How well do you know Merricat?

€�I am so happy,” Constance said at last, gasping. “Merricat, I am so happy.” “I told you that you would like it on the moon.” In the novel, what does "the moon" represent?

"I pured a pitcher of water onto our fathers bed; Charles could not sleep there again. The mirror over the dresser was already smashed; it would not reflect Charles. He would not be able to find books or clothes and would lost in a room of leaves and broken sticks." What could Merricat's behaviour in this quote be a sign of?

€�I wished they were dead. I would have liked to come into the grocery and see them all dead, even the elberts and the children, lying there crying with the pain and dying.” What potential mental illness could Merricat have based on her behaviour in this quote?

What has lead you to believe this?

"My name is Mary Katherine Blackwood. I am eighteen years old...I dislike washing myself... Everyone else in my family is dead." In the opening paragraph, we learn Merricat is a grown adult, yet has the maturity of a child. What could have caused this?

"'Merricat, look how far I came today.' 'It's too far, first thing I know you'll be following me into the village.' 'I might, at that,' she said. Even though I know she was teasing me I was chilled." Why Does Merrict feel uncomfortable knowing Constance has travlled further from the house?

"I told myself that long thin things would remind me to be kinder to Uncle Julian." Merricat continues to remind herself to be kinder to Uncle Julian. Perhaps this is her way way of expressing guilt for poisoning him. If this is the case, can Merricat still be considered a sociopath?

"I wondered, always, what would happen if I stepped down from the curb onto the road; would there be a quick, almost unintended swerve toward me? Just to scare me perhaps? And then the laughter, coming from all sides, from behind the blinds in the post office, from the men in front of the general store, from the woman peering out of the grocery store, all watching and gloating, to see Mary Blackwood scurrying out of the way of a car. I sometimes lost 2 or 3 turns because I waited so carefully for the road to clear in both directions before I crossed.” What fear/anxiety of Merricat's is reflected in her paranoid ramblings?

Which level of the concious mind does the superego reside in?

"I was held tight, wound round with wire, I couldn't breathe, and I had to run. I threw the sweater on the floor and went out the door and down to the creek where I always went. After Charles invades the Blackwood household, Merricat runs to the creek. What could level of conciousness was primarily responsilbe for this behaviour?

"I always stood perfectly straight and stiff when the children came close, because I was afraid of them." What level of conciousness is Merricat dominated by in this quote?

What part of the mind acts as a moral and critical concious?

"But there would be no tea today, because we would have to neaten the house, although it was not the usual day for neatening the house." After the Blackwood house burns down, Merricat seems more concered with the cleaning they'll have to do rather than the life of Uncle Julian, suggesting the idea that Merricat's perception of reality has been altered. Which of Merricat's previous actions could support this?

"'Merricat,' she said smiling, 'look how far I came today.'" Constance's behaviour is frequently opposite to that of Merricat's. What could this suggest about her id, ego and superego?

What other mental illnesses do you believe Merricat has? What previous events could have caused this?