--- title: "3 Powerlessness Quotes By Judith Lewis Herman" description: "3 Powerlessness quotes by Judith Lewis Herman. Plus more from Judith Lewis Herman and more Powerlessness sayings from other authors." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f10/judith-lewis-herman-19218_abuse_in-situations-of-captivity-the-perpetrat_149725.jpg" --- > [“In situations of captivity the perpetrator becomes the most powerful person in the life of the victim, and the psychology of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-lewis-herman/in-situations-of-captivity-the-perpetrator-becomes-the-most-powerful/) [Judith Lewis Herman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-lewis-herman/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f10/judith-lewis-herman-19218_abuse_in-situations-of-captivity-the-perpetrat_149725.jpg) > [“Psychological trauma is an affliction of the powerless. At the moment of trauma, the victim is rendered helpless by overwhelming force. When…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-lewis-herman/psychological-trauma-is-an-affliction-of-the-powerless-at-the-moment/) [Judith Lewis Herman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-lewis-herman/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b2/judith-lewis-herman-19218_abuse_psychological-trauma-is-an-affliction-of_581495.jpg) > [“...repeated trauma in childhood forms and deforms the personality. The child trapped in an abusive environment is faced with formidable tasks of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-lewis-herman/repeated-trauma-in-childhood-forms-and-deforms-the-personality-the/) [Judith Lewis Herman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-lewis-herman/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/313/judith-lewis-herman-19218_abuse-survivors_repeated-trauma-in-childhood-forms-and-d_1640564.jpg) ## Other authors on Powerlessness - [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b024/author-warren-farrell-94555.jpg) Warren Farrell 6 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/powerlessness/warren-farrell/) ## More by Judith Lewis Herman > [“Therapy requires a collaborative working relationship in which both partners act on the basis of their implicit confidence in the value and efficacy of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-lewis-herman/therapy-requires-a-collaborative-working-relationship-in-which-both/) [Judith Lewis Herman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-lewis-herman/) > [“In situations of captivity the perpetrator becomes the most powerful person in the life of the victim, and the psychology of the victim is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-lewis-herman/in-situations-of-captivity-the-perpetrator-becomes-the-most-powerful/) [Judith Lewis Herman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-lewis-herman/) > [Many abused children cling to the hope that growing up will bring escape and freedom. But the personality formed in an environment of coercive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-lewis-herman/many-abused-children-cling-to-the-hope-that-growing-up-will-bring/) [Judith Lewis Herman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-lewis-herman/) > [The guarantee of safety in a battering relationship can never be based upon a promise from the perpetrator, no matter how heartfelt. Rather, it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-lewis-herman/the-guarantee-of-safety-in-a-battering-relationship-can-never-be/) [Judith Lewis Herman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-lewis-herman/) > [“Psychological trauma is an affliction of the powerless. At the moment of trauma, the victim is rendered helpless by overwhelming force. When the force…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-lewis-herman/psychological-trauma-is-an-affliction-of-the-powerless-at-the-moment/) [Judith Lewis Herman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-lewis-herman/) > [“The vast majority of incest begins years before the earliest conceivable age of consent. p4”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-lewis-herman/the-vast-majority-of-incest-begins-years-before-the-earliest/) [Judith Lewis Herman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-lewis-herman/) > [The ordinary response to atrocities is to banish them from consciousness. Certain violations of the social compact are too terrible to utter aloud: this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-lewis-herman/the-ordinary-response-to-atrocities-is-to-banish-them-from/) [Judith Lewis Herman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-lewis-herman/) > [“The study of psychological trauma has repeatedly led into realms of the unthinkable and foundered on fundamental questions of belief.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-lewis-herman/the-study-of-psychological-trauma-has-repeatedly-led-into-realms-of/) [Judith Lewis Herman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-lewis-herman/) > [After a traumatic experience, the human system of self-preservation seems to go onto permanent alert, as if the danger might return at any moment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-lewis-herman/after-a-traumatic-experience-the-human-system-of-self-preservation/) [Judith Lewis Herman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-lewis-herman/) > [“The horror of incest is not in the sexual act. but in the exploitation of children and the corruption of parental love. p4”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-lewis-herman/the-horror-of-incest-is-not-in-the-sexual-act-but-in-the-exploitation/) [Judith Lewis Herman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-lewis-herman/) > [“Underlying the attack on psychotherapy, I believe, is a recognition of the potential power of any relationship of witnessing. The consulting room is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-lewis-herman/underlying-the-attack-on-psychotherapy-i-believe-is-a-recognition-of/) [Judith Lewis Herman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-lewis-herman/) > [“when traumatic events are of human design, those who bear witness are caught in the conflict between victim and perpetrator. All the perpetrator asks…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-lewis-herman/when-traumatic-events-are-of-human-design-those-who-bear-witness-are/) [Judith Lewis Herman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-lewis-herman/) > [... in practice the standard for what constitutes rape is set not at the level of women's experience of violation but just above the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-lewis-herman/in-practice-the-standard-for-what-constitutes-rape-is-set-not-at-the/) [Judith Lewis Herman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-lewis-herman/) > [“In this climate of profoundly disrupted relationships the child faces a formidable developmental task. She must find a way to form primary attachments to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-lewis-herman/in-this-climate-of-profoundly-disrupted-relationships-the-child-faces/) [Judith Lewis Herman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-lewis-herman/) > [“Father-daughter incest is not only the type of incest most frequently reported but also represents a paradigm of female sexual victimization. The relationship between…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-lewis-herman/father-daughter-incest-is-not-only-the-type-of-incest-most-frequently/) [Judith Lewis Herman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-lewis-herman/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "ItemList", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/powerlessness/judith-lewis-herman/#itemlist", "name": "3 Powerlessness Quotes By Judith Lewis Herman", "numberOfItems": 3, "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“In situations of captivity the perpetrator becomes the most powerful person in the life of the victim, and the psychology of the victim is shaped by the actions and beliefs of the perpetrator.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Judith Lewis Herman" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-lewis-herman/in-situations-of-captivity-the-perpetrator-becomes-the-most-powerful/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f10/judith-lewis-herman-19218_abuse_in-situations-of-captivity-the-perpetrat_149725.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f10/judith-lewis-herman-19218_abuse_in-situations-of-captivity-the-perpetrat_149725.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f10/judith-lewis-herman-19218_abuse_in-situations-of-captivity-the-perpetrat_149725.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“In situations of captivity the perpetrator becomes the most powerful person in the life of the victim, and…” — Judith Lewis Herman", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Psychological trauma is an affliction of the powerless. 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