the case of angela/voodoo dream Flashcards
general overview of angela/voodoo dream
• Angela – women in thirties, teacher, used to be very well spoken, now is “tongue-tied”
-• Father left when she was five, mother very intrusive
• Her mother seemed to have little capacity or desire to recognize Angela as a separate human being in her own right (no privacy)
• No matter how much her mother tried to invade her thoughts, thus this is where she becomes tongue tied w/ people of authority started
• Angela had a dream about a cultic sacrifice – claimed it just felt evil
• Mother continued to play these “games” with her - would say she could lend her money, but then backs out
• Angela is angry at her mother – she’s sick not evil
• Angry at her b/c she has large sum of money to her name (three apartments) and won’t loan her money
• Whenever there is evil, there is a lie around – what makes this ritual interaction between you and your mother is that it’s based on a lie. Not your lie, your mother’s lie.
• To understand this, we must turn to the phenomenon of narcissism. Those who are evil seems to lack the approach of empathy
• Their narcissism makes evil dangerous not only b/c it motivates them to scapegoat others but also b/c it deprives them of the restraint that results from empathy and respect for others – their narcissism also prevents them from seeing the humanity in their victims
• The blindness of narcissism renders them insensitive to the act of killing, extends beyond the lack of empathy; they might not “see” others at all
• In the case of Angela, her mother didn’t truly see her at all when she made choices in her life (ex: dying her hair when she didn’t want to but based on the fact that the mother wanted a blonde child)
