In his famous novel, East of Eden, John Steinbeck wrote about the life and times of Adam Trask, a Prince Mishkin-like character, who – among other misfortunes – fell in love with a sociopathic prostitute/ blackmailer/ murderer by the name of Cathy Ames, whom he had rescued after she received a thorough beating from her fat and very angry pimp.
As he tended to her wounds, Trask became so enchanted by Cathy’s beauty (and vulnerability) that he constructed a fictional image of her inside his head, essentially turning the whore into a goddess. Adam’s brother, Charles, saw through Cathy’s facade stating to his brother that “She’s no damn good, I tell you. She’s a whore.”
As he tended to her wounds, Trask became so enchanted by Cathy’s beauty (and vulnerability) that he constructed a fictional image of her inside his head, essentially turning the whore into a goddess. Adam’s brother, Charles, saw through Cathy’s facade stating to his brother that “She’s no damn good, I tell you. She’s a whore.”
