Dog Biscuits

The biscuits Lynn must eat to maintain mental stability symbolize shame. While enrolled at University of Southern California, Lynn stops eating in public. When people see her with the biscuits, they call them dog biscuits and ridicule her. She feels ashamed and isolated, fearing what will happen if more people discover she has DGD.

Emblem

The emblem Lynn wears around her neck symbolizes fear. Like the biscuits, Lynn is ashamed of her emblem. She considers taking it off because it quickly identifies her as a DGD. However, she also fears doing so because if she has an episode, she knows medical professionals will need the emblem to understand her condition. The author uses the emblem to signify Lynn's overwhelming fear of herself and her condition.

DGD

The author uses Duryea-Gode disease, or DGD, as a symbolic representation of mental illness. Individuals living with DGD are...