Thursday, November 14, 2019
Love and Hate in James Cains Mildred Pierce :: Cain Mildred Pierce Essays
Love and Hate in James Cain's Mildred Pierce     Some may say that the character Mildred Pierce of the novel, Mildred      Pierce by James Cain, may be a good role model for an entrepreneur or a      single working mother. Some may say that she was hopelessly devoted to      her ungrateful daughter, Veda. Some may also argue that Veda was a      terrible daughter who lacked compassion, sincerity, and most of all,      respect. As true as that may all be, the candlelight glowing about the      flawless, sugar-coated heroine shall be blown out. Fluorescent lights,      please.            Mildred Pierce loved her daughter. Perhaps she had loved Veda too      much. One questions how a woman can love such a bitch - a coloratura      soprano. Could it have been another type of love? Mildred had an      exaggerated sense of self-importance. She felt the need for attention and      admiration from others, particularly Veda. Mildred Pierce took people for      granted or exploited them with an unusual coolness. Had Mildred Pierce      been a real person, and ever introduced to Sigmund Freud, the verdict      would be in. Mildred Pierce suffers from Narcissism. Another kind of      love, indeed! She simply had fallen in love with her reflection (as the      disorder was named for the mythological Narcissus, who fell in love with      his own reflection) - Veda Pierce, that is.            In 1991, Sophie Freud, granddaughter of Sigmund Freud, explained that      the narcissistic mother has a great investment in her daughters. The      survival of women greatly depends on loving, and whether she is loved.      Narcissistic actions are ambivalent. "In order to develop into a woman      [the narcissist mother believes] a daughter needs sufficient libidinal      resources to identify with her female partner [mother]..." (Fenchel).      Mildred Pierce fits the description. That must explain the sensual vibes      - but unfortunately Veda was not the type of daughter to want to identify      with her mother. Mildred's character ached for approval from Veda.
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