Case Analysis 2: The daily wear and tear

The social double face and moral superiority

In this second case, we will use the names of Picasso (aggressor) and Dora Maar (victim) to illustrate a different profile.

Picasso is described by his entourage as a charming, sociable and fun-loving man, the life of the party.

However, he lacks true friendships; in privacy, he ruthlessly criticizes everyone he knows, feeling superior and finding fault with everyone.

Dora, who begins the relationship without noticing these signs, notices the drastic change when they start living together.

The apartment belongs to Picasso's family, a fact that he uses to exert power.

He constantly reminds Dora how expensive the area is and how much money she is "saving", causing Dora, to compensate for this supposed debt, to assume all the domestic and food expenses, in addition to performing all the household chores, while he does not contribute either financially or in terms of labor.

Territorial control and domestic servitude

Despite Dora's efforts to keep the house spotless, cook and take care of the pets, she receives not gratitude, but contempt.

Picasso comes home cold and distant, refusing dinner with hurtful comments about the food ("I already ate fish," "it's cold").

Television viewing time becomes a silent ordeal; Dora learns not to voice her opinion to avoid being intellectually humiliated, as he labels her ideas as absurd and uneducated.

When they receive visitors, the dynamic is even more perverse: Dora is in charge of all the logistical work (shopping, cooking, catering), while Picasso launches subtle and negative comments in front of the guests that only she understands, ruining their evening.

If she reproaches him for this later, he calls her crazy, denies having said anything wrong and holds her responsible for the argument.

Emotional invalidation and somatization

Dialogue with Picasso is impossible; he always remains calm and denies reality (peaceful denialism), which makes Dora doubt her mental health and become defensive for no apparent reason.

The accumulated stress transforms Dora: she stops being cheerful and tenses up every time he walks in the door.

This chronic stress aggravates her health problems, specifically severe migraines.

Far from showing empathy, Picasso uses her illness to attack her, telling her that she is always sick, depressed and "can't be put up with." Dora excessively self-medicates to "be well" for him.

Although she tries to leave him twice, he uses manipulation (first anger, then seduc