Having always had a particular interest for psychology and the study of human behaviour, I was intrigued by the idea of a story based on a character who has no capacity to deal with the loss of her partner. The inspiration for a clearer structure of the story came from the article cited above in which a group of psychiatrists analyse different brain-processes that people go through in order to remember and to recollect the past. Realising that the amount of detail in a memory can sometimes totally manipulate the actuality of the past stimulated a curiosity that pressed me to do some further research wherein I developed a storyline with a related, yet completely different path: the stage of denial. Psychiatrists Elisabeth Kübler-Ross and David Kessler, in their book On Death and Dying, list and explain the five stages of grief. Kübler-Ross (1970, p. 38) describes the function of denial as “a buffer after unexpected shocking news, that allows the patient to collect himself and, with time, mobilise other, less radical defences” . This would also be the condition Diane, the main character, would experience. But the new story still lacked a concrete character and narrative arc. In order to create a credible character, I needed more information, which I acquired through a one hour Skype session with Patrizia Pascucci, an Italian psycho-therapist who works in Milan and has dealt with numerous denial cases. The session finally gave life to a much deeper character and to a stronger structure of the story. Since our protagonist is not able to deal with the loss of her boyfriend, although aware of her boyfriend’s death, would talk, interact and prepare dinner for him in order to feel less alone.
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