Each of us have a breaking point.

As General Corman said in Apocalypse Now:

Every man has got a breaking point. You and I have. Walter Kurtz has reached his.

He may have been talking about everyone’s mental breaking point, but the principle applies to other areas.

Let me explain.

There is a point where people stop caring. In the workforce, a tyrannical boss may push his people so far that they stop trying and give up. They may show up to work each day, but they’re not really there. They just take up space and push paper. They have reached their breaking point.

A similar phenomenon can be seen when someone is badgered with questions. Often the same questions over and over again. That is why some people confess to crimes they did not commit. Locked in an interrogation cell, they are questioned until they reach their breaking point.

While we all have a breaking point, the actual point at which a person breaks is seldom seen live. For some, it’s a gradual process, such as at work. You start out with goals and aspirations, but after a few disappointments, you begin breaking. It may be impossible to pinpoint the actual moment you broke, it just sort of happened.

But sometimes it is possible to witness a persons breaking point.

In the Simpsons episode “I Love Lisa” [9F13], Ralph proclaims his love for Lisa on TV yet Lisa screams at him that she doesn’t like him at all. Back home Bart shows Lisa a video of the incident:

Watch this, Lis. You can actually pinpoint the second when his heart rips in half

The video goes to slow motion as you see the instant poor Ralph’s heart snaps in two.

While not quiet as dramatic, I saw something similar today.

I saw a lady who was in command, who had her facts together, who was confident. She was by no means cocky, but she knew what she was talking about.

She began fielding questions about a certain topic and she seemed in control, having good answers to the questions. I know her, so I watched her handle the crowd if you will. She was charming, full of grace, clear and concise.

Then something went wrong. One questioner kept badgering her on a particular topic. I had been paying close attention to the debate, so I was puzzled by his line of questions. She was too.

He appeared to be mixing up two different topics with his questions. She would answer the question for one topic, and then he would counter with the same question on a different topic and get upset when she would give him a different answer.

This went on for quite some time. I understood what was going on. The person asking the questions thought he had backed her into a corner. Smelling blood, he was going for the kill. Trying to show his superiority. Now, he would never admit to such things, but I have seen him do this before. Once he thinks he smells blood, he goes in for the kill.

In my opinion he was off base and was asking about two different topics, yet thinking they were the same thing and assuming she was giving misleading answers.

Then it happened…

She broke.

You could see it on her face. Her countenance dropped. If I had the incident on video, I would be like Bart pointing out the second she broke. Her shoulders dropped. She cast a mournful look over at her boss as if to say “Help”. Then she stopped talking. She shook her head and said she would have to get back to the guy.

He had broken her, a strong, successful women, and he had broken her.

It was depressing to watch and despicable what he did to her.

Remember, we all have our breaking point.