Paedophilia A Psychological Study of the Selected Novels of Five American Writers

Abstract

The main objective of the present thesis is to study and analyze Paedophilia in the selected novels of five American writers i.e. Vladimir Nabokov, Scott Heim, A.M. Homes, Elizabeth Scott and Alissa Nutting and to bring to the forefront the plight of children who fall prey to the recurrent sexual fantasies and desires of paedophiles. The fundamental premise of the study is to explore the portrayal of paedophiles vis-à-vis the cause and impact of their psychological disorder. A close reading of the selected novels reveals a number of serious concerns. The most detrimental belief that paedophiles are not always harmful for children and that they must be given due rights by decreasing the age of consent, or the other idea that children between the age group of eleven and fourteen are mature enough for sexual intercourse and enjoy sexual contact with adults, gives opportunity to sexual offenders to offend children physically as well as sexually without any restraint. In order to fulfil their sexual desires, paedophiles deceive and mislead children since they are not mature enough to recognize their wicked intentions. The psychological study of the selected novels helps to bring out a true picture of the mind of paedophiles and unveil their hidden intentions. There are a number of organizations claiming that there is nothing wrong in adults sexual contact with children, paying no heed to the other side of picture where it leaves a permanent scar on children s psyche for their whole life. The study further highlights that the paedophiles frame validation for victimization of children to satisfy their illicit sexual urges thereby, increasing the cases of child sexual abuse day by day. Thus the ambit of this study is to explore the selected novels of these writers, which are indeed reflections of the mind of paedophiles and wounds of the victimized children who cannot speak or fight for themselves. newline