Psychology · Chapter 5 · Jacob: power & repression
The Prey Made a Move
Narcissistic rage
“a thing that was supposed to lie still and wait to be taken had suddenly dared to make a move of its own” Jacob’s fury is not disgust. A second earlier he was the one leaning in, rasping “ask me”. He explodes not because of the kiss but because of who initiated it: the thing took a turn in a game where every move belonged to him. For a self that rests on total control, this is not an offence — it is an earthquake.
And deeper: Simon made visible what Jacob hides from himself. While Jacob was the one reaching, it was “a game”; the moment someone reached for him, the game became a mirror. The rage at the “freak” is rage at his own reflection — redirected at the one who is safer to hit: the defenceless one.
