Revenge

Abstract

Revenge Warren S. Poland Revenge! The very word conjures images of evil painted blood red and black. Rage for retribution, festering till satisfied by destructive acts. An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. Getting even. Honor redeemed by vengeful triumph. "Honor killings." Revenge slinks through the dark corridors of the soul waiting its chance to burst forth and hurt or destroy the resented other, until it can finally prevail through a justified cruelty, at last sated—if only for a while—by victorious vindication. Psychoanalysis is a form of inquiry uniquely apt for exploring such dark recesses. Yet until recently in the century of psychoanalytic studies, revenge has not taken center stage. Perhaps that is, in part, because the very nature of revenge is to hide itself while awaiting its chance, shrouded darkly, skulking in the wings. It is not that the subject has never been considered, but only belatedly does it come to hold center stage in our attention. Why such delay? What resistances have held us back? In the dual psychoanalytic tasks of therapy and research, can it be that this is an area in which Eros has not won over Thanatos but in fact has retreated? Have humanistic healing urges been allowed to turn us from full examination of the dark and ruthless side of the mind? Overcoming resistance, what do we see once our eyes adapt to darkness? Is revenge truly so simple a subject as our first images suggest? Looking closely, we discover complexity, subtleties that extend through all levels of the human mind, from the most recessed corners to those most light and most civilized. We may discover that the cruelest roots of [End Page 355] hateful revenge and the blossoms of our ideals are both of the same plant. "Revenge" can speak not only of manifest behavior, broadly familiar to us, but also of emotions or urges that are unwitting and latent as well as consciously felt. Interest in manifest acts and conscious fantasies of revenge should not distract us from the power of vengeful forces expressed and even satisfied through seemingly constructive behavior, behavior that appears anything but angry and destructive. With those who "kill with kindness," is revenge at work beyond their conscious ken? Even the submissive person who "sits on his hands" may use apparent passivity to control the other and gratify vengeful urges. Certainly, the person who "cuts off his nose to spite his face" often shows the pleasure of successful vengeance enjoyed by one who has internalized his enemy. As masochism can express forbidden sadism, so too can moral masochism be an expression of forbidden revenge. And what are the roots of revenge? A perceived insult may provoke revenge more than does physical injury. While overwhelming abusive trauma certainly can command a vengeful reaction, we know that at times provocations draw their powers from feeding on already present deep conflicts and resentments. Parricidal and oedipal forces, sibling rivalries, crucial earlier conflicts—all abound. From descriptive and genetic views, we can turn to object relations. The verb for vengeance is not "to venge" but "to revenge." The "re-" is the "re-" of return. Inevitably, there is an other, whether in actuality or in fantasy. Developmentally, while rage and vengeful acts often seem primitive, lust for revenge need not imply a primitive or infantile mind or way of relating. We all know the saying that revenge is a dish best served cold. A person seeking revenge might be impulsive, but such a person can just as well have a capacity for delay that makes use of self-mastery and impulse control. Impulsivity, while common, need not be an essential element in revenge. Similarly, vindictiveness does not imply incapacity for empathy. Empathy and sympathy are not the same, and a person can feel a devastating lack of sympathy for another while still maintaining highly attuned sensitivity. Indeed, the capacity for [End Page 356] empathy makes possible a revenge expressing mature hate, hate mindful of the feelings of the other and thus most fittingly cruel. As we regard the multiplicity of roots of vengeance, so must we stay open-minded about the effects. Our bias is to see...