The Truth Behind Invasion of the Body Snatchers

Imagine waking up one day, your child, spose, mother, and father--everyone you know replaced by identical copies. Only you know they are different, and no one will believe you. This is the plot of Jack Finley's 1954 novel The Body Snatchers. It’s also a real world psychological condition.

Body Snatchers (and the film Invasion of the body Snatchers) is about a town whose citizens systemically disappear before being replaced by identical pod people. These replicas have the same physical characteristics, personalities, and memories as their original recipe counterparts. Eventually the remaining humans find some significant differences and send those aliens packing in true post war fashion. In the beginning, however, the aliens mostly fit in. Only their loved ones could tell something was off.

In chapter one of the book, Doctor Miles is told Wilma believes her Uncle Ira has been replaced by an impostor. After confirming “Every little move, everything about him is exactly like Ira’s”, Doctor Miles decides to talk to Wilma herself. On page 19 Wilma explains:

“Miles, he looks, sounds, acts, and remembers exactly like Ira. On the outside. But inside he’s different. His responses aren’t emotionally right. ....there’s something missing, and the same thing is true of Aunt Aleda, lately.”

Wilma's story is a textbook example of the psychological disorder known as Capgras Syndrome. According to Healthline:

“Capgras syndrome is a psychological condition. It’s also known as “imposter syndrome” or “Capgras delusion.” People who experience this syndrome will have an irrational belief that someone they know or recognize has been replaced by an imposter. They may, for example, accuse a spouse of being an imposter of their actual spouse. This can be upsetting for both the person experiencing the delusion and the person who is accused of being an imposter.”

Unfortunately for Wilma, none of the doctors had heard about Capgras. One of them even suggested a good old fashioned bleeding might help her out.

 

Body Snatchers is a pretty terrible book, yet the description of what Wilma was going through is so spot on, one can only assume Jack Finley knew somebody afflicted with Capgras Syndrome. He probably had no idea what the cause of the delusion was, but was inspired to write a story where people really got replaced by impostors. Mental health awareness has come a long way since the 1950's, but we still aren't where we need to be. If you’re interested in learning more about Capgras Syndrome, please check out this TED talk. It's how I was originally able to learn about Capgras.

Thank you for reading. This is a new website so please consider sharing or telling a friend. If you enjoyed post this please check out my post on The Walking Dead. 

You can find me @ChefCinephile on twitter.