take me to church

iothe

redhourglass

"Dogs keep a promise a person can't."

On a surface level, Alana Bloom is an extremely professional psychologist and professor who, like Will Graham, serves as a consultant for the FBI (mostly on the matter that is Will Graham, as it turns out). At the time of Hannibal, she is guest lecturing at the FBI Academy at Quantico. She serves as a foil for Will Graham's strange way of interpreting crimes and offers a more traditional view of psychology and the practices; she is also introduced as a sympathetic character who is close to Will Graham, and she is the one who refers him to Hannibal Lecter.

Alana is very career-oriented and her relationship with Will Graham is marked by her professionalism when it comes to his obvious interest in her (and her attraction to him, in turn), and her wish to help him navigate the stormy waters of his psyche. Alana cares greatly for the people around her and wants to protect them, as evidenced by her behavior towards and on behalf of Will Graham and Abigail Hobbs. Her wish to protect others and herself can often get in the way of her personal feelings, and she repeatedly spurns Will despite her attraction to him, afraid that a relationship might be too much for either of them to handle along with being colleagues and their work with the FBI.

Alana is also very passionate about her work, a trait that can be interpreted as both a positive and a negative aspect of her personality. It pushes her to go the extra mile to protect her patients, as seen when she tries to protect Abigail Hobbs from being interviewed in front of a body, but it can also alienate her from people who are trying to help, such as during the second season when the idea that Hannibal Lecter is the Chesapeake Ripper is first broached with her. Her passion for her work and for the study of psychology causes her to clash often with Frederick Chilton over methods and treatment of patients. She also clashes fairly often with Jack Crawford over his lack of concern for Will's psyche, and his insistence on using Will as a tool despite his deteriorating mental state.

In the most extreme case, her passion and care for others can lead her to blindness, such as her insistence that Hannibal is innocent of the crimes that he, in fact, did commit. This blindness may put her life in danger and comes hand in hand with a lack of judgment and rash decision making once she feels betrayed that ultimately leads to her being thrown out of a second story window. It can be argued that she is far too trusting given the world she lives in, a world of cannibals and murderers where no one is ever telling the full truth.

Finally, Alana can be incredibly stubborn, even in the face of evidence to the contrary, which can often override her intelligence and the importance she places on finding the truth. Until walking in on Hannibal in the midst of him attacking Will Graham and Jack Crawford, she cannot and will not believe that her old mentor and lover had anything to do with the murders, despite being told in no uncertain terms to stay away from him and that he was dangerous.

✓ Professional
✓ Intelligent
✓ Passionate
✓ Emotionally Perceptive
✓ Curious
✗ Stubborn
✗ Optimistic
✗ Trusting
✗ Passionate