| The Achilles Complex is a theoretical paradigm for the understanding of the etiology of sadistic, murderous wishes which are contained intrapsychically or enacted. The paradigm is based on the mythological hero Achilles who represents the literary prototype of this personality. The elements of the Achilles Complex are developed as a profile. This study presents six case histories. Four of the cases are men who regressed to the ultimate form of the Achilles Complex, which is serial murder, while two of the cases analyze men who have developed points of fixation along a continuum of pathological defenses. |
