Martha - I love your frustration with the woman who accepts what her husband tells her, "damn all the evidence to the contrary!" Again, my reading differs - for me it has always been true that she knows what the real truth is, but knows that her opinion bears no weight whatsoever; she is completely powerless.
And you are quite right; there is a resemblance to depression. I never quite saw this before...but what we don't understand about those who are seriously depressed is that they are defeated before they ever start to fight. They are like the woman in the story - whether she sees what needs to be done or not, she doesn't have the tools, the strength, to do it. Neither does your friend. He is a prisoner of his own inabilities.
Thank you for that insight; I will perhaps be more patient with a friend of my own, in future.
