A catastrophic solution: Psychoanalytic perspectives on a samurai school attack in South Africa

Abstract

The case of a rampage attack using a samurai sword is explored from a psychoanalytic perspective. The offender’s upbringing, his interaction in the school context, associated behaviors, and personality characteristics are used to shed light on unconscious and preconscious dynamics evident in the build-up to the rampage attack. A disorganized attachment system and the presence of false-self pathology appear to have important implications for the case. The role of malignant shame, dissociation, compulsive fantasy, and deficiencies in the capacity to mentalize are discussed.