First we see the actual, initial blow being struck reflexively without thinking: “without a moment’s hesitation I backhanded him in the face.” Then the exhilaration and euphoria stage occurs: “I was suddenly released from all restraints…. it was now my right to unleash the fury I felt.” And suddenly the revulsion stage sets in: “What I saw stopped me in horror…. A searing pain spread through my chest and heart.”
