Reading: "Born Fatale is the Femme" from THE PRAXIS CONTINUUM (A.Glass 2018)

 

He recalled an incident, which he and his girlfriend witnessed at the time, they saw a man in the local mall kick and attempt to kill a bird. He told me, he looked down at the bird suffering without any emotion, he then crushed its skull with his boot."

"For it not to suffer?"

"Yes, but with a detached emotion. That is not lack of empathy, it as I said, a detachment to life in general. Aware of suffering without being consumed by it. Except for the family that were close to him. But the flip-side is it misaligns what empathy actually means in an extended social setting. One cannot totally be devoid of empathy as an external perspective, it is what bonds us as human beings."

Forster nods. "That is interesting...But, as a female sociopath showing similar traits of detachment from empathy, being witness to trauma that occurred early in life. Could that be seem as a Femme Fatale."

"A Fatal Woman? In myth..." Rachel chuckles, slightly drinking the last part of the wine, placing the empty glass down. "...But, they also exist, again it's a very technical diagnose. A woman who has a fatal personality is not necessarily driven by lack of empathy or emotion. It is more so that they have switched it off at an early age, this in various aspects is more attuned to survival than not. Females, as opposed to men are much better at moving between emotions for advantage, say if they are in an extremely disadvantaged situation. I will give you another example. A case study, of a young woman, who was convicted of manslaughter. A former prostitute and part time stripper here in San Francisco. Her father left her mother when she very young, no trance of him at all. The mother remarries and with a step father who is abusive to her, both sexually and emotionally. We believe at that point she turns off the idea of socially interacting with men, unless it is for an advantage. In her situation that would be income, as, later in her life she becomes pregnant with her daughter. But, she doesn't fall apart emotionally. Rather, she develops a cold, calculating personality towards men. Drugs are not the priority for her, nor anything else apart from a pure survivalist vision. Very, very narrow. It was her and her daughter. Nothing else. She developed a psychopathy mindset, which overrides any empathy and moral correctness. That is not knowing or caring what is right and wrong, as she felt that would impede on her survival instincts. She once said at a police interview, “I am either the victim or the perpetrator. But, I would rather be the perpetrator.”

Forster now very curious of a senior psychiatrist opinion, who happens to be his sister, in relation to antisocial behaviors. "What was her crime?"

"She tried to rob a wealthy client, one of the men she would see as a prostitute, at his home, drugged him with Flunitrazepam, which she bought on the streets. Although she wasn't an addict. He died whilst being unconscious from a cardiac arrest. She was arrested soon after. With no remorse for him, but obviously there was for her daughter. Who then went into protective custody."

"That’s a sad story...Similar profile to this file I suspect, although this one is a trained killer."

"An ex-soldier?" Rachel asks in a curious manner, regarding the profile of her brothers interest in an unofficial cold case.

"She's German, trained in a rumored covert unit that carried out assassinations that the German authorities saw as threats, about ten years ago. A very shadowy past, hard to distinguish fact from fiction. The other rumor which is what I believe, is that she witnessed the murder of her mother, who was a heroin addict, when she was a little girl. She was able to drive an antique dagger, a German military piece which was an heirloom of the family, into the back of the neck of her mother's attacker. Killing him in an effort to protect her mother. It is believed that the body count attached to her profile as an adult is extensive."

"Therefor, on paper, she would be considered a true Femme Fatale..." Rachel replies, her expression changes to one of concern for her brother. "...Myth or not. A fatale woman is attractive for various reasons, as a sociopath they carry a charm that can be enticing for men, but in turn, they are damaged..."

"...and dangerous." Foster replies finishing his sister's sentence, leaning back in his chair.

She checks her wrist watch and stands. "I'll pay...I have a late meeting at 5:00pm. Sorry for the rushed early dinner."

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Reading: "Born Fatale is the Femme" from THE PRAXIS CONTINUUM (A.Glass 2018)

Image and book cover (A.Glass 2018)