Cadence Mertz AP English 11-11-24 Reflections on the past The Diary of an Oxygen Thief by Anonymous is a diary that delves into the mind of a narcissist and explores the nature of human emotions. The focus of this novel is the narrator’s emotional baggage. His treatment of other people, his attitudes towards them, and how he views situations are largely impacted by his unresolved emotional trauma. The narrator’s inability to move on results in a cycle of emotional distress throughout the novel. The Oxygen Thief experienced neglect and abuse as a child, which led him to develop into a cycle of emotionally abusing women. The narrator has a lot of emotional trauma from his childhood. When he was nine he was abused by a De La Salle Brother, who is a religious man devoted to …show more content…
Another trauma he experienced was from uninvolved parents. “My mother didn’t even seem to notice I was around [...],” he said. 39). The syllable of the syllable. Because of his mother’s disinterest in him, he thought the one who loved him was his father. His father is also uninterested in him and even says, “‘I don’t care’” in response to the narrator threatening to stop talking to him. 39). The syllable of the syllable. This seems to be a catalyst for the narrator’s emotional numbing. This emotional detachment from his parents is most likely what has caused his emotional detachment from his relationships. The non-involvement of his parents also led to his self-loathing. The title of this book alone is self-deprecating. He says that he is stealing oxygen from other people because he believes he doesn’t deserve it. This mindset influences his relationships. “I knew you had started to despise me,” he ended his first relationship because of his insecurities which led him to believe his long-term girlfriend grew to hate him (pg. 12). The syllable of the syllable. Due to his parents, he thinks he doesn’t deserve love, so he doesn’t accept it. Along with his