Sipe's Book 'I Am Not Your Victim'

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The Power and Control Wheel provides eight different behavioral categories that an abusive partner uses in order to keep all the power and control in the relationship (Robinson, 2013). To a person that has not experienced this type of relationship violence, these behavioral categories may be clear signs of abuse and need of help. However, these categories can often be unrecognizable and/or normal to a person experiencing them (Robinson, 2013). In Sipe’s (2013) book, “I am Not Your Victim”, each tactic is seen within Beth and Sam’s relationship. Beginning with the category of economic abuse, this tactic gives the abuser the control over the victim’s freedom and ability to support themselves (Robinson, 2013). Some examples of this category are, …show more content…
Some examples of this are, making the victim feel like a servant, rather than your partner and deciding what roles a women and men should take in the relationship (Robinson, 2013). These roles often categorize men as the head of everything and women as obedient partners. In the case of Beth and Sam’s relationship, Sam made it very clear in many different occasions that he was in control, specifically when speaking about money Beth’s desires to work, and getting a driver’s license (Sipe, 2013). He was a firm believer on the thought of women needing to stay home to take care of all the husband’s needs (Sipe, 2013). In addition, the category of using intimidation allows the abuser to keep the victim by their side, without them acting in ways that the abuser would disapprove of (Robinson, 2013). Some examples of these action are, making the victim afraid by gestures, looks, breaking things, and/or using weapons (Robinson, 2013). A perfect example of this tactic in Beth and Sam’s relationship was the intimidation Sam often used to terrify Beth. According to Sipe (2013), he constantly moaned about everything he disliked and would begin to get irritated, causing him to get angry and act in violent …show more content…
An example of this tactic involves trying to exclude the victim from having any friends or any acquaintances that they could possibly rely on. In Beth’s relationship with Sam, Beth is constantly struggling with being isolated and having no one to rely on while being away from her family (Sipe, 2013). Sam makes matters worse when he moves Beth and the children into a house far away from the city, while also preventing Beth from having a vehicle to use (Sipe, 2013). The last category in the Power and Control Wheel is the use of emotional abuse, which is seen as psychological abuse towards the victim (Robinson, 2013). This tactic is used as a way to lower a victims worth by using name calling, humiliations, and making them feel guilty for things that are not their fault (Robison, 2013). According to the book by Sipe (2013), the relationship between Beth and Sam was full of emotional abuse. Sam constantly called her stupid and made her feel like she would not amount to anything because she was just a southern female (Sipe, 2013). Sam always made sure Beth felt guilty for everything he believed was wrong, even when Beth knew it was not her fault, Sam would turn the tables and

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