ABSTRACT
Survivor’s guilt comes with a question: “why do I live and not the other?” The phenomenon was first identified in Holocaust survivors, some of whom had to replace entire families. Adult replacement children can also introject guilt feelings when they are being held responsible for the disappearance of the other. Other strands of guilt include guilt for being other or guilt due to rage when being unfavourably compared with an idealized absent sibling. Ludwig van Beethoven, Edvard Munch and Salvador Dali suffered from guilt feelings due to the loss of a sibling; some may feel like van Gogh: guilty for succeeding where the other, the absent one cannot compete. Replacement children can also suffer from deep-seated existential guilt feelings for failing their own self-realization, which can explain some auto- or hetero-destructive behaviour and, in some cases, a tendency towards self-sacrifice. The author distinguishes supra-personal and collective guilt from personal guilt feelings of which an individual can become conscious, while the former also requires the collective’s recognition. While unconscious guilt feelings are a major obstacle towards self-realization, acknowledging different strands of guilt feelings and coming to compassion for self can facilitate individuation, aided by understanding symbols in dreams or everyday life. Several cases in this chapter show how adult replacement children can get out of a guilt-inducing existential double-bind. Goethe and Jung were replacement children who realized that they were one – and double.
