Each boy, like Faust, makes a deal with the devil gaining worlds of knowledge and power—the capacity to do—in exchange for his very (relational) soul. The boy’s position in this culture is like that of the “special” child in disordered families. “Special” children function as extensions of self, for one or both parents. They find themselves in an ambiguous position. On the one hand, since they are entrusted with the psychological equilibrium of the parent, and since they become caretakers to their own caretakers, they enjoy inordinate power within the family. But that inordinate power is
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