Was Anna’s father the only reason why Anna felt like a monster? How do you think her mother might have played a role?
Anna was appalled by her own feelings when she took a life in the line of duty. BUT she was under the influence of PCP – a huge contributing factor. She had never killed anyone before and adrenaline surges at times like that, making one’s emotions in the moment become exaggerated. She was in danger and correctly intuited that a woman in the residence might also be, so there was relief when she eradicated the threat, even if it was by ending the life of the attacker. She needed counseling to work through those complicated feelings and understand that she really didn’t enjoy the act of killing and she wasn’t an immoral person.
Her mother played a role to the extent that Anna was abandoned by the woman who should have protected her, stayed by her side no matter what, and loved her unconditionally. But her mother didn’t do any of those things. She went off and started a whole new, “normal” life and Anna was grappling with her reactions to her mother’s actions. Also, Anna remembered her mother as not being all that warm even when she lived with her as a child.
So it was a combination of influences from and reactions to both of her parents.
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No been abandoned by her mother left Anna with much self doubt and truly unable to trust herself or others.
Anna was abandoned by her mother at a vulnerable age and after having been exposed to horrific crimes committed by her father. Her mother should have been her protector, should have loved her, and helped her overcome the horrible legacy left to her by her father.
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I feel that is was directly linked to her father. But her mother didn’t help, either.
She was a child, a child who questioned a lot about herself and parents. Both parents influenced her inner self.
I think both parents affected how Anna felt about herself. A father that is a serial killer and a mother that abandons you would make you question yourself and what you might be!
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Cosuld not agree more. Great analysis of the situation
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A lot of it was her father, but a small part of it was her mother as well. To have a father like that cannot have been easy, but to have a mother who abandons you for/after it doesn’t help with healing, it keeps the wound pretty fresh. Anna dealt with a lot of trauma in the aftermath of learning who her father was, but her mother never showed any love towards her. She saw Elena/Anna as an extension of Stephen in some way. She couldn’t continue living with her. It meant that Anna had to deal with a lot on her own.
When Anna found out that her mother had the variant too, she felt that she almost couldn’t escape its pull. She also felt that disregarding her police training put her in the monster category. So her father, her mother and herself were all monsters to her to some degree.
Love this question! As much of a monster as her father was, there isn’t much in terms of redeeming qualities when talking about mom either. Solvinic did a great job of exploring how Anna’s present state of mind was impacted by her relationship with both parents.