 |
|
7.8.1 Medlicott, R.W. 1955
Medlicott, R.W. British Journal of Medical Psychology, 28:205-223 (1955). [jb] "Paranoia of the Exalted Type in a Setting of Folie a Deux: A Study of Two Adolescent Homicides"
**Dr Medlicott was the principal psychiatric consultant/witness for the defense. He wrote this paper and submitted it to a prestigious medical journal soon after the trial. Later, it was reprinted intact in an anthology in 1979. It is an extremely interesting piece of work, not only because of what it tells us about Parker and Hulme, but also because of what it tells us indirectly about Dr Medlicott--his attitudes, sensibilities and prejudices--and the defense strategy, such as it was, and the opinions and prejudices of the times. Dr Medlicott interviewed the girls for a total of only seven hours each, but he did study Pauline's diaries intensively. Dr Medlicott was, apparently, quite highly regarded by his peers. The article is also interesting for what it tells us about Jackson and Walsh and their approach to the case. It is obvious that Jackson and Walsh used Medlicott's article as one of their primary sources. Many scenes conform exactly to the material described here, particularly in the depiction of the Rieper home life; yet there are also many things in the article which Jackson and Walsh chose not to depict. Glamuzina and Laurie present a detailed discussion and point-by-point rebuttal of Medlicott's arguments and conclusions in Chapter 8 ("The Stories") of their book: "Parker & Hulme," in a section entitled "Medical Stories," pp. 120-133. Needless to say, Glamuzina and Laurie present a very different perspective on this material: "These (medical and psychiatric) institutions have played a crucial role in the construction of femininity, and in controlling the minds and bodies of women." (p. 120). Medlicott was not a prolific author, but he published articles in scholarly journals until at least 1980. He appears to have had a special interest in the connection between psychiatry and the arts, e.g. Medlicott, R.W., Aust. & N.Z. J. of Psychiatry 4(1), 15-23 (1970). "Leda and the swan--an analysis of the theme in myth and art." He published a few more articles on the case over his lifetime, and these have been listed in the section above. Medlicott's style can be a little turgid, and his paragraphs interminably-long, but the material is compelling. The article has not been reprinted here in its entirety--the Discussion section has been abbreviated slightly, with annotations. [jp]
On the afternoon of the twenty-second of June 1954 two breathless and apparently agitated adolescent girls rushed up to the manageress of a tea kiosk in a small park on the outskirts of Christchurch and blurted out a garbled account of an accident which had supposedly happened to the mother of one of the girls. Investigation revealed the body of a woman so badly battered about the head as to exclude the possibility of accident. When the girls were interviewed by the police later in the day the daughter confessed to the murder of her mother. She accepted full responsibility for the murder and denied that her friend had any part in the affair. On further questioning next day, however, the friend confessed to her part in the crime. When the murdered woman's house was searched two diaries were discovered in the daughter's bedroom. The last entry had been made on the morning of the crime and was headed 'The day of the happy event', and read: 'I am writing a little of this up on the morning for (sic) [note: before. jp] the death. I felt very excited and the-night-before- Christmassy last night. I did not have pleasant dreams though. I am about to rise.' [note: Glamuzina and Laurie are very critical of Medlicott for using this version of the diary entry. jp] The writer, after repeated interviews with the girls and careful examination of their writings, was satisfied that both girls suffered from paranoia of the exalted type. This diagnosis was supported by Dr Francis Bennett, the other medical witness for the defence. Three State Hospital psychiatrists, brought by the prosecution, denied the girls were insane but agreed, on cross-examination, that their sanity was a matter on which medical men might differ. The presiding judge, in his address to the jury, pointed out that disease of the mind is not of itself a sufficient defence. He stated: 'The law does not relieve persons of criminal responsibility merely because they are insane.' As will be discussed later, both girls stated quite clearly that they knew the nature and quality of their act and that it was wrong both according to the law of the country and the morals of the community. The jury brought in a verdict of 'Guilty.' From a clinical point of view the material is sufficiently unusual to warrant recording in the medical literature. Because of the widespread interest in the case it is impossible to disguise in any way the people involved. It is therefore necessary to rely on evidence presented in court and to exclude many personal details revealed by the girls and their relatives. This unfortunately leaves some gaps in the story, and excludes the analysis of more than surface psychodynamics.
THE CASE HISTORIES Of the two girls, Pauline P. is a dark, rather sulky looking but not unattractive girl of stocky build, who had her sixteenth birthday one month previously; while Juliet H. is a tall, willowy, frail, attractive blonde with large blue eyes. She is five months younger than Pauline.
Prior to their meeting. Pauline P. Pauline's mother and father had lived together as man and wife for twenty-three years, and the fact that the father had a previous undissolved marriage was unknown both to the family and the community in which they lived. Their house was comfortable and the home a stable one. The mother appears to have been a woman of normal intelligence with average social activities and interests. The father said she was a lovable woman, and that they had never seriously quarrelled during the many years they had lived together. There seemed no doubt that she was intensely interested in her children. The father, who was a company manager, was fifteen years older than his wife. He was fond of his children. It is apparent from Pauline's diaries that her mother assumed the major responsibility in disciplining her. This discipline had been reasonable, had never been severe, and corporal punishment according to her father was never resorted to. Pauline's illicit behaviour over the year or more before the murder could not be attributed to a lack of discipline or neglect on the part of her parents. Of the family, the first-born, a boy, had been a 'blue baby' and died within twenty-four hours. The second, Pauline's older sister, is an attractive blonde of seventeen years of age. She is of average intelligence, likeable in manner, sociable and keen on sport, and has never given her family any cause for concern. Of different temperament and interests to Pauline they have never had much in common. Pauline was the third child. The fourth child is a Mongolian imbecile girl of five years who was placed in an institution two years ago. Pauline was very fond of this child, and apparently very good to her when she was home on leave or whenever the family visited her in the institution. Pauline was a wanted baby, her birth was normal and according to her father she had been a plump happy infant. When just under five years of age she was taken to hospital with severe osteomyelitis of her leg. She was precariously ill after her admission, but when the acute stage was over she appeared to adjust well to hospital and in spite of painful dressings did not cry. She returned home after nine months, but her leg continued to discharge for two years until her second admission to hospital and operation. The osteomyelitis was Pauline's first memory. Her doctor's advice against her participating in active sports deprived her of much group participation. She attended school until leaving a few months before the murder and her progress there prior to her meeting with Juliet had been satisfactory. Her intelligence was never tested, but it was at least of high average standard or possibly a little above average. It was not possible to obtain a very clear picture of Pauline prior to her association with Juliet, but there is evidence that she was sensitive, imaginative but self-contained, and unable to tolerate criticism. She said she had always liked being by herself ever since she could remember, and as a small child would shut herself off in a room with her dolls. She had never had firm and lasting friendships on account of ruining all her friendships with outbursts of temper. Seven years ago she had played for some time a fantasy game with one friend in which they dressed up and imagined they had a secret staircase at a nearby museum. This friendship, she said, would not have lasted had they not quickly become separated by circumstances. She attended Church regularly up till her imprisonment. Except for a short period of intense scrupulousness in her primary school days, however, she had never been particularly devout and in spite of repeated endeavours her Church had never been able to involve her in its group activities. She spent much of her time from early childhood in modelling either wood or plasticine. She showed talent and was encouraged by her family.
Juliet H. Juliet came from a socially more prominent and an intellectually more sophisticated background than Pauline. Her mother is a self-possessed, highly intelligent woman with many cultural and social activities. She has always been alive to the psychologically recommended practices in child care, and there is no doubt that consciously at least she had always been careful to do the right thing for Juliet. Juliet's father is a University man of high academic qualifications and record. Although fond of his two children he has not had the same contacts with them as his wife who was the one who assumed the major responsibility of bringing them up. The other member of the family, Juliet's younger brother, is ten years of age and is a healthy well- adjusted boy apparently fond of his sister. As a small baby Juliet was described as 'delightful'. She was born in England and at about two years of age she and her mother were caught in an air raid in London after which for a short period she had nightmares with screaming. In her third year she developed tantrums when crossed. From then on she appears to have been an excitable, self-willed, demanding child intolerant of criticism. She was precocious, sensitive, full of fantasy and found it difficult to stop play-acting games, and liked to remain a fairy or some other fantasy creature long after her playmates had become bored with the game. Her mother went to considerable pains to interest her in her brother's arrival, but unfortunately on the night of her return from the nursing home the mother was taken seriously ill and she and the baby were taken to hospital immediately. Juliet was very distressed next morning to find them gone. From that time Juliet did not accept her brother and resented any attention he received. She had had a lot of physical illness; at six years of age she was dangerously ill with pneumonia, and as she remained ill for two years her schooling was interrupted; and when eight years of age, on medical advice, she was flown to friend in the Bahamas. Her family moved to New Zealand, and after thirteen months separation she rejoined them in New Zealand. On being reunited with her mother she was for a start dramatically over-dependent and it was very difficult to fit her into the family group. At eleven years of age at the time of her menarche she was in rather poor health and was sent to a private boarding school in another part of the country. After a time she was unhappy there and returned home. Prior to entering secondary school she was given intelligence tests and her intelligence quotient was reported as being in the region of 170. On advice it was decided to cancel the plans for private schooling and to send her to the local girls' high school. It was at high school about the middle of 1952 in the third form that Pauline and Juliet met and became friendly.
After their meeting. Their story after their meeting can be divided into a number of phases.
(1) Prior to the bicycle ride incident in August 1952. At the commencement their friendship appears to have been a healthy one and to have been welcomed by both the children's parents. Shortly after the meeting Juliet remarked 'Mummy, I've met someone at last who has a will as strong as my own.' Pauline's mother told Juliet's mother that she was pleased at the friendship because Pauline had been a lonely child with difficulty in making friends. This apparently normal friendship lasted only a month or two and gave way to something much more intense.
(2) From the bicycle ride incident to the end of 1952. In August 1952 the two girls went for a bicycle ride into the country where they stopped by some light bush, removed their outer clothing and ran among the bushes ecstatically. They were so ecstatic that they went home leaving these clothes behind them. When talking about this episode Pauline said that previously they had just been friends but after this there was an indissoluble bond between them. It would seem that two unusual kindred spirits had come together. From then on they began to build up and share a rich fantasy life. By the end of 1952 they developed an increasing urge to write; they had their own fictional characters and they would creep out at nights for midnight sprees in which they would act these fictional characters until the early hours of the morning. These fictional characters they commonly referred to as their 'families'. One special group constituted the 'Saints'. The 'Saints' were referred to as HE, HIM, IT, etc., and in the front of the 1953 diary [of PYP. jp] was the following key list:
The Saints
Mario Lanza = Poor Mario = HE | James Mason = The James = HIM | Harry Lime = Harry III = IT | Mel Ferrer = The Angry Man = THIS |- THEY Suie Bjuling = The Last One = THAT | Guy Rolfe = King John = HIS |
WHOSE + THEY = THEM THEY + WE = US WHOSE + WE = WHICH
Monsieur de la Tour d'Azyr = Gervais = WHAT Rupert of Hentzau = Rupeit = WHO
The 'Saints' were special figures representing ideal characters, and were commonly given the form of film actors who most resembled their ideals. The actual actors could change from time to time. Other members of their 'families' were characters from books they were writing. They questioned the whole scheme of things, and gradually the substance of their writing changed from the not unusual highly imaginative outpourings of adolescents to an increasingly morbid preoccupation with evil. They quickly became a self- sufficient unit, more and more self-bolstering, less and less dependent on others, and the scene was set for a break with society and its morality. They became increasingly conceited and arrogant and set themselves above the common masses. Pauline became disdainful of her less socially prominent family and was moody and withdrawn in her own home.
(3) From the commencement of the 1953 diary to the 'Port Levy Revelation' April 1953. From New Year 1953 right up to the morning of the murder Pauline kept a diary. This diary was kept hidden from the family and was not meant to be read by others than herself. But she and Juliet had no secrets from each other and this intimate diary, although primarily chronicling Pauline's exploits and thoughts, gives us a wealth of information about both girls and will be quoted repeatedly. The 1953 diary opened with a New Year resolution 'To be lenient with others'. During January, while she was staying in the country with some friends and did not see Juliet, her behaviour appeared to have been normal. She showed a healthy interest in an older boy and the normal jealousy of a young girl to a rival. There was little talk of writing or fictional characters. She returned home with good intentions of doing well at school. After her return she and Juliet were frequently together and soon were preoccupied with their 'Saints', play acting and writing. By March things were assuming a sinister turn and their interest in school work and commonplace activities was diminishing rapidly. Pauline was modelling a plasticine family based on their fictional characters and held a masked ball for them. Her fictional family intruded into the diary with bewilderingly frequent and tangled escapades; there were bedroom scenes, highway robberies and often more than one violent death a day. On the eighteenth of March the first grossly megalomanic statement appeared: 'We have decided how sad it is for other people that they cannot appreciate our genius. But we hope the book will help them to do so a little, though no one could fully appreciate us.' The tension which increased rapidly during March culminated on Good Friday, the third of April, with the 'Port Levy revelation'. The two girls were staying with Juliet's people at a week-end cottage at Port Levy, and Pauline wrote that evening: 'To-day Juliet and I found the key to the 4th World. We realize now that we have had it in our possession for about six months but we only realized it on the day of the death of Christ. We saw a gateway through the clouds. We sat on the edge of the path and looked down the hill over the bay. The island looked beautiful [there is actually a small island offshore. jp]. The sea was blue. Everything was full of peace and bliss. We then realized we had the key. We now know that we are not genii as we thought. We have an extra part of our brain which can appreciate the 4th World. Only about 10 people have it. When we die we will go to the 4th World, but meanwhile on two days every year we may use the key and look in to that beautiful world which we have been lucky enough to be allowed to know of, on this Day of Finding the Key to the Way through the Clouds.' Fixed ideas that they were different from other people, that they had an extra part of their brain and that they had a Fourth World or as they later called it 'Paradise' persisted from this time.
(4) Following the Port Levy Revelation on to the end of 1953. On the day following the 'Port Levy revelation' Pauline's fictional characters behaved even more aggressively than usual. In the diary record within a paragraph Roland slaps Carmelita's face when she turns his proposal of marriage down because she is engaged to Roderick, and in a blazing fury he shoots Roderick. The horse 'Vendetta' kills Gianina the night before her marriage to Nicholas. On the ledge of 'Satan's Hollow' 'Vendetta' crashes down on to Nicholas and with a wild scream turns into the sunset, his revenge complete. The close association of their megalomanic ideas with Pauline's preoccupation with murder was probably significant. The savage horse, a classic representation of unconscious hostile aggressive impulses, was certainly running wild at this stage. The two girls were together almost every day, and Pauline at least was in a highly excitable state. She remarked in one entry in the diary that her average hours of sleep for the preceding week were four and three quarters a night. The tension remained high right through into May and it would seem likely that if it had not been for certain events their increasingly wild fantasies might have been translated into action at this stage. However, Juliet developed pulmonary tuberculosis and went into a sanatorium which limited the amount of time the two girls spent together. Pauline started sneaking out at night to visit first some Ceylonese students [Canterbury University College. jp] and later became involved with another student, Nicholas. These occurrences produced sufficient interruption in the closeness of their association for the tension to lessen between May and December. In spite of decreased tension there was plenty of grandiose or morbidly aggressive material produced during the remainder of the year. For example, on the fifteenth of June, Pauline wrote 'Juliet and I decided the Christian religion had become too much of a farce and we decided to make up one of our own.' Also in the back of the 1953 diary Pauline wrote an extraordinarily exalted poem about Juliet and herself entitled 'The Ones that I Worship'. This poem reads: [note: text and punctuation differ from version read into trial transcript. jp]
There are living among two dutiful daughters, Of a man who possesses two beautiful daughters The most glorious beings in creation They'd be the pride and joy of any nation. You cannot know nor yet try to guess The sweet soothingness of their caress The outstanding genius of this pair, Is understood by few, they are so rare. Compared with these two, every man is a fool The world is most honoured that they should deign to rule And above us these Goddesses reign on high.
I worship the power of these lovely two With that adoring love known to so few 'Tis indeed a miracle, one must feel, That two such heavenly creatures are real, Both sets of eyes, though different far, hold many mysteries strange, Impassively they watch the race of man decay and change Hatred burning bright in the brown eyes with enemies for fuel Icy scorn glitters in the grey eyes, contemptuous and cruel Why are men such fools they will not realize The wisdom that is hidden behind those strange eyes. And these wonderful people are you and I.
While Juliet was in the sanatorium the two girls kept up a voluminous correspondence, writing to each other in the parts of the characters in their stories. Sudden death, suicide and murder assumed extravagant proportions. They were preoccupied with ideas of great power, especially to murder without reprisal, and vicious characters were greatly respected. The Empress of Volumnia (one of their fictional countries) who was only thirteen 'has a violent temper and when in a tantrum has killed all the people who have incurred her wrath. Also she is very proud and refuses to interview anyone in the lower classes.' Her people loved her and would not have had her otherwise. Their favourite character Diello whose coronation will be referred to later was particularly vicious. Death and murders were treated lightly as is shown in the following extracts. 'Barton... silly bounder... tried to shoot me, and I have a terrible temper when roused and I am afraid I broke his back and put him in the mere (lake)... (stupid blighter). And Linker... poor fellow... you know I really quite liked him... indiscriminate in his choice of friends and is now... alack!... in the mere with Barton.' A female character says 'I don't kill people... I thought you might like to know since you asked me some time ago. My father hasn't killed anyone for quite a while. I would like to kill someone sometime because I think it is an experience that is necessary to life.' Some of the imagery was equally violent: 'Sunrise makes the peaks crimson, as if some giant hand had dipped and smeared it with blood.' Juliet was in the sanatorium between late May 1953 and early September 1953 when, on her request, she was allowed to continue treatment at home. She responded satisfactorily to drug treatment. Both isoniazid and streptomycin were used, but there was no evidence that they produced any psychological changes. Her mother and father were due to leave on a trip to England about the time Juliet's tuberculosis was discovered. She insisted her mother should accompany her father. When her parents returned she was pleased to see them, but her mother soon realized that her real affections lay with Pauline. Between May and October Pauline attempted to establish a firm relationship with boys. These boys were university students much older than she was. As mentioned she started to meet Ceylonese students, and in June was sneaking out late to visit them. In July she went to bed first with one of them and later with a white student, Nicholas, who at the time was boarding in their home. Her father discovered her in bed with Nicholas and he was sent away. During August she met Nicholas secretly and in September was sneaking out of her home at midnight and spending till four or five o'clock in the morning with him. In spite of the compromising situations the first seriously attempted seduction did not occur till September and was interrupted because of its painfulness. In October intercourse took place on the one and only occasion. The most striking thing about the sexual behaviour was the apparent lack of real erotic involvement on her part. In interview she said frankly when asked about this intercourse: 'It wasn't for me. I wasn't interested.' When asked if she loved Nicholas at the time she was visiting him she replied: 'I liked to think I did. I was more flattered than anything else. I found boys of my own age fools. He was supposed to be clever.' Following this sexual experience her attempts at heterosexual functioning rapidly failed, although she continued to visit Nicholas, talking with him until well into the morning on occasions right through until December. She discussed all her nocturnal experiences with Juliet and appreciated on one occasion some jealousy on Juliet's part. On the eighth of October she wrote: 'It's so nice to think Juliet and I could continue our friendship unmolested, with no outside interests.' This was followed significantly enough in the same day by their discussing the people they would wipe out. On the twenty-eighth of October she stated: 'told Nicholas this evening that I was no longer very much in love with him because of my imaginary characters.' In the later part of 1953, with the distraction of Nicholas rapidly diminishing and with Juliet out of the sanatorium, the tension gradually mounted again and fantasy preoccupation increased. After much planning on Friday the eleventh of December Diello was crowned Emperor of Borovnia, their other fictional country. Pauline was awake at five o'clock on the day of the coronation in an excited state and noted the same 'Christmassy' feeling as on the morning of the murder. This ceremony had a much more than usual significance and as Diello was a particularly vicious character whom they had developed from his childhood in their writings it is probable that his coronation represented in some way the crowning of evil. By this time they had definitely set themselves apart from society, had few healthy interests and their main preoccupations were with morbid topics. During the later part of 1953 Pauline recorded a number of quite severe mood swings. On November the second she wrote: 'To- day I felt thoroughly, utterly and completely depressed. I was in one of those moods in which committing suicide sounds heavenly.' On the twentieth of December, after her mother threatened that if Pauline's health did not improve, she could never see Juliet again she remarked: 'The thought is too dreadful. Life would be unbearable without Deborah.' (Some time before the girls decided that they should be called 'Gina' and 'Deborah'.) Later in the same entry she wrote: 'I rang Deborah and told her of the threat. I wish I could die. That is not an idle or temporary impulse, I have decided over the last 2 or 3 weeks that it would be the best thing that could happen altogether, and the thought of death is not fearsome.'
(5) From New Year 1954 to the morning of the murder. On New Year's Day Pauline wrote: 'My New Year resolution is a far more selfish one than last year, so there is more probability of my keeping it. It is to make my motto "Eat drink and be merry for to-morrow you may be dead".' It is interesting that she misquoted 'for to-morrow you die'--for 'to-morrow you may be dead'. During the first three weeks they were separated, and prior to seeing Juliet again on the twenty-third of January Pauline's diary contained more normal material than for some months but was not as normal as in the preceding January when she was staying in the country with friends. Shortly after they were reunited they had a discussion about being prostitutes and the charge they should make. The next day Pauline wrote: 'I went over to Deborah's room early this morning about 7:30. It suddenly occurred to me that we had not celebrated He's day so we decided to to-day. In He's honour we ate some birthday cake, drank He's health, played all He's records and made a little edifice of He. We have shifted His to the Gods now. We worked out how much prostitutes would earn and how much we would make in such a profession and "should" gradually changed to "shall". We have worked out some glorious plans and worked out a whole new family for our future.' On the sixth of February they celebrated Him's day in glittering black and went through what they termed the 'Saints Day' ritual. They were now both writing feverishly. Pauline's book 'The Donkey's Serenade' was finished by the end of February and she immediately followed it with another. By the time of the murder they had completed or were in the process of writing six books between them, in addition to plays, poetry and an opera. On the twenty-eighth of February the first mention of the 'Plan' occurred. Pauline was at Juliet's home and wrote: 'Deborah and I started discussing our quest for "Him". We have now decided to hurry things up terrifically, in fact to start now. We had a marvelous time planning the life and the flight and how we will obtain all the money and what we will do.' The plan was to get to New York together, where they would find someone to publish their books and then they would go to Hollywood where they expected to be hailed as actresses. Shortly after this Pauline was visiting shipping companies, and between then and the murder they collected money by various means including stealing. Ambitious plans are not unusual in adolescents but there was more than usual neglect of reality here. Their books were mostly unfinished and untyped and they were completely uncritical about them. When Juliet started writing she used to read her novel chapter by chapter to her mother but later guarded her writings from everyone and was, like Pauline, completely contemptuous of anyone's opinion. By this time they had not the slightest doubt that they were outstanding geniuses so far removed from the common people as to need no one's approval but their own. There was no jealousy between them and they congratulated each other on their productions. In actuality their writings, although profuse and imaginative, did not show talent and there was nothing to suggest that they would be published. During the next three months [March, April, May. jp] the girls spent an increasing amount of time together, with Pauline staying frequent week-ends in Juliet's home. In the diary one can sense the mounting tension in that time with increasing exaltation broken only by either irritable bad-tempered episode or depression with suicidal thoughts. As Pauline expressed it in one entry, they soared between heaven and hell. The diary of this period was full of references to the 'Saints'. They built in the garden a temple of 'Rafael Pan', their favorite angel and god, and held various ceremonies there including the burial of discarded ideas. They would finish one book only to start another. Pauline's mother stopped her going to school because she had completely lost interest in her studies and did little else but write. While Pauline was with Juliet she wrote of frequent long baths together and hours spent together in Juliet's bed unknown to her parents. Although Juliet was still away from school convalescing from tuberculosis she and Pauline often talked and acted their characters in bed together, till after five o'clock in the morning, again without the knowledge of their parents. At this stage Juliet's father resigned from his position and it was decided the family would return to England. This meant that unless Pauline could go with them they would be separated. On the twenty-fifth of April Pauline wrote: 'But one thing Deborah and I are sticking together through everything (We sink or swim together).' Although Juliet's mother stated that it was made clear that Pauline would not be going with them the two girls were convinced that if Pauline could overcome her parents' opposition she could go. [note: Medlicott completely omits all mention of the Hulme family disintegration, Walter Perry, all the key diary entries placed into the trial record from this key period. jp] Over this period, March, April and May 1954, there was rapid deterioration in the girls' relationship with their families and in their behaviour. The antisocial wishes previously expressed in the behaviour of their fictional characters were now being realized in real life. Pauline became increasingly antagonistic to her mother. Just prior to this period she wrote in February that she loathed her mother and later: 'Why could not Mother die. Dozens of people are dying all the time, thousands, so why not Mother and Father, too. Life is very hard.' On the twenty-eighth of April Pauline decided to remove the one person who openly disapproved of their relationship and whom she believed stood in the way of their remaining together. This entry reads: 'Mother went out this afternoon so Deborah and I bathed for some time. However I felt thoroughly depressed afterwards and even quite seriously considered committing suicide. Life seemed so much not worth the living, and death such an easy way out. Anger against Mother boiled up inside. Suddenly a means of ridding myself of this obstacle occurred to me. If she were to die.... I spent the evening writing and managed to finish my chapter.' The next day she wrote that the last thing she wanted to do was to go to Borstal, and that although she did not want to go to too much trouble she wanted her mother's death to appear natural or accidental. On the thirteenth of April Pauline wrote: 'Mrs C. came to tea and was thoroughly objectionable. Her ghastly attitude towards the Japanese has made me fonder than ever of them. I did not write this evening but I sat up and talked to Mother. I told Deborah of my intentions and she is rather worried but does not disagree violently. It is now 10:30.' There was no further mention of the plan until just before the murder. Murder, however, was not their only preoccupation. They copied out the Ten Commandments so that they could break them. Juliet attempted blackmail; they went on at least two shoplifting expeditions and Pauline got the keys of the shop her father managed, stole out in the middle of the night to burgle it but found a policeman outside. There were also several passages in the diary suggesting overt homosexual activity. During June, the month of the murder, the two girls were together at Juliet's home for eleven or twelve days. The diary was almost completely morbid, preoccupation with the Saints extreme and the girls were obviously in a persistently excited state. On the sixth of June Pauline wrote: '...We went to sleep at 4:30 to-morrow morning after talking all night. We were discussing at first how we sometimes had a strange feeling that we had done what we were doing before. We realized why this was and why Deborah and I have such extraordinary telepathy and why people treat us and look at us the way they do and why we behave as we do. It is because we are MAD. We are both stark staring raving mad. There is definitely no doubt about it and we are thrilled by the thought. (Proof n'est capos!) [note: possibly a joke by PYP or mistranscription by Medlicott. Proper french would be n'est ce pas? = 'is it not?' jp] All the cast of the Saints except Nino are mad too. This is not strange as it is probably why we love them. We have discussed it fully. Dr. H. is MAD as MAD as a March hare. We are feeling thrilled and scared by the thought.' On the seventh of June Pauline wrote: '...We wrote a great deal into the Saints' book and discussed Him. We realize now that we cannot be revolted. We can discuss the most unsavory subjects. (Such as whether the Saints sanitary habits are prevented by sex) during a meal...' [note: not clear if previous parenthetical note is Medlicott paraphrasing or not. jp] On the ninth of June: 'I was feeling particularly mad to-day. I raved quite a lot at Digby's and terrified the girl next to me... Mother and I had a disagreement as I wished to see 'Trent's Last Case' to-night and the bloody bitch would not let me... I have come to bed all scented and sweet (physically).' [note: not clear if previous parenthetical note is Medlicott's or PYP's. jp]. On the tenth: '...I am feeling particularly close to Deborah.' On the eleventh and twelfth of June: '...we were then driven out to see It in "Trent's Last Case". It was the first time I had ever seen It. Deborah had always told me how hideous he was, and I had believed her, though from his photos he did not look too bad. "It" is appalling. He is dreadful. I have never in my life seen anything that so...in the same category of hideousness but I adore him (Scar). We returned home and talked for some time about It, getting ourselves more and more excited. Eventually we enacted how each Saint would make love in bed, only doing the first seven as it was 7:30 a.m. by then. We felt exhausted and very satisfied..." (The next night): 'We came to bed quite early and spent the night very hectically. We went to sleep after getting almost through. We had a simply marvelous time and we definitely are mad but very pleasingly so...' On the thirteenth: 'We gave ourselves two new Saints. "Onward Heel" and "Buster". Of all people my God. We had very amusing discussions about God, Christ and the Holy Ghost. In fact the whole day was very amusing and exciting... We spent a hectic night going through the Saints. It was wonderful! Heavenly! Beautiful! and Ours! We felt very satisfied indeed. We have now learned the peace of the thing called Bliss, the joy of the thing called Sin.' On the fourteenth: '...We were feeling absolutely exhausted which was scarcely surprising. We discussed which Saints we wished to have about us at such a time and found very few. We talked of Him's new character a little and loved it. We discussed the spicy ideas whom (s'queerly) we have grown to love... Two more spicy ideas became Saints... We intend to decorate the Cathedral. I am very happy. We have both spent a glorious Saintly day.' On the fifteenth: '...I had the most beautiful dream about That and Gay and Boinard and Deborah and myself at Port Levy. It was so heavenly that I am determined to make it come true. We came home late and we intend to sleep. It is a glorious night, very similar to the one at the island at Port Levy.' On the sixteenth: '...We came to bed late and spent a very hectic night. It was wonderful. We only did 10 Saints altogether but we did them thoroughly. I prefer doing longer ones. We enjoyed ourselves greatly and intend to do so again. We did not get to sleep until about 5:30. Obviously I am writing this to-morrow.' On the seventeenth: '...confessed we were disappointed in the Saints so we had an absolute clean up and threw out 8 of them. We discussed the ones left fully and felt very happy over them. We did not misbehave last night.' On the eighteenth: '...We had several brilliant ideas to write an opera each, to produce our own films and to murder all odd wives who get in our way. We went to town and bought books to paste our characters in. We planned our moiders and talked seriously as well...' On the nineteenth: 'We practically finished our books to-day and our main Ike (stet) for the day was to moider Mother. This notion is not a new one, but this time it is a definite plan which we intend to carry out. We have worked it out carefully and are both thrilled by the idea. Naturally we feel a trifle nervous, but the pleasure of anticipation is great. I shall not write the plan down here as I shall write it up when we carry it out. (I hope). We both spent last night and the one before having a simply wonderful time in every possible way. We also planned a few odd pictures and recast most of the "Saints' Christmas." We burnt all our film books this evening.' On the twentieth: '...Afterwards we discussed our plans for moidering Mother and made them a little clearer. Peculiarly enough I have no (qualms of) conscience (or is it peculiar, we are so mad)...' [note: not sure if parentheses and punctuation are PYP's or Medlicott's. jp]. On the twenty-first: 'I rose late and helped Mother vigorously this morning. Deborah rang and we decided to use a rock in a stocking rather than a sand-bag. We discussed the moider fully. I feel very keyed up as though I were planning a Surprise party. Mother has fallen in with everything beautifully and the happy event is to take place to-morrow afternoon. So next time I write in this diary Mother will be dead. How odd yet how pleasing. I have discussed various odd Saints with her to-day as I thought it would be interesting to have her opinion. She loathes That and It. I washed my hair this afternoon. I came to bed at quarter to 9.' The diary entry for the twenty-second of June on the morning of the murder has already been quoted. According to Juliet's mother the girls knew early in June that Juliet and her father were to leave New Zealand on the third of July. From the diary and from conversation with them it would appear that they never really believed they would be separated, although at the time they recognized Pauline's mother as an obstacle to their both going together. The diary entries quoted revealed the increasing excitement, exaltation and extraordinary attitude of mind in which the crime was approached. This was borne out by witnesses. Juliet's mother reported how Juliet left home on the day of the murder radiantly happy [note: HM Hulme actually testified that JMH looked this way on the day before the murder. jp] and Pauline's father told how at lunch before going to the park the girls seemed very happy, laughing and joking during the meal.
(6) The murder. Juliet brought a broken brick from her home which Pauline put into a stocking and carried it in a shoulder bag. The plan was that her mother should stoop to pick up a pink stone dropped by Juliet while Pauline swung the stocking delivering the fatal blow. Mrs P. was to fall dead, and the death to be ascribed to her falling and striking her head. For two intelligent and not unsophisticated girls the plan was extraordinarily naive, and before Mrs P. was dead about forty-five blows had been struck, Juliet joining in on the attack. The stocking and the brick were found at the scene of the crime and both girls' clothing was blood-stained. [note: Medlicott's lack of forensic detail and lack of physical and psychiatric analysis of the crime itself is noteworthy, and is probably a good indication of his lack of experience with criminal proceedings cf. the Crown's witnesses. jp]
(7) Following the murder. From the statements of those seeing the girls on the afternoon following the murder Pauline appeared to be somewhat dazed and shocked while Juliet was very excited. [note: trial testimony was much more extreme in these characterizations. jp] They themselves later maintained they were acting, but this was probably bravado as they could not accept any weakness in themselves. Certainly within a short time they were exulting in their murder, and at no time since have shown remorse or even regret. On the evening of the murder Pauline was observed to be writing in the police station on a piece of scrap-paper, of which the detective gained possession. On the following morning, after further discussion in which this was referred to, she managed to snatch it and throw it in the fire. It was rescued before being completely burnt. The detective stated that the note commenced with a reference to Pauline finding herself in an unexpected place. She then made reference to having committed her 'moider'. She then went on to write about the treatment she had received: 'All the H-s have been wonderfully kind and sympathetic. Anyone would think I've been good. I've had a pleasant time with the police talking 19 to the dozen and behaving as though I hadn't a care in the world.' There were then several sentences he couldn't remember but the final sentence was: 'I haven't had a chance to talk to Deborah properly but I am taking the blame for everything.' During the trial they did not appear disturbed by any of the unpleasant details, but grimaced when anything was said which disturbed their vanity and often hid their heads while sexual material was discussed. They were not concerned about the outcome of their trial, and could not appreciate at any time that the likely outcome was their permanent separation. When this was pointed out to them they simply said that as they had committed the murder to remain together no one would be so illogical as to separate them.
PSYCHIATRIC CONDITION AT THE TIME OF THEIR INTERVIEWS. The girls were interviewed on five separate occasions, the first two of these being within a week of the crime. They were seen separately, and the conditions of interview were quiet and comfortable. Over seven hours was spent with them. Their physical appearances have already been described. In attitude, emotional responses and thought content they were strikingly alike; any differences were of degree only. In bearing they were both assured; Juliet was a little more sophisticated and had an easier manner; but neither was ever ill at ease. _Rapport_ was easy in the sense that one had no difficulty in getting them to talk and there was no suggestion of schizophrenic withdrawal. They never really accepted the writer on an equal footing; contempt was never far from the surface, and at times they were openly hostile and abusive. Their hostility could be particularly venomous, although their abuse was puerile. When the question of their possible separation was brought up Pauline glared at the writer menacingly while obviously toying with the idea of throwing the ink-well at him and when it was removed jeered: 'You're not worth it.' At another time she said: 'You're an irritating fool, displeasing to look at and have an irritating way of speaking.' At another time she hoped New Zealand would be bombed and the writer directly under the bomb. [note: consult the time line for cold war and bomb references. jp] She shouted, when the writer was leaving after making a physical examination, 'I hope you break your flaming neck'. Juliet was more subtle, as, for example, when the writer was non-commital in an argument about religion she interjected: 'You do think, don't you?' Their interpersonal relationships were dominated by profound conceit and an arrogance of greater persistence and degree than the writer had previously encountered. Ordinarily their conversation flowed easily and coherently, but when they started talking on religio-philosophical themes the pressure increased and Juliet in particular would sometimes appear suddenly to 'slip into gear' and rush on in a high pitched voice into a torrent of jumbled ideas as though the rushing train of thought had taken possession of her. Both girls reported extreme mood swings between ecstasy and misery with suicidal preoccupation. Both were hyper-irritable during the interviews, and as recorded in Pauline's diary rages and death-wishes were easily precipitated. The outstanding thing, however, about their mood was definite exaltation. The diary showed clearly how this had built up to an increasing pitch over the months prior to the murder, and apart from an immediate short-lived period of shock directly after the murder, it had been persistent. When they launched on their crucial religio- philosophical themes the exaltation would increase to a high pitch and be accompanied by gross excitement. Their thought content was consistent with their state of exaltation, their arrogance and conceit. They never doubted that they were outstanding geniuses far above the common herd of mankind. When asked about her poem 'The Ones that I Worship' Pauline explained that she and Juliet did not look upon themselves as sisters and had simply chosen Juliet's father for the sake of rhyme. She did not appear to see anything fantastic in the statements about themselves, but she stated she did not usually voice these they were so obvious. ('What's so obvious?') 'That I think I am wonderful. I do seriously think I'm wonderful. There's nothing about ourselves we don't approve of.' When the girls were first interviewed the writer knew that they were trying to prove themselves insane, with the idea that in a mental hospital they could 'recover' and be at liberty quite soon. 'We would be perfectly safe,' Juliet said, 'unless someone tried to part us again.' They both presented reasons for their 'madness'. They pointed out the supposed relationship between genius and madness, said they both were subject to mood swings between ecstasy and extreme depths of misery, that they were both prone to compulsive thoughts such as putting their hands into a fire or jumping out of a window and that they were both 'telepathic', and gave various examples of their thinking of the same thing at the same time. Juliet suggested the threat of separation had driven them temporarily insane. Naturally the writer was not impressed by their evidence of insanity and did not feel they really believed they were insane. He was, however, impressed by their persistent state of exaltation, the way they exalted in their crime, the complete lack of remorse and by their fantastic conceit, arrogance and self-inflation. The impression that their disturbance was really one of psychosis was increased when they entered into religio-philosophical discussions. During the first week-end visit Juliet said they had their own religion with a personal non-Christian God and that only about twenty-five people in all time approached their level. Both of them showed preoccupation with great power and, as will be discussed later, the complete right to do as they wished. The diagnosis of psychosis was confirmed on the second week-end visit when they were questioned about the 'Fourth World' and the poem 'The Ones that I Worship'. Thee was no opportunity for them to confer between interviews and they both gave consistent accounts which firmly established their nuclear delusions. They both affirmed that they were outstanding geniuses and that the only incorrect statement in the diary account of the 'Port Levy revelation' was the statement that they were not 'genii' after all. They both firmly believed they had an extra part to their brain, and Juliet expressed it thus: 'There's an extra part and attached to the usual part of our brains it makes the whole thing different. The only way to describe it is to say that because of it you can appreciate the "Fourth World" and why. You can appreciate the whole nature of everything.' They said they now usually called the 'Fourth World' 'Paradise', and affirmed it was their own personal Paradise, that they could now see it whenever they wanted to and would go there when they died. They said they were producing their own religion and bible. Both girls were repeatedly questioned as to whether this 'Fourth World' was not just phantasy but were quite clear that it was not. Juliet said: 'It's metaphorical in the sense that it is not exact but it is definitely there. I do believe it exists,' She made it quite definite that it was not part of their fiction. Pauline said they had known about this 'Fourth World' about six months prior to the 'Port Levy revelation', and their experience at Port Levy simply clarified it. She maintained it occurred to both of them simultaneously. When it was suggested that this experience could be part of their vivid imagining she replied: 'I know it's real.' It was then pointed out to her that other people would look upon it as a delusion but she snapped back contemptuously: 'They don't matter.' Both the girls could consciously hallucinate almost at will, hearing music and voices and seeing fleeting scenes. Pauline said the things they heard would seem irrelevant and at the time unimportant, but later these things would often turn out to be important. At one time a small child's voice said 'She couldn't die'. She went on to say that it turned out afterwards (after the murder) to be what she said about her mother. Juliet said these reveries were often pure imagination at the start but then something came in which altered it, something which could happen in Paradise. The girls knowledge of right and wrong, their ethical beliefs, conscience, guilt and remorse were examined carefully. Unfortunately, the only aspect of these which the McNaghten rules is concerned with is the knowledge of right and wrong. In this sphere both girls were quite clear that they had murdered and that murder was wrong both according to the law of their country and according to the moral standards of the community in which they lived. Juliet is reported to have said: 'I would have been an absolute moron not to know murder was against the law.' Pauline's jottings on the night after the crime made it quite clear that she understood their act offended the morals of the community. It was obvious from the entry in the diary about not wanting to finish in Borstal that they knew beforehand that they would be punished if caught. Although they knew their murder, and for that matter their other actions such as theft and attempted blackmail, were wrong, both according to the law and the morals of the community, they were just as definite that these actions did not conflict with their personal moral or ethical conceptions. They had built up together a personal code which was definite but different from the community in which they lived. This code was typical both of Nietzsche's cult of the superman and Stirner's egoistic man as well as others which will be discussed later. Juliet laid bare its foundations when she emphasized that their god was unlike the Christian God in that all people in his eyes were not equal. She went on to say: 'Our god is a nice chap, he doesn't necessarily label all "sin" bad or evil, it can be good.' Out of the inequality of man in the eyes of God grows the privileges of the few 'to do what they will'. Later it becomes the duty of these few to achieve their ends irrespective of the means and as Juliet said: 'The best people are those who fight against all obstacles in pursuit of happiness.' On another occasion Juliet said: 'Anything really great is worth having at any cost.' They both expressed repeatedly the right to do what was in the interest of their happiness, irrespective of the law. Juliet also said there really was no right or wrong. If she were king of a country she would make laws for others to adhere to and punish them if they did not. She added that as king the laws would not apply to her. In their stories their favorite fictional characters act above the law. When the question of the individual man as an integral part of society with duties towards his fellows was raised Juliet became very heated and said: 'I believe you are a complete thing in yourself and every person is quite single and different from every other person. Right and wrong is different in each case.' Both considered themselves definitely apart from the law, and although they appreciated that the law would punish them it was not a law to which they owed any allegiance or respect. Their moral code showed an almost complete reversal of values. Diello, a particularly vicious character, was their favorite creation and 'It' whose hideousness Pauline described was loved. In many ways they openly embraced evil. In earlier times one would have said they had become 'possessed' by evil spirits. Juliet never expressed any qualms of conscience. Conscience, she said, was bred in people so that they punished themselves; it was senseless. She might have felt it she added when she was younger. Pauline, like Juliet, never showed real remorse. It will be remembered however that she hallucinated a small child's voice saying 'She couldn't die' and that in spite of the exultant 'night-before-Christmassy' feeling on the morning of the murder she had had bad dreams the preceding night which suggest that some part of her personality at least was protesting. On one visit she informed the writer that if she went to sleep on her right side she had dreams about her mother: '...that I only hurt her and hadn't killed her. In these dreams she comes back and she's rather nice.' She added defiantly 'I turn on to my left side.' In spite of the feelings that they were quite justified in their murder both girls used certain devices to lessen its significance. For example, on no real evidence they painted Pauline's mother as an unhappy woman and Juliet was reported as saying: 'The day we killed her I think she knew beforehand what was going to happen and she didn't seem to bear any grudge.' Judgement is difficult to assess in persons with such distorted ethical conceptions. There was evidence, however, that in certain directions their judgement was defective. For their intelligence and sophistication they were quite uncritical of their writings and their plans for publication and filming. The murder was very poorly planned. The most outstanding defect in judgement, however, was their complete inability to foresee, at least after their detection, the natural outcome of their action, namely separation. They showed an inability to think things through to their logical conclusion whenever any of their personal wishes were involved. As to insight there is no doubt that the girls never considered themselves insane in the ordinary sense. The diary references to their being 'mad' contains perhaps a glimmering of insight into the grossly exalted, excited state in which they were at the time, but this 'madness' was a distinction in which they exulted and of which they were proud.
DISCUSSION
The diagnosis. Paranoia was defined by Kraepelin as a fixed type of disease due exclusively to internal causes and characterized by persistent systematized delusions, the preservation of clear and orderly thinking and absence of hallucinations. ...[snip]... Folie a deux or communicated insanity has been frequently described in psychiatric literature. In the majority of instances it is induced by a stronger character, the inducer, upon the weaker, the inducee (folie imposee), but delusions may occur simultaneously in predisposed associated individuals (folie simultanee). There is no evidence of either of these girls imposing their ideas on the other, and there seems no doubt that they developed their psychoses simultaneously.
Age of onset of psychosis and the influence of adolescence. In classical descriptions paranoia is an illness of middle age. These descriptions are, however, weighted in favor of the persecutory form and as arrogance and megalomanic trends are not uncommon during adolescence there would appear nothing unusual in the development of paranoia of the exalted form at this age. In discussing adolescent girls Helen Deutsch (1946) points out... [snip descriptions of adolescent narcissism]... Helen Deutsch's account can be applied to Pauline and Juliet. These girls unfortunately went into adolescence already strongly narcissistic and each acted on the other as a resonator increasing the pitch of the narcissism. ...[snip observations of PYP and JMH isolation from social and group experiences]
Their rejection of moral values, and analogies in the literature. First, it is clear from their histories that this rejection of moral values was recent. Juliet, prior to meeting Pauline, had been selfish and demanding, but had never shown delinquent behaviour nor was her conduct particularly unusual. Pauline had apparently always been self-sufficient and intolerant of criticism, but her behaviour had been good and her father related how as a child if she had broken any of his tools modelling wood she would always be at the gate when he came home to tell him. There had certainly been no delinquent behaviour, and on reading the diary one noted a gradual change of attitude and conduct as time progressed. The striking differences in the 1953 and 1954 New Year resolutions will be remembered. Secondarily there is no evidence that their rejection of moral values and antisocial behaviour was dependent on any strong grudge against society. Thirdly, they did not slip into bad behaviour through so-called 'weakness of character'. Bad behaviour to them was not just an easy way out. They were not easily influenced. Anyone spending any time with either of the two girls could be in no doubt that they possessed considerable strength. The facts that their rejection of moral values and their antisocial behaviour was recent, not mediated by any basic grudge against society and not due to their being 'weak' and easily influenced, excludes an alternative diagnosis of psychopathic personality. The old conception of paranoia as a monomania or partial insanity is long discarded, and it is generally accepted that in spite of the apparent lucidity of the paranoiac there are subtle changes pervading the whole personality. These two girls with their fantastic arrogance and conceit, their emotional exaltation and their grandiose delusions naturally showed far reaching changes in their moral and ethical outlook and behaviour. In particular, their defences against unconscious aggressive forces were swept away and their super-egos almost silenced. As has been stated previously, their moral values became reversed and they embraced evil as good. These aggressive impulses were so much in ascendancy that one might have predicted their expression in a violent act even had external circumstances been different. Their murder was a direct result of pervasive personality changes. Pauline's mother was not a persecutor. In spite of Pauline's outbursts of anger towards her it is doubtful if either girl persistently hated her. They believed she stood in the way of their remaining together. In this they were quite correct, but they could not see far enough ahead in spite of their intelligence to appreciate that many other factors stood in the way of their remaining together and publishing and filming their books. As Bleuler (1924) states: the paranoiac often cannot recognize or feel the just rights of others. The two girls gave no thought to Mrs. P.'s right to live. 'Furthermore', he says, 'their own cause is so very much the only important, I might say the only sacred thing in the world, that a few lies and acts of violence also disappear in the face of it and are furthered and sanctified by the great purpose. Like a cancer the delusion extends to ever-widening areas, and there is far-reaching domination by the delusion of the entire personality in its behaviour and strivings.' The two girls were so disturbed mentally by the time of their threatened separation that they set about their murder with joyous abandon.
Some similar cases. Although these girls' distorted moral and social attitudes and antisocial behaviour developed as part of an exalted paranoia there are close analogies in the literature especially those associated with what we might call 'the cult of the superman'. Nietzsche. The foremost protagonist of the superman cult was Friedrich Nietzsche. Nietzsche himself was a frail, unhappy man, who, had he followed his dictum 'Goest thou to women--taketh thy whip' would have had the whip quickly wrested from him. ... [snip description of 'superman' philosophies]... Nietzsche's ethical conceptions are very similar to those of Pauline and Juliet. Nietzsche, however, was a man of words and never like the two girls attempted to translate his ideas into action. Max Stirner was in real life Kasper Schmidt, a teacher in a girls' school. ...[snip description of ideal egoist man rejecting morality of others]... Pauline and Juliet's unbounded egoism was consistent with Stirner's philosophy but inconsistent with man's role as a social creature. Dostoyevsky's Raskolnikov (Crime and Punishment) provides striking similarities. ...[snip description of arbitrary morality of social elite]... Raskolnikov's arrogant, belligerent, petulant, aggressive and self-incriminating behaviour during his examination corresponded vividly with that of Pauline and Juliet after their murder. Leopold and Loeb, who were both sons of millionaires in Chicago, adopted a superman philosophy and set about a career of crime for crime's sake which culminated in their teens in the murder of a school boy. ...[snip description of egomania, homosexual relationship between physically-disparate men, subordination of emotion and morality]... Neither Leopold nor Loeb expressed the same grossly delusional ideas as Pauline and Juliet, yet it would seem that they were moving in the same direction. Aleister Crowley the English magician who styled himself 'the great beast' taught ethical ideas very similar to those of Stirner. His motto summed up his philosophy and was: 'Do what thou wilt, that is the law. There is no other law.' He was never himself certified as insane, but he left an extraordinary trail of havoc with wives, concubines and disciples, becoming insane, addicted to drugs, or committing suicide. The Nazi S.S. Organization, according to Alexander (1948), was of a paranoiac nature. Although this may seem a far cry from these two girls there are several very close analogies. ...[snip descriptions of 'very close analogies']...Both the girls came to treat death very cheaply as something of no particular concern.
Homosexuality. There is of course no doubt that the relationship between these two girls was basically homosexual in nature. Pauline made attempts in 1953 of establishing heterosexual relationships, but in spite of intercourse on one occasion there was no evidence of real erotic involvement. All her escapades were fully discussed with Juliet which is a common feature amongst people basically homosexual in orientation. In spite of the most incriminating evidence in the diary they both denied physical homosexual relations to all examiners. Whether their acting of the Saints making love was not recognized by them as homosexual is not known. They both had sexual dreams about the Saints but none of those dreams was analysed. As the Saints were always shared figures there would appear good reason to suspect that heterosexuality was limited to the manifest content and the latent content might reveal the dreams were basically homosexual in nature. It was suggested that as their love-making scenes involved fictional or actual characters who were males, that this was not consistent with homosexuality but constituted a substitute relationship for heterosexuality. There was no evidence, however, that Juliet was ever interested in boys, and Pauline's attempts at heterosexuality ended in failure. In spite of their lack of restraint in discussing their aggressive behaviour they were obviously loath to admit homosexual leanings, and it would seem likely that the choice of male partners in dreams and in play acting was simply a disguise. Repressed homosexuality has a special role in persecutory paranoia, but there is some reason to believe that homosexuality might be prominent in other types of paranoia. The homosexual relationship between Leopold and Loeb has been mentioned, and Burr (1935) states that he cannot recall a case of paranoia in which he really knew the conduct of the patient and did not discover that he was homosexual.
SUMMARY Case histories of two adolescent girls who developed paranoia of the exalted type in the setting of a simultaneous folie a deux is described. They presented gross conceit and arrogance, were exalted in mood, held ideas of a grandiose delusional nature, showed gross reversal of moral values and finally murdered the mother of one of them. Particular attention is drawn to the early onset of paranoia in this instance and its relation to adolescence. Analogous distortions of ethical conceptions and reversal of moral values from the literature are briefly described and compared.
REFERENCES [selected. jp]
Bleuler, Eugen Paul (1924). Textbook of Psychiatry. New York: The Macmillan Company.
Deutsch, Helene (1946). The psychology of Women. A Psychoanalytic Interpretation. London: Research Books Ltd.
