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Noris Flores

Professor Batty

English 102

15 November 2017

The Unknown

There are many things that frighten many people; these things can vary from objects,

animals, certain beliefs, people and or fictional characters. Through out the years things that are

very frightening are stories that are based on a real life story. In the book The Communion A

True Story by Whitley Strieber is based on the experiences of Striebers abduction in 1985.

Strieber describes in detail how the aliens got into his home, how these aliens looked, moved

with great speed and how they took him into a strange room with a peculiar type of smell.

In 1985 the day after Christmas Strieber was having a normal day in his cabin house, but

when the time of night came around and it was time to go to sleep Strieber had checked all his

security cameras before he would go to bed and he would check all the sensors to any window or

door the house had. Meanwhile when Strieber was sleeping he was awaken by some noises that

were coming from downstairs of the house. With great fear Strieber hesitated to get out of bed a

go check what were the noises coming from, but the reason why he was hesitant was because

non of the sensors or alarms of his advanced security coverage around his house went off. As

soon as Strieber got up there was this being that he describes as tall, skinny, big black eyes, fast,

and spoke English (pg.15). When Strieber was taken he describes that he was in a state of

hypnosis because he was not able to move or feel anything all he was able to do is look around

and speak. Strieber describes how these aliens injected something into his head and also

something into his rectum, which I believe was not pleasant at all. When Strieber came back he
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had no recollection of what had happened to him. The only was Strieber would remember what

happened to him is if he is under hypnosis. At first no one would believe what happened to him

but his wife as a witness says how Strieber was gone for a few days and did not know where he

was. After his abduction his obsession with these aliens began.

The obsession that Strieber had towards these aliens you can say that it was his libidinal

desire because he was trying to find out what they did to him, why they did it and why did they

pick him. Striebers only way to remember what happened to him is if he was to be put in a

hypnosis state and like that is how he remembers everything that happened to him the day that he

got abducted. Striebers wife also only remembers is she is put in a hypnosis state as well.

Strieber did many things to try to remember what these aliens did to him and what kind of things

that they put into to him because of the reason that he could not move during the abduction or he

could not remember what they did to him after the abduction. The libidinal desire of Strieber was

to find out more and why about these aliens. The libidinal desires have nothing to do with any

sexual desires he has it just has to do with Strieber wanting to know more and more about what

happened to him and what they did to him, it is not sexual it is more of a type of satisfaction that

he needs in order to live peacefully, Strieber needs to have his questions answered but nobody is

able to answer them for him.

The fears that these monsters bring to the reader are how they were able to get into the

house, how they were able to bring a man that was taller than the aliens into the place that they

wanted him to be in, and also what they did to him. The questions are what kind of things did

they put into him or what if they werent really testing what if it was just to see if the aliens can

find him later where ever Strieber may be at. On the night of the abduction Strieber talks about

how he heard noises coming from down stairs of the house I distinctly heard footsteps-normal,
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human-sounding footsteps- moving stealthily down our front porch to the area where I had just

had a motion-sensitive light installed (pg.13). Since the motion sensors did not go off is what

scared me the most when reading the book. It makes me think on how these aliens got through

these sensors or what type of technology did the aliens have to either mess around with the

sensors or get passed the sensors without being detected. The next thing that brings fear is that

these aliens were smaller than Strieber but yet again they managed to keep him in a state that he

couldnt move and still got him into the room that they wanted him to be at so they could test

him. Strieber describes how when he was in the room into where they took him he says that it

had a peculiar smell and that he was not tied down or anything but he could still not be moved.

Strieber describes it as he was in a state of hypnosis since he could not move when he wanted to

all he was able to do was look around and speak in a weird way that it seemed that it wasnt him

talking, It was as if I had become profoundly paralyzed. Although I wanted to desperately

move, I could not (pg.14). So even after he was taken he could not recollect how he got into the

room and why he couldnt move even though he tried really hard to move but he could not.

Strieber also describes how even though he could not move he says that he could feel himself

as a shape and mass (pg.14). Strieber was indeed in a type of paralyzed state and even though

he is in that state he seemed to be in shock as well because he was not going crazy in wanting to

get out of there. In fact when he was screaming when they started testing him the aliens asked

him What can we do to help you stop screaming? (pg.19) And Striebers answer was very

unusual. Strieber answered, You could let me smell you (pg.19). No matter how hard or how

much Strieber wanted to ask certain things he was unable to due to whatever the aliens had put

into him. The anxiety that the aliens bring is that not knowing what will happen to Strieber and

what they do to him. What happened to Strieber was very unknown obviously, unexpected, and
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very quickly. The process that took the aliens to take him was very fast but the amount of time

that Strieber was taken did not go fast, it was a couple days that he was taken and his wife was a

big witness to that.

The monsters presented in this book would be the aliens due to what they did to Strieber

and how they did it to him. What I do find very frightening is how obsessed Strieber became

over these aliens, Strieber even has his own website talking about what happened to him the

night of his abduction. Strieber has done so much research on to what has happened to him but

due to government laws theres not much out there in the Internet that could tell him exactly

what happened to him. The big question is how they got into Striebers home that is what comes

to mind all the time how were they able to get into the home. The way they present themselves to

Strieber and the speed that they had to transport to many places. I believe that the real monster is

Strieber because of how he becomes after the abduction. Strieber was never the same after he

came back I mean what person would be back to normal if they went through the same things

that Strieber went through. Strieber did have some trouble sleeping when he was back; he also

had some trouble in being himself. Strieber felt that he was back but that he really was not back

on earth. Strieber had become anxious over any little thing he would do during his day, even his

wife is a witness to his different self and not being him ever again. This is what makes Strieber

the monster he becomes very paranoid and basically gives to say that he thinks that the aliens are

watching him wherever he goes.

According to the psychoanalysis definition it is a theory to help treat patients that are

mentally disordered. I dont believe that Strieber has a mental disordered I believe that it was

very unfair what these aliens did to him and that he is not mentally disordered he has just been

harmed in a way that he will never be the same person ever again. Being harmed and being
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mentally disordered are two completely different things that cannot be compared at any cost.

Nobody is really sure what the aliens did to him, not even Strieber is sure what they did to him

due to the fact that during his book he says that he only remembers some parts of what happened

or brief memories of what was going on to him while he was abducted.

The Id, Ego, and Superego of Strieber are that the Id of Strieber was his very strong

passion of finding out what really happened to him during his abduction. The Ego I believe he

had no type of Ego when all of this was occurring during his abduction but his Ego would be

all the times he was getting help in order to know what was going on with him. The way he

would go into the sessions of hypnosis in order to remember exactly what he went through, that

would be the only times he would remember all the smells and how he felt like he was unable to

move. I believe that Strieber did not have a Superego because he did not go do crazy or

dangerous things in order for him to receive his answers so that where the Superego cancels out.

The monsters talked about in this book did bring me fear in my opinion because of what

they did to him and how they got to places. Another reason is that the aliens took Strieber in a

freaky matter that I personally would pass out if I ever saw a being like that in my room in the

middle of the night so props to Strieber for not passing out and coming back alive. The monsters

in this book do bring anxiety and the anxiety is, not knowing what is around you and what could

happen to you at any time anywhere you may be. I do conclude that Strieber will be the monster

in the end of everything due to how he turned out after the abduction but I do not blame him for

everything that he went through, because he did not choose to go, Strieber was taken unwillingly.

Fearing the unknown will always be a something that many people will forever fear and in

Whitley Striebers case he will always be with the thought that someone is always watching him
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and unfortunately he will never get answers as to why everything that happened to him,

happened.

In conclusion I believe that it is more horrifying to go from fearing the monster to

becoming the monster. Unfortunately this is what happened to Strieber and the difficult thing to

think about it how Strieber will never be the same again,

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Work Cited

Strieber, Whitley. Communion: a True Story. Harper, 2008.

Psychoanalysis. Merriam-Webster, Merriam-webster.com/dictionary/psychoanalysis.

McLeod, Saul. Saul McLeod. Id Ego Superego | Simply Psychology, 1 Jan. 1970,

simplypsychology.org/psyche.html.

Naomi. All This Pudding. Review of Whitley Striebers Communion, 1 Jan. 1970,

westruth.blogspot.com/2009/01/review-of-whitley-striebers-communion.html?m=1.