Soulshine

A major character defect shared by most all codependents is manipulation. Engaging in manipulation is fueled by the need to control. A codependent person cannot trust life or others. Of course, life is a fact that we have limited control over. And, unfortunately for the fear-filled codependent, we all need others no matter how independent we pretend to be. This fact provides a serious dilemma for the codependent person. The all-too codependent need to manipulate others plays out magnificently in the 1950 film Harriet Craig . Harriet needs her husband Walter and her cousin Claire, and yet she mistakenly believes she can’t trust either of them. Harriet’s never sure if Walter might betray her at any moment and so she keeps a tight grip on him. She almost never lets him out of her sight, and she’s learned that she needs to keep his leash short. You see, Walter has friends—both men and women—that he ran around with before he met and married Harriet. Those friends are now a thr...

Meet Harriet Craig. She is the title character from the 1950 movie of the same name. And Harriet Craig is a woman of steel. As such, she is very aptly played by Joan Crawford, who was almost always portrayed as a woman of steel. Despite being a mere 5 foot 2 inches tall, almost all of Crawford’s portrayals were of women who stood 10 feet tall, and who could stare a hole right through your soul, nearly killing you instantly. And Harriet Craig is no exception. Harriet Craig is not a very likeable person. When we first meet her it’s obvious that she is extremely unapproachable. She puts on a good appearance: She dresses immaculately in the latest fashions, her hair is perfectly sculpted around her head and she has great physical beauty. But as we approach Harriet and begin to see her up-close, we realize that she is made of steel and we immediately grow uncomfortable in her presence. Harriet has no warmth to her. In fact, she has daggers in her eyes. And she is so rigid that...