A Fine Thread of Sanity
Please note I use “crazy” throughout this blog in full understanding of the problematic nature of the term, but in the belief that alignment with the language of the series is the best way to examine these episodes.
The episode Duane Barry and the continuation episode Ascension are landmark episodes in the series. They are the first true myth arc episodes. The X Files up to this point has been Mulder’s passion which Scully was assigned to debunk. The decision to handle Gillian Anderson’s pregnancy leave by having Scully abducted changed that dynamic. Now Scully has her own personal reasons for uncovering the truth about these abductions.
The episodes were unique, as well, in terms of the trope of individuals with abduction scenarios being seen as crazy and delusional. In the first season, true believers, including Mulder, were portrayed as being perceived as crazy. Because of the stigma against mental illness, even true believers would deny their or their children’s abduction experiences.
In these two episodes there is evidence by Barry’s demeanor, actions, and by speech patterns, including referencing himself by his entire name in the third person, that Duane Barry is mentally ill. Is he, then, the first in the series to be delusional instead of having actual abductions? The genius of the episode, Duane Barry, from a suspense/ mystery perspective is the twists and turns in trying to figure out if Duane Barry is really an alien abductee or does he suffer from delusions. The answer that these things are not mutually exclusive is one it takes until the end of the first episode to begin to comprehend.
After the cold open of Duane Barry in his bed with his dog surrounded by aliens and an spaceship over his house, we see him in a psychiatric hospital where he is refusing to take the medication prescribed to keep him from harming others. He ends up stealing the gun from a security guard, kidnapping the psychiatrist and taking additional hostages in a travel agency office. The premise in Duane Barry's mind is he must offer up a sacrifice. He must find someone else to give the aliens so they don't take him.
Mulder becomes involved because the FBI negotiation and crisis management team needs someone who speaks alien abduction language to talk to Duane, but they do not want Mulder to play into Duane Barry's delusions. It is clear that there is little respect for Duane Barry's beliefs even after a loss of power, bright lights and lost time. He is described as a psycho and Mulder is told that they do not have time to do a Freudian analysis. This sets up the traditional trope that believers are crazy. Mulder, of course, wants to and does believe him and, yet, is forced to be complicit in Duane Barry being shot in order to protect himself once Duane Barry begins to lose control with him.
Scully discovers that Duane Barry has a rare psychosis caused by a gunshot wound. Her viewpoint is that Mulder wanted so much to believe that he couldn’t see Barry as delusional. In these hospital, after being shot, the metallic implants Duane had indicated the aliens placed in him were extracted and the examination of the drilling in his teeth showed that it could not have been done by known dental equipment. The second episode has Duane kidnapping Scully and she becomes the sacrifice.
The fact that Duane Barry has a disability is clear. There are medical records demonstrating he suffered brain injury from a gunshot wound. The mental disorder is, also, apparent. He talks about himself in the third person, he is prone to mood swings, and he has distinct PTSD symptoms when he believes alien abduction is near. This is the unique twist on the trope. Of course it makes sense that repeated events of abduction and tests would result in a psychological impact of trauma. Yes, he has mental illness and, yes, he is an abductee. Tests have been done on him and eventually he is killed to keep from talking.
In many ways the portrayal of mental illness in Duane Barry and the language used to describe his condition and hospitalization are stereotypical, but improved from previous episodes. The facility he is in at the beginning is not the medieval gothic where the Eves were kept and, while the psychiatrist seems inept, he makes an offer of humanity-calling him buddy in a nice, calm voice.
While Duane Barry is a person who does horrible things, the viewer is supposed to have a more empathetic feeling towards this character than the other villains or monsters we have seen thus far. His villainy pales in comparison to Krycek, the aliens, and the government conspirators. He is a victim. This is a man who simply wants his torture to end. We can see that what he is doing is wrong, but we can understand it. The audience becomes the hostage who tells Duane Barry that she believes him. When Duane begs the police officer to not stop him, we have to acknowledge that his preference would be not to kill the police officer in cold blood. However, he cannot be late because the aliens might not accept the sacrifice and might take him again. This character is no Max Fenig. The audience cannot love a character responsible for Scully's abduction, but we do find ourselves sadden by his death.
We return again to this shift from the belief that people who believe in alien abductions are crazy or that mental illness leads to delusions of abductions. Instead we might consider that people who have lived through alien abductions develop mental health issues because of the trauma of these experiences. Let us also remember that Mulder witnessed the abduction of his sister. When a fellow agent asks Mulder why he is so paranoid,his response is because he finds it hard to trust anyone. It's kind of a catch 22 response that reframes the “is Mulder crazy” question.
if Mulder is crazy to believe in alien abduction then by the end of these episodes we are, in the context of our belief in the world of the X-Files, also firm believers and, with Scully's abduction, as firmly invested in finding the truth about aliens and the government involvement as any crazy conspiracy theorist. This make the remark of Mulder in Duane Barry, “the fine thread of sanity” even more relevant. We, the viewer, might now have more sympathy for those who are having trouble hanging onto the thread and are far more aligned with Mulder holding on by a thread than we were previously.