This is one of those things that get’s under my skin. More importantly, it’s the reason why comments are moderated on this site.
I received a comment on the Josef Fritzl case, from a man, scolding me for only referring to Elisabeth as the parent of the children, and not Josef as well. Here is the comment in full; you can judge for yourself.
“I have noticed in your coverage of the Josef Fritzl case that when you refer to the children he had with his daughter, you only refer to them as Elisabeth’s children, and not Josef’s as well. You may not like the means, but he is their faither and should be given that respect. I would think that you of all people, a woman who rants about sexism all the time, would see just how terribly sexist you are being in trying to exclude him from his children’s lives. He has said himself that he provided well for both of his families, so he should be given the respect of “father”.”
Simply put, no he should not. Watch the video documentary on this site. Read the 50 plus articles on this site. He was not a father, he was a rapist and a tyrant. He is not fit to be called “father”.
Elisabeth is their mother. Elisabeth is the one who will raise them, who will support them in their recovery. I will never refer to Josef Fritzl as the father of Elisabeth’s children, just as I will not refer to Elisabeth as Josef’s sex slave. It’s just not right.
He did not take care of his family. He led a sick and twisted double life. He was the only person that knew there were 4 people living in the cellar, locked behind 8 doors, one which weighed nearly 700 lbs and required an electronic pass code to open.
The man is 73 years old. He is not going to live much longer in the natural order of things. What if he had simply died in his sleep? What then? What would have happened to Elisabeth and her children then? Would they have ever been discovered? Or would they have been left to slowly starve to death, deprived of oxygen as well?
No, Josef Fritzl is not fit to be called father. He is now, and forever will be, a criminal.
-Sable Verity
Sable,
I wholeheartedly agree with you that Fritzl DOES NOT deserve to be referred to as the children’s father.
I am appalled by the comment you received, which implies Josef Fritzl deserved respect. He might be related to Elisabeth and her children biologically, which is unfortunate, but the idea that he has ever been in any way a father to them is simply absurd.
A father’s role is to guide, nurture and protect his children and NOT to imprison, NOT to rape, NOT to treat his children as objects, NOT to condemn them to a life without freedom, sunlight, clean air, education, medical attention or any outside interaction.
He supplied them with food, sure, but only because he wanted to keep them alive, so he could continue to be their master, he wanted to continue to live his secret life, to have ultimate control over his victims, even though in meant inflicting enormous misery on them. Anything he ever provided was for his own benefit and no one else’s.
Agree!
Our deep human urge to have a knowing powerful FATHER created Santa Claus, Hitler, Stalin, and various God-like characters. Perhaps Josef Fritzl’s actions produced 14 children but he is no father. He is a perverted abuser, obsessively interested in his own power.
Bastard Josef Fritzl should also be deprived of sun and fresh air from now on. Put him in the very dungeon he built for the rest of his life and when he kicks the bucket burn him in the furnace and sing and dance while his carcas burns!
Hideous monstrosity. When I talk about this with my wife, it doesn’t even occur to us to refer to him as the children’s father, or Elisabeth’s for that matter. I seem to think of him only as a thing, not a person. In fact, I prefer not to think of him at all. Would rather think about and be inspired by that dauntless lady, instead.
Regarding the misguided commenter: sir, he provided them with nothing except the bare minimum needed to perpetuate their suffering. We don’t treat prisoners in Gitmo that badly. That hardly qualifies as providing “well”.
A father – or a mother – is a person who provides children with the best they are able to. I hardly think J Fritzl didn’t know better. He forfeited the right to be called father the moment he consciously betrayed the trust Elisabeth, as a child, would have put in him.
It’s not sexist to exclude him from their lives; allowing him any contact would be revolting, unethical and dishonorable.
“You may not like the means, but he is their faither and should be given that respect.”
SHOULD BE GIVEN THAT RESPECT?!! GIVE rapists RESPECT when their crime results in pregnancy????
He actually thought that you were being SEXIST for not referring to him as the father????!!
This person’s sense of logic and justice is obviously irretrievably deranged.
Yeah, I know, so–upset, you’re right. I almost posted his email address and name, but realy, it’s not worth it. It makes us focus on Josef more, and his sick supporters. Irretrievably deranged. I like it!
Sorry for my broken english…
I worked as a counselor for victims of incest in France and remember that we often talked about what to think of the notion of fatherhood.
The problem was that the victims sometime (often) had love feelings for their fathers and were feeling guilty or confuse about it.
It was very freeing for them to allow them to still love (instead of encouraging them to hate ) and of course to stop seeing the aggressor!
Thought it is a painful process, it can be done and it helps in the process of letting go…
It is normal for a child to love his or her parents, and a child needs to love his or her parents to grow. They are not the one who are doing something wrong!
J Fritzl had better pay for the devestation he has brought about or Austria is a part of the crime. I’ll be watching the out come. No civil human being would consider this perv a father of any sorts on any planet.
Sable,
I too agree with you commentary that this monster should never be called anything other than what he is: a misogynist, tyrannical beast.
To call this man “father”, a term of warm, loving undertones and which evokes fond memories of guidance and direction in one’s life, is like calling Armin Meiwes a “connoisseur” or a “gourmand”.
It is simply asinine that someone would even remotely think that this horrid creature could ever be granted the privilege and the honour of being called a father!
c.f.