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mayllt
what does "foils the human mechanism"mean? force people to drop what they ususally do?
Just as water piles up behind a keel in a typhoon, baffling the screws and forcing the helmsman to violate every principle of seamanship to avoid broaching to, so anguish foils the human mechanism. In their struggle to preserve sanity that Friday men and women suspended the laws of normal behavior. In the White House a member of the President's staff blacked out for two hours. Afterward he had no recollection of where he had been, but since no one saw him he was probably one of those for whom privacy was an absolute necessity. Rose Kennedy had to go to her room. Jean
May 27, 2013 4:12 AM
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Answers · 2
The human mechanism is the usual unconscious mental and emotional pattern of behavior that occurs in a given situation or environment. The news of this event was so traumatic for these people, that their anguish disrupted their normal ways of dealing with stress or tragedy.
The anguish foiled the human body's normal mental and emotional defense mechanisms, which normally helps a person overcome a painful event (in this case an emotionally traumatic event).
May 27, 2013
foil = to trick; to get round
Think of foiling the Great Firewall of China. I use a VPN to foil your government and surf the Internet properly.
foil a mechanism = disrupt it in such a way that it doesn't function as it usually does
May 27, 2013
