Jennifer Boggs

May 3, 2016
English 1020 Monsters
Unit 4 assignment
Rough draft

Set stage: Marie is in the kitchen cooking dinner. She stares solemnly into the spaghetti. As she
stirs, she contemplates the life she is currently living. She and her boyfriend have been together
for 3 years and in 3 years many things have changed. When the relationship first started things
were great. Johnny was very kind and gentle in the beginning, he made Marie laugh and smile
every time they were together. After a few months of dating, Johnny asked Marie to move in
with him and she declined. Marie wanted to be married before she lived with a man. It didnt
take long but Johnny convinced Marie to move in and they would be married shortly after. Three
years later and they still werent married and Marie wanted to make sure they never did. Marie,
still stirring spaghetti, looks up at the clock and sighs. Johnny will be home any minute.
Johnny walks in the front door, kicks off his boots and goes straight into the kitchen. Marie is
always in the kitchen cooking dinner when he gets home, as she should be, and dinner is to
always be on the table after his shower.
Johnny: Whats for dinner?
Marie: Spaghetti
Johnny (irritated): damn it Marie, didnt we just have that the other day? What made you think I
would want that crap again? I swear youre so stupid sometimes.
Marie (voice strained): We had it last week and there was nothing else to cook. You still havent
given me any grocery money.
Johnny: Whatever! I gave you money just the other day! What did you spend it on?
Marie(angry): You havent given me any money in three weeks! This is the last of the food, what
would you have me do?
Johnny: How about get off your lazy ass and go get a job? You dont do anything all day but sit
and watch TV.

Marie(furious): You told me not to get a job! You told me I was too stupid to work and that the
only thing I could do was clean the house and try not to mess up raising our son!
Johnny(laughing): I never said that Marie. See youre making things up again. I swear you need
a doctor to fix that damaged brain of yours. Make me a damn plate of food and smother it in
cheese. You cant cook for shit anyway.
Johnny walks out of the kitchen, laughing loudly. Marie grabs the cheese from the refrigerator
and
makes the plates. As she covers one plate fully with cheese, she wipes the tears from her face.

Later that evening. Marie sitting in the living room reading a book. Johnny sitting in his chair
watching TV when the phone rings.
Johnny to Marie: the phone is ringing Marie, get the damn phone!
Marie gets up and answers the phone
Marie: Hello? Oh, hey mom, how are you. Yes, just a second.
Marie walks into the other room, picks up the phone and sits down to talk to her mother. After
half an hour Marie returns to the living room and picks up her book.
Johnny: did you have fun whining to your mother?
Marie: I didnt whine to my mom. We just had a normal conversation.
Johnny: oh? And what did you two talk about?
Marie: Just this and that, nothing to interesting. Not that its any of your business.
Johnny(enraged):It isnt my business huh? You live in my house and everything little thing you
do is my business Marie! If it werent for me, you would be homeless and starving!
Johnny has gotten up from his seat and is towering over Marie, who is shrunk down into her
chair, trembling.
Johnny: How dare you think you can keep anything from me! You better watch that attitude girl
or youll end up out on your ass, living in the streets and Ill make sure you never see the kid
again.
Marie(in near hysterics): Ill go to court, you will never keep my son from me!
Johnny(laughing): wow Marie, youre stupid and crazy. What judge is going to give a child to
someone homeless and jobless. You couldnt even take care of him. Youll be out in the streets
with bums as your only company, so you better straighten up and remember whos boss.

Johnny stood up and strode out the room, confident that he had won the battle. Little did he know
that the conversation Marie had with her mother was about her escape. Marie would leave with
her son to her mothers house and Johnny would never see them again.
Emotional abuse is very real. It happens every day and is difficult to recognize. Unlike other
forms of abuse, emotional abuse leaves no marks or bruises because the damage is on the inside.
Unfortunately for victims of emotional abuse, the pain they have experienced is rarely visible to
the naked eye, (Sims 2008) There is still controversy about whether or not emotional abuse is a
legitimate form of abuse. This skit is but a sample of what emotional abuse is and what all can
happen in these relationships. Emotional abuse, in a way, is the worst form of abuse because
bones and bruises heal fairly quickly compared to the mind. This form of abuse is a lot more
common but isnt a subject we hear much about in society. Nearly one-quarter of women in the
U.S. are victims of severe physical violence at the hands of their partners at some point in their
lives, but nearly twice as many endure psychological aggression, ( Ginny Graves) Emotional
abuse happens twice as often as physical abuse, but it is something that is rarely covered in the
media. It is troubling that emotional abuse happen more often than physical abuse and yet some
will argue that it isnt even abuse. Emotional abuse is the worst kind of abuse.

Dear diary
Today was not a good day. Daniel was in a foul mood. I understand he was mad. I would be mad
too if I got chided at work in front of a bunch of people, but he really need to be so rude to me.
Maybe if I had hung his shirts up right, he wouldnt have screamed at me and called me such
horrible names. I know he is really mad when he calls me his favorite nickname, stupid cunt. I
remember the first time he said it, he made sure I knew exactly what it meant. He said it was a
woman who was basically worthless. I woman who was only good for one thing, to lay on her
back, shut up and take it. His exact words: a cum dumpster. I cant think of a more horrible thing
to call someone. What happened to the old Daniel? The one I fell in love with. Three years ago I
would have never thought he would turn into this monster. Someone who could hurt me so

deeply with just a few words. Where did I go wrong? What did I do to deserve this? I am so tired
of him talking about how fat I am. What else does he expect when he keeps bringing home all
this crap food. Donuts this morning, ice cream last nights and he has brought home left over
Chinese several days this week. I dont know why I keep eating. I know that after I eat it he is
going to call me a fat ass and tell me Im never going to be attractive if I keep eating. Its like he
does it on purpose. He brings home food just so he has a reason to be mean to me. The other day,
I really thought he was going to hit me. We had a fight and when we fight, its actually him
fighting and me just standing there. I learned long ago that it was better to just be quiet, he
calmed down faster when you didnt fight back. Unfortunately for me, I didnt feel like being
quiet that day. I was making breakfast the other day, when I burned some toast. The toast wasnt
even really burned, it was just a little more brown than Daniel likes it but dark brown toast was
such a big deal. He started calling me stupid, and saying what an idiot I must be since I cant
even make toast. I made the mistake of opening my mouth and saying that he was over reacting,
that it was just a piece of bread. He became furious and backed me into a corner, screaming at
the top of his lungs. He kept saying that he wasnt over reacting and that I was a moron who
couldnt even make toast. That is when he raised his fist and punched the wall beside my head. I
swear, all that shit over some over brown bread. I dont know why he got so upset over such a
little thing. Thats just Daniel though, always getting upset over ridiculous things. Its difficult to
deal with every day but somehow I manage. Maybe one day I will get away, but that day is not
today. So I will put this diary back in its hiding place and hope I have better news next time.

The cruelty of emotional abuse knows no bounds. The abuser will say and do anything to
keep the victim under control. A popular tactic of emotional abuse is something called the
gaslight effect. Gaslighting is when a person twists or contorts reality in order to control another
person. This form of control can be subtle at first but will become very apparent in time. stage
one is characterized by disbelief (Robin Stern) At first a person may not know what is going on
or they will be confused and not be able to believe another human being is acting this way.

stage two is marked by the need to defend yourself (Robin Stern) When the victim realizes
what is going on, they will try and stand up for themselves. Sometimes this has little to no affect
and can even make things worse. stage three gaslighting is the most difficult of all: depression
(Robin Stern) When the victim has lost all hope in being able to break free of the gaslighter, the
victim will go into a form of depression. The gaslight effect can make the victim doubt their self
and believe all hope is lost. The gaslight effect is just one more way emotional abusers control
and abuse a person. It is a cruel way to make the victim doubt everything they know. The
Gaslight effect doesnt just happen in intimate relationships. Gaslighters and gaslightees can be
of either gender, and Gaslighting can happen in any type of relationship (Robin Stern) It can
happen between two coworkers, with a parent or even sometimes with a mutual friend.
Gaslighting may not seem cruel but when the victim is so confused and distraught that they are
doubting their own mind, this is where the line is drawn.

QuestionIt!!!
Advice column

From: Thatgirl65
Date: March 7, 2029
Subject: Help?

Ok so I know this is an odd question but I think I am being abused. I know I know obviously if I was
being beaten I would know I was being abused, but he doesnt hit me. In fact he has never laid a hand on
me, but the mean and hurtful things he says just cant be normal. So my question is, if he doesnt hit me
but his words hurt is it abuse or am I over reacting? Please help!!!

From: Witchwitwings7
Date: March 7, 2029
Subject: Response
First off let me say that if you think you are being abused, then you probably are. If a man is saying things
just to hurt or control you then it is definitely abuse. He may not be beating you physically, but it sounds
like emotional abuse to me. I would need more info of course but just from that bit of information from
you, it dont sound good.

From: Str8hater50
Date: March 8, 2029
Subject: Response
Your over reacting, words dont hurt.

From: Butterfligurl
Date: March 8, 2029
Subject: Response
Dont listen to that asshole, words do hurt. Verbal abuse is a very real thing and can cause long term
damage on the brain. If a man is saying mean things to you and you have told him how you feel and he
still dont stop then he is definitely an abuser and you need to dump his ass. You deserve so much better.
Keep strong sweet heart.

From: Thatgirl65
doubting their own mind, this is where the line is drawn.
Date: March 8, 2029
Subject: Response
Thanks you guys for your responses. No he doesnt hit me, but he does call me stupid, worthless, and lots of other
names. He is constantly telling me how I aint worth shit and how he wastes money on me. Today he told me if I
didnt get out of his face than he would lock me in the closet. I was just sitting in the living room, not like I was
really bothering him of anything. I swear sometimes I wish I could just crawl under a rock somewhere and never
be found.
From: Witchwitwings7
Date: March 9, 2029
Subject: Response
OK, that is definitely abuse!!! You cant let him get away with that. You should do some research on emotional
abuse to find out exactly what it is and how you can deal with it and get help. I learned the hard way that living
under the cloud of emotional abuse does affect one's health and well being. ( Globus-Goldberg, Nancy) That is an actual
quote from a very good journal article. Just start googling emotional abuse and see what you can come up with.
Emotional abuse is a very bad thing and you dont deserve that crap. I wish you the best hunny.
From: Livordie63
Date: March 9, 2029
Subject: Response
This is such a load of shit, you arent being abused. Everyone knows what abuse really is, we see it on the news all
the time. Some bitch got her face smashed in by her drunk husband, now thats abuse. You are just whining!!!! If
he tells you to stop bothering him, then just do it. If he tells you your cooking is aweful, then it is and he just wants
you to cook better!! Its really not that difficult. You just need to toughen up and deal with it. Sounds like to me
that he is paying all the bills, so you should consider yourself lucky. Just suck it up!!!!
From: lillygal69<3
Date: March 10, 2029
Subject: Response
Dont listen to that idiot sweetie, he obviously has no clue what he is talking about. I did some research for you
online. Sometimes verbal abuse is so bad that you actually start believing what your partner says. (types of
abuse) Girl dont you believe anything that man says. He dont know shit. You are a beautiful person and you
deserve someone who is going to treat you right. Oh and btw dont let that man blame any of his abuse on you.
emotional abuse is never your fault. (types of abuse) See chick? It is never your fault when someone else tries to
hurt or control you. I hope you find your path and are able to get away. Try to keep us posted

From: Thatgirl65
Date: March 11, 2029
Subject: Response
Thank you every one for your help. It is good to know what there are still decent people out there.
Thank you for your support. I have been doing some research online and even made a few phone calls.
I have started making plans to leave. This advice column has really helped me. I have also learned a
few things from my research. This study supports previous research efforts that have
noted a significant relationship between level of depression and level of psychological abuse
(Kelly, Pg.56) This quote came from a journal article that was very helpful. The article was talking
about how emotional abuse often causes depression. That might be why I have been feeling so down
lately. Well anyway, thanks again guys and yes, I will keep you guys updated.

A poem is a good way to go more in depth of a subject in a rhythmic way to hold

attention. It is a good way to express feeling and emotion.

The pain so strong, so real and so deep

Is something that no other pain could compete.
A vicious monster or a tempered child
Will make you wonder if he was born in the wild
The tongue is a weapon of very sharp steal
One that takes no care of how you feel
Invisible pain, invisible tears
A demon with no love or any fears
Struggling to rise every day
That fake smile in place to stay
Time passes by in a blur
But no emotion is allowed to stir
You finally know when the battle is lost
When you have given up hope and called them the boss

The name of the game is control and hate

Do what youre told and never be late
Invisible pain, invisible tears
Backed into a corner, with eyes like a deers
People walk by unaware of the burden
Because she hides those feelings under a curtain
If you ask, she will say oh I am fine
But she isnt the person to cry or whine
So she bottles it up inside
Until she is consumed and eventually dies
The abuse is very real no matter what is said
The victim grows depressed and refuses to get out of bed
Invisible pain, invisible tears
A shortening of a beautiful souls years
To seek so hard for a man to love
And be pushed to fly to the sky above
The moment that me has started to flip
That solid mask is starting to slip
He told you that mouth can get you in trouble
When he starts to advance, thats when you stumble
The fall is hard, a blow to the head
A few seconds pass, everything is red
Invisible pain, invisible tears
A monster that embodies all of your fears
A black curtained room with friends and family
People that love you and will miss you badly
They speak fondly of you in front of each other
Secretly they wonder if they should blame the mother

But none know the truth of this horrible event

love turned to hate, her hope was soon spent
found by the demon in charge of her pain
he blamed her of course, said she was insane
Invisible pain, invisible tears
She hid so well that the end was near
This future is not set in stone
It doesnt have to happen, you are not alone
Talk to your family and friends
You can decide how this story ends
Its time to sever this monsters control
No longer to bare the demons strong hold
Look to the sky, for the strength that you seek
And remember he makes all his children unique
Invisible pain, invisible tear
Your future is bright, youre in the clear