On the Many Deaths of Amanda Palmer (27 page)

. . . It is also worth noting, despite being somewhat obvious, the format of the texts: texts 1, 2, 4, 7 and 8 are all written as fictional prose; texts 3, 5 and 10 are written in rhyming verse; text 6 is written in essay form; and text 9 effortlessly veers between prose, verse and essays forms.

. . . It is however in his portrayals of himself as the “man with the false moustache” that James is at his most psychologically revealing. This character, in one form or another, appears in every text; although in some texts the falseness of the moustache itself is not specifically mentioned, it is however reasonable to assume, amongst this particular collection, that characters such as Silas Monger (text 1), Jamie and Filch (text 7) and Father Stringer (text 8) are in fact wearing false moustaches, but that they are well fitted bespoke moustaches and thus easily mistaken for the real thing, as has been previously demonstrated. As the moustachioed gentleman James variously portrays himself as a guide who leads Miss Palmer into a new magical world (texts 2, 4, 7, 9); a manipulative and controlling force
against which Miss Palmer seems helpless (texts 1, 7, 9); and a character for whom Miss Palmer's death unleashes a consummate act of creativity on their part (text 5, 8, 9). In text 6 and 9 he places himself as an essential non-participatory link in the corrupting of the tradition that ultimately leads to Miss Palmer's death; in texts 9 and 10 he places himself as the all-knowing narrator who prophesies Miss Palmer's magical existence, turn of Fate and ultimate dissipation. It is also worth noting that rarely in any of the texts are two falsely-moustachioed men present at one time, and when they are (text 7) one seeks to destroy the other. This further indicates James' use of the writing process to work through his own inner conflicts in a quite literal literary manner.

. . . What becomes apparent when these and other sets of simple observation are plotted in the form of Venn diagrams is that text 9 invariably falls at the very centre. In total we plotted 27 different sets of criteria and in only 2 diagrams was text 9 outside the central zone of inclusivity: one involving the frequency with which the words
hdjskhf,
,
asjhskjfhk
,
njfjkgnvjskn
and
rirgf
were used, the other focussing specifically on Miss Palmer's
hgfkjsghv fsvbsfbvhsfbvhfsbdvhisfbvnvfsjivnji.
. . .

The report then goes into much detail with regard to the various possible implications of this observation which regrettably cannot be printed here due to the many quotations it includes from Text Number Nine, without which it would make little sense. It does, however offer the following generalised (and therefore less “sensitive”) conclusion:

. . .
It is therefore clear that text 9 is in every sense the emotional, thematic, psychological, and technical centre of the collection. . . . Indeed it contains within its lines every literary technique and theme employed in the other texts put together, only in a far more condensed and deliberate form . . .

. . . The overriding impression is that this text 9 was probably the first text to be written, most likely in a fit of excited creative angst, and that the other 9 texts (and in all likelihood the further 187 texts which have been withheld from our examination) were an attempt to unravel the density of text 9 and recapture something of the artistic excitement that accompanied its creation . . .

In addition to these specific observations the report also summarises a number of other themes running through the texts:

. . . Given the nature of Miss Palmer's work, which is undeniably shot through with gratuitous sexuality, we must take a
moment to consider the sexual content of the texts, which is all the more present through its absence. Despite the moustachioed gentleman having Miss Palmer in his power in a number of the stories, at no point is there any hint of sexual attraction or motivation. It is however most revealing that in text 8, once Father Stringer (the moustachioed gentleman) has left the scene, there is more than a hint of sexual attraction from young Mary-Beth towards Miss Palmer. This passage is beautifully and subtly written clearly demonstrating James' awareness of, and appreciation for, Miss Palmer's much flaunted sexual allure. That he places the onus of demonstration upon a young girl, and therefore not upon a representation of himself suggests a certain disassociation within his own sexuality. This is then further demonstrated in text 9, in which
beautifully and subtly written clearly demonstrating James' awareness of, and appreciation for, Miss Palmer's much flaunted sexual allure. upon a young girl, and therefore not upon a representation of himself suggests a certain disassociation within his own sexuality. This is then further That he places the onus of demonstration upon a young girl, and therefore not upon a representation of himself suggests a
although admittedly this is all cleverly implied without ever being explicitly stated. Put together these two texts suggest a man who is ill at ease with his own sexual attraction towards Miss Palmer, possibly as a result of actions he had undertaken in the past (Perspective Three) or frustration at inaction when faced with opportunities for gratification unfulfilled (Perspective Two) . . .

. . . As with sexuality, there is a similar dissociation with violence against Miss Palmer. Although in the majority of texts Miss Palmer's death is either not portrayed or comes about in a non-violent manner, it is once again the few exceptions that are most revealing. In text 5 the moustachioed gentleman (representing James) comes upon the dying Miss Palmer, who has been stabbed for no valuable reason, and
through this encounter discovers the inspiration to write a great work, thus giving her death meaning. This is a theme further developed in text 9, by far the most violent of all the texts, albeit in a subtly implied manner. Here we see
Miss Palmer. Although in the majority of texts Miss Palmer's death is either not portrayed or comes about in a non-violent manner, it is once again the few exceptions that are most revealing. In text 5 the moustachioed gentleman (representing James) comes upon the dying Miss Palmer, who has been stabbed for no valuable reason, and through this encounter discovers the inspiration to write a great work, thus giving her death meaning. This is a theme further developed i
from which it can be inferred that Miss Palmer's death and James' own creative fulfilment are inextricably linked, and that the degree of violence levelled against Miss Palmer is presented as directly proportional to James' own artistic achievement . ..

. . . Having looked closely at all the texts and the themes within we can therefore draw the following conclusions with regard to the three possible perspectives:

Perspective One (coincidental origination): as we have seen, the centrality of text 9 renders this perspective exceptionally unlikely at best. This perspective can therefore be largely dismissed.

Perspective Two (origination in reaction to shock): this perspective appears to fit the available evidence best, the most likely implied scenario being as follows—James stumbles inadvertently upon the scene of Miss Palmer's demise—he watches from the distance, shocked at both what he is seeing and his own reaction to the sight; in addition finding it uncomfortably sexually exciting—in a state of near hysteria he returns home and, being of a sensitive artistic bent, launches into an inspired fit of writing resulting in text 9—following this he is haunted by the ecstatic thrill of cathartic creation and begins obsessively attempting to reach that peak once again by recasting the characters and scenes, but to no avail—eventually
he comes to believe that publication is his only chance for resolution, and so, having heard about the book being researched for the Amanda Palmer Trust, embarks upon a series of highly sophisticated schemes, many involving criminal forms of manipulation, to essentially highjack editorial control of the selection process, naturally choosing exclusively his own works.

Perspective Three (origination as an attempt to cleanse guilt at direct involvement): initially this perspective was considered a fair candidate, however, after further consideration it has been concluded that Perspective Three is not compatible with the number of, and variation of tone amongst, the presented texts. Had this writing been related directly to guilt many precedents suggest it would be more focussed around the actual events and less around fantastical and religious reinterpretations. In addition this perspective makes little sense of the quest towards control clearly expressed in a number of the texts. . . . had James been previously associated with Miss Palmer this perspective would fit the psychological profile better, however no evidence exists to suggest any previous contact. . . .

. . . We therefore feel fairly confident in offering the following psychological profile of Mr. Tobias James, with the cautionary reminder that, despite the wealth of evidence and well-established theory to hand; it is, in reality, little more than informed speculation:

Tobias James most likely suffers from an acute-displaced-Samson-complex-by-proxy, that being a deep-seated character-ological defect stemming from faulty object relations normally leading to existential despair and suicidal longing. In the case of Mr. James this complex is further complicated by a further addiction to control which prevents actual expression through any means other than representations, usually fictional, although at times spilling through into fictionalised physical presentations of himself. The resulting acute displacement
of the compulsion to re-enact a sudden unexpected instant of betrayal and/or rage (most probably involving his stumbling accidentally upon the scene of Miss Palmer's demise) is thus expressed through the extensive and considerable rewriting of events until they have become almost sanitised by the act of repetition and the subsequent decay of intensity: thus we would assume that those texts embodying acts of violence were among the first to be written, and those texts which read more like children's parables would have been written later . . . (It is worth noting that almost all the texts portray betrayal in one sense or another) . . . This displacement of the power to act into fictionalised territory is further symbolised by his wearing a false moustache whilst presenting himself to the world—and his removal of said moustache when presenting his physical image to himself (such as in the photographic studio) . . .

. . . We would therefore consider Mr. James to be highly intelligent, manipulative, without scruples, a consummate liar, and indeed a borderline sociopath, (all characteristics essential in a writer of any real substance) although we would not consider him to be dangerous in an immediate sense of the word.

It should be noted that all of the above are the opinions of Dr. Simmons and her team, and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editor, nor the Amanda Palmer Trust as a whole. They are printed here for reference purposes only.

APPENDIX V