In You season 4 part 2, an obsessed fan of Lady Phoebe, Dawn, kidnaps her and holds her hostage. Upon getting to know Dawn, Phoebe deduces that she is suffering from a condition called erotomania.
Dawn poses as a waiter at Kate’s art show and gets a hold of Lady Phoebe. She says that Eat the Rich Killer is also present at the hotel and takes Phoebe into a room.
When Dawn forbids Lady Phoebe from contacting her friends and claims that this is her idea to keep her here, Phoebe realizes that there is something suspicious about her.
Erotomania in You season 4
Lady Phoebe observes Dawn and figures out that she is suffering from erotomania, a condition where a person thinks they know someone but they don’t.
Dawn shows such signs by calling Lady Phoebe her best friend. She vows to protect her and also says that they have matching tattoos, though Phoebe doesn’t have the one that Dawn has. Also, Phoebe only knows Dawn because she appears wherever she is to click her pictures.
In order to escape from Dawn, Lady Phoebe plays along with her. She admits that they are best friends and soon learns that Dawn has been watching her on television for a very long time.
Whatever Phoebe did on TV, Dawn thought that it was directed toward her. She felt that she had a connection with Phoebe. Dawn knows everything about Phoebe. She even reveals some things about Phoebe that even Phoebe doesn’t know. For example, how Adam is using her as a meal ticket.
When Joe enters the room, he, along with Phoebe, tries to address the condition Dawn is suffering from. Phoebe even gives Dawn another example of the condition where a German postal worker thought Madonna is his friend.
Joe tells Dawn that whatever relationship she thinks she has with Phoebe is a figment of her imagination. The cops come in time to save Phoebe and Joe, and the latter also manages to frame Dawn as Eat the Rich Killer by dropping Simon’s ear into her belongings.
Later in the show, it is revealed that even Joe suffers from the same condition, as he is obsessed with Rhys Montrose, the son of the Duke of Kingston-upon-Hull, who is running for mayor.
Is erotomania a real condition?
Erotomania is a real condition. It is a delusional disorder where a person believes that another person is in love with them even though they are not. The people who suffer from this condition have an unshakeable belief, and they may not accept the facts otherwise.
Erotomania is also called Clérambault’s syndrome. A person suffering from erotomania is usually attracted to people who are unattainable due to their high social status.
The person suffering might not have even met the person they are attracted to. Also, there is a chance that the person they are attracted to is completely imaginary or even deceased.
In serious cases, erotomania may lead the person suffering to stalk the person they are attracted to and even harm them.
Also Read: Is Rhys a figment of Joe’s imagination in You season 4 part 2?