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Peter Cashorali's avatar

This reads with great psychological accuracy. As I read it I remember that we're often a group rather than a single unified mind, and in that group one of us is the Accuser. I also remember that when a person argues with themselves they win and lose the argument.

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Gadzooks Marchmain's avatar

I found this an elegant illustration of the complex relationship between decisions and moral identities. Even when the narrator has revealed that in the end he resisted the urge to kill, the unconsummated violence has left a deep mark. And yet it also seems to have galvanised him - perhaps tense internal dialogues like this are of great existential significance - without them we are never fully married to our choices. Perhaps without internal conflict, we remain existential bachelors. In a world that believes in making progress towards the unfettered satisfactions of utopia, this could be mankind's future. Thanks for providing good food for thought.

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