings that I'm trying to portray in the characters for The Screaming Silence. I do not personally suffer from kleptomania, but I did have situations where I carried burdens in my heart that were hard to disclose to the people in my life.

About Kleptomania

I did attempt some research on this topic at the start of writing this novel. I shall try not to bog you down unnecessarily with too much details which I gathered from that research, but hopefully these little bits will help you appreciate the behaviour of my main character, Pei Jien, in The Screaming Silence.

1. Definition of Kleptomania

Kleptomania (word of Greek origin) is an inability to resist impulses of stealing
A person with this disorder is compelled to steal things, generally things of little or no value, such as pens, decorative pins, or wall decorations. They are often unaware of performing the theft until some time later...

Kleptomania is different from shoplifting, or ordinary theft, because shoplifters and theft steal for monetary value, or to gain possessions with intention, while people with kleptomania don't necessarily steal things of personal value.

Source: Wikipedia

2. Diagnostic Criteria for Kleptomania:

According to the DSM-IV codes, the diagnostic criteria for kleptomania is as follows:

• Recurrent failure to resist impulses to steal objects that are not needed for personal use or for their monetary value.
• Increasing sense of tension immediately before committing the theft.
• Pleasure, gratification, or relief at the time of committing the theft.
• The stealing is not committed to express anger or vengeance and is not in response to a delusion or hallucination.
• The stealing is not better accounted for by Conduct Disorder, a Manic Episode, or Antisocial Personality Disorder.

Source: http://www.thefttalk.com/kleptomania.htm

3. More Kleptomania Facts:

Kleptomania is a rare condition, and occurs in fewer than 5% of identified shoplifters. It has a much higher incidence in women than in men. It is also out of character, or as psychologists describe it, ego dystonic. This means that the person does not want to steal, and feels guilty about the behavior.

In fact, other than the focus on an illegal act, this disorder has many features in common with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder.

The essential difference is that, in addition to functioning as an anxiety release, the compulsive behavior in kleptomania also results in a temporary gratification.

Some people with kleptomania keep the objects they take secret. Others may feel guilty and will try to return the stolen items. People with kleptomania may go months or years without taking anything. Usually, they can even afford to buy the objects they have stolen.

Kleptomania has several different treatments. Behavior modification therapy is used for people with kleptomania, as well as family therapy.

Some medications that are used for people diagnosed with kleptomania are Prozac, Luvox, Paxil, Zoloft, Lithium, Desyrel, Trialodine, Depakine, Valproate, and Valrelease.

Sources: http://www.covenanthealth.com, http://www.thefttalk.com/kleptomania.htm, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kleptomania

4. Legal Penalties for Theft (i.e. stealing)

Legal penalties for stealing are the same no matter what the cause. In Malaysia, according to the Act 574 of the Penal Code (Revised 1997), the punishment for theft is imprisonment up to 7 years, a fine, or both. Second/subsequent offences are punishable by imprisonment & a fine/whipping.

Source: http://www.cjlaw.com

5. More Information on Shoplifting & Kleptomania

http://www.shopliftingprevention.org

http://www.shopliftersanonymous.com

http://www.psychforums.com/forums/viewforum.php?f=195

You can find lotsa real life stories here & also more information about people with such problems.

Main Characters in The Screaming Silence

Pei Jien: A 19 year old Business & Commerce degree student who is from Ipoh but is currently studying in PJ. She has family problems, kleptomania tendencies, & is generally insecure about life.

Joshua: A 21 year old Business & Commerce degree student. Pei Jien's classmate & main source of help & encouragement during her difficulty coping with kleptomania.

Wati: Pei Jien's classmate & closest friend, who does not approve of her kleptomaniac tendencies & believes that it is just a normal stealing problem.

Rajesh: Joshua's childhood friend & classmate.

Mawar: Pei Jien's childhood friend from Ipoh. She is currently studying Engineering in UTM. She is for most parts of the story, away in the US, furthering her studies.