The Secret

Munchausen’s Syndrome by Proxy
Posted on September 17, 2012 by Emily

“From the moment I was old enough to understand the words she said, my mother had been telling me that I was very ill indeed. And I believed her. Why shouldn’t I?”

Daniel Cunningham’s mother has been lying to him about him being sick. It seems as if she has Munchausen’s Syndrome by Proxy(MSbP), a condition where one makes up illnesses for children in their care. Liliana Cunningham has made his son stay in bed for hours every day, which makes Daniel take it for granted that he is ill. This reminds me of a character in the book, The Secret Garden, by Frances Hodgson Burnett, named Colin who also is kept away from other children his age. This gives Colin a very negative attitude about his future. It causes problems for both of the boys, having missed out on playing games and sports or enough social interaction as children.
No one in the town that Daniel lives in has ever known that Daniel’s mother had a child, until a curious, gossiping neighbor sees Daniel in his wheelchair outside in the garden. Many people start talking about it, and a doctor goes to see if he is okay. “Why boy, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with you!” (Fine 9) Dr. Marlow quickly realizes that Daniel isn’t ill in any way, only very certain of the opposite.
In The Secret Garden, Mary has moved to her uncle, Dr. Craven. One day while exploring in the house, Mary finds a pale, sickly looking boy, claiming to be Dr. Craven’s son. Mary asks why she has never heard of him and why he lies in bed all day. Colin, the boy replies, “Because I am like this always, ill and having to lie down. My father won’t let people talk me over either. The servants are not allowed to speak about me. If I live I may be a hunchback, but I shan’t live”. (Burnett 159)
Colin and Daniel have similar ways of living before they get “discovered” by other characters in the books. In both of the books, few people know about the boys because their parents think that they are ill and keep them away from others. There is a condition for this, called Munchausen’s Syndrome by Proxy. MSbP is where a caregiver deliberately exaggerates, or causes physical/mental health problems to those who are in their care. In the Devil Walks, I do not yet know whether Daniel’s mother has some thoughts behind what she has put Daniel through; whether it really is to protect him. She might just have Munchausen’s Syndrome by Proxy.

http://blogs.isb.bj.edu.cn/16emilyr/2012/09/17/munchausens-syndrome-by-proxy/