The author Philomena Strasser approaches the topic of "violence against women" from a new perspective that has largely been ignored until now: at the center of her considerations is the suffering of children under a violent dynamic within the family, their psychological and physical traumatization due to violence against their mothers. Based on in-depth psychological interviews with children, adolescents, and their mothers from Austrian women's shelters, she analyzes how children witness and process paternal violence against their mothers, how they experience their helpless role in violent conflicts, and what traumatic effects they endure: "The blows my mom received from my dad I felt in my stomach from being pulled back and forth" (Amela, 12). This is viewed in light of the historical and societal backgrounds of patriarchal families.