Under the Banner of Heaven Lesson Plan

Using today’s reading as a reference, discuss the relationship between depression and circumstances. Is depression (or any other mental health issue) an individual, medical situation? Why or why not? Explore other possible explanations for mental health struggles besides the medical model, citing examples from Krakauer’s book to support your position.

Students may begin by defining the medical model, which considers mental “illness” such as depression and anxiety to be pathological conditions caused by a patient’s biology (for instance, chemical imbalances, or brain injury). They might then observe that these women’s stories point to another explanation, for instance...