"'I've never had a boy in here,' Martin said in a serious voice. 'I've never touched another man as a matter of fact... except for my father. That was my duty.'"
-pg 496
Clearly, Vanger has not had a healthy relationship with his father. Here is some info about the effects of domestic abuse from parents.
Effects Of Exposure To An Abusive Parent/Domestic Violence/Abuse*Pre-Natal:
- Higher risk of miscarriage
- Less access to pre-natal care
- Health risks to mother and fetus
- Developmental delays
- Excessive separation anxiety
- Sleep disturbances
- Disruptions in feeding schedule
- Failure to thrive
- Infants may be caught in the “crossfire” and injured
- Psychological: Depression, anxiety, confusion, loss of self-esteem, anger, aggression, fear, guilt, withdrawal
- Behavioral: Aggression, self-destructiveness, problems in school or they may exhibit perfectionist behavior; irrational fear of failure, may perceive punishment as love
- Physical/psychosomatic: Headaches, stomach-aches, insomnia/sleep disturbances, bed-wetting, excessive clinging, separation anxiety.
- Poor academic performance or they may feel obliged to always get straight As
- Parentification-they may feel responsible for siblings and/or the abused parent
- Low self-esteem
- Poor social skills
- Drug and alcohol use/abuse
- Running away from home
- Suicidal behavior
- Criminal activity
- Early and risky sexual activity, pregnancy or early marriage