Freud and Defence
Freud considered shooting the messenger a 'marginal case of this kind of defence...of fending off what is distressing or unbearable' - citing the example of 'the famous lament of the Spanish Moors Ay de mi Alhama, which tells how King Boabdil received the news of the fall of his city of Alhama. He feels that this loss means the end of his rule. But he will not "let it be true"...."He threw the letters in the fire and killed the messenger"'.
Freud added that 'a further determinant of this behaviour of the king was his need to combat a feeling of powerlessness. By burning the letters and having the messenger killed he was still trying to show his absolute power.'
Read more about this topic: Shooting The Messenger
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