David Manz
Rel 408
1-30-03

The Flock recounts the therapy of Joan Frances Casey. She worked with Lynn and later Gordon Wilson. Struggling with her masters thesis and life in general, Joan bounced from various therapists until she finally settled on Lynn. Their chemistry was unique from all of Joan’s prior relationships. Both women were in a position grow and work together in an unprecedented manner. Joan was suffering from depressions and fits of amnesia. She started seeing Lynn in weekly and eventually daily sessions that revealed far more about Joan’s situation. Joan remembered little about her childhood and sometimes secretly called herself Renee.

Through therapy they both discovered that Joan was actually suffering from Multiple Personality Disorder. Joan had 24 distinct personalities within her at some points in her life. The more prominent ones include, Renee, a fun-loving outgoing teenager, Jo a more studious introvert, Missy a five year old child who craved a loving mother, Joan Frances a troubled suck up to her mother Nancy, we later learn about Rusty, Josie, Isis, Kendra and many more. Joan, if we can even address this multiplicity of minds as one person, struggles with depression and many fears. Joan Frances cannot handle her mother’s rejection, Renee cannot handle any rejection, Jo fears losing control, and Josie fears most everything.

As the story progresses we learn that Joan suffered a very traumatic childhood. Her father abused her sexually and physically. Her mother rebuffed her and this environment fostered the idea that poor Joan had no one to turn to. No parental figure stepped forward to comfort her, so she created her own means of comfort. This involved new personalities in her mind. These new entities could deal with the horrors of life (Josie) so the remaining one’s did not have to. This subdividing continued through to therapy with Lynn. After three years of intense counseling strides took place in first accepting MPD then fostering intercommunication between the personalities. Joan eventually moved off to Harvard graduate school. There she was confronted by a less comforting medical community. She perseveres and eventually subgroups of personalities realize that joining together in coconsciousness would be better than the continued separation. While there are setbacks, Joan, after more than 5 years of striving, finally reaches Unity and considers herself one person. More importantly the various personalities within her are not subsumed but incorporated into her new life.