Essay Questions

Deconstruct Jason and Jason’s mother’s reaction to Jason’s crime and his subsequent incarceration.

Moroney expounds, "Jason paused, looked down, took a breath, and then looked back up at me. "My grandmother was devastated. She tried to keep in touch with me during the first few years I was inside. I was so ashamed of myself and of what I had put her and everyone else through. I pushed a lot of friends and family away." Jason employs avoidance due to his guilt. Avoiding his comrades and family members is projected to repress their memories. Jason feels that he has disappointed them; hence, he should not be in their lives. Moreover, the avoidant behavior is projected to repress all the memories he has of them.

Jason’s mother employs denial: “And my mom, well, she has always denied my guilt…During my trial and after, she made up stories about what really happened and even claimed that I was framed. Eventually, it got so hard we had to cut back on our visits.” Jason’s mother’s ironic denial, psychoanalytically, is intended to mollify the guilt she feels as a mother who would not prevent her son from engaging in crime. She unconsciously feels that as a mother she flopped in bringing her son up appropriately. Being in denial is a strategy she embraces to counter her unconscious remorse.

Summarize a psychoanalytic assessment for the remarks which the psychologist makes regarding Jason during Moroney’s second visit.

Moroney recounts, “the psychiatrist said, “Jason may open up to us one day if he figures anything out-like past trauma-but in the meantime, the fact that he has never been violent again in fifteen years, has had healthy relationships while back in the community, is forthcoming about his responsibility for the murder, is free from addictions, and is now in his thirties are all the reasons that we had healthy relationships while back in the community.” The psychologist implies that Jason’s past may have contributed to an unconscious wound which he seeks to mollify through violence. Although Jason may have reformed after being in prison, the wound did not heal completely. Jason has a psychological condition that triggers aggression in him; hence, it can only be resolved once the cause of the trauma is identified and he goes through psychological therapy that would eliminate his unconscious wound completely.

How does impression management benefit Jason?

Moroney explains, “My parents like Jason immediately. We convened at a restaurant on Saturday night, and I could see it in their attitude. With his easygoing demeanor, natural conversation skills, and impeccable manners, Jason fit in with my outgoing and good-natured parents. We all relaxed into a pleasant evening of getting acquainted, and I observed how he avoided questions that might provoke curiosity or digging into the past; I found myself doing the same.” Despite his past as a convict, Jason impresses Moroney’s parents to the degree that they feel he is a perfect match for their daughter. His looks portray him as a reasonable and responsible man. An individual unaware of his past would not have bad impression of him because he depicts impeccable socialization skills. His past is uncomfortable but it does not impact his appeal and charm. Perhaps, if Jason had hidden the truth regarding his past, Moroney would not have discerned it by herself due to Jason’s extraordinary charm and impression management.