ABSTRACT
This chapter serves as a bridge between our studies of incestuous families and those of the survivors’ families of creation. Emotional themes revolve around the issues of trust, gender, and power. It describes how these themes are played out in incest families and how they influence and shape the identity of the survivor. Since the blueprints for these themes are formed in relationships with significant others, so too are they modified or changed in intimate relationships. For survivors, then, the blueprints for trust, gender, and power are betrayal, shame, and helplessness. The survivor often develops an elaborate false self, designed to gain approval from others and to hide the bad, shameful real self. While it is true that the legacies of betrayal, shame, and powerlessness become woven into the fabric of the survivor’s identity, the impact they have on her depends on several factors.
