Flying monkeys is a generic term for people who support a narcissist and thus become complicit with abuse. And totally unaware of this. They become warriors for the narcissist. They so believe what the narcissist tells them, especially how the narcissist is the victim of abuse, that the flying monkey will do anything to protect the narcissist. So, let's analyze this.
Narcissists are people (hosts) of Narcissistic Paradigm. All people, including flying monkeys live within a Paradigm. Reader is encouraged to read those articles to understand the context.
Narcissistic Paradigm (like any other paradigm) has a need to hide itself from its host. That is explained by Paradigm Blindness, as the host does not see its own paradigm and will fight and defend it. However, Narcissistic Paradigm also has a persecutory element (of its target). However, the most powerful ability of the Narcissistic Paradigm is inducing psychosis in other people.
A paranoid person will react with fear to perceived persecution, even if it doesn't exist. If you observe a paranoid person, you will see in its body language, the intonation or speech, that the person is really scared of something it perceives, even if that something doesn't actually exist. It exists only, and as real, in that person's paradigm. For that person it is real and it is the reality, that's why the paranoid behavior.
Same applies to a narcissist, although as a society we do not acknowledge it that way. Narcissist lives within its own psychotic Narcissistic Paradigm through which it sees the world (and the target person of its narcissistic supply). Its behaviors such as abuse, manipulation, deception, coercion is a result of how it sees the world, just like the paranoid person above. It lives in a psychosis. It sees the reality very distorted because the actual reality is too scary, so it pre-emptively strikes and takes control (through abuse).
However, the most dangerous element of the Narcissistic Paradigm is its ability to induce psychosis (hypnotize if you will) other people. This is not done merely through words. It is done on Paradigm level. And this is the most important thing (yet the hardest) to understand if we truly want to address the abuse. The narcissist, when hypnotizing its victim (flying monkey) will induce emotion that it wants in its target. Because the logic (and words) will follow the emotion.
In other words, Narcissistic Paradigm is emotionally persuasive. It will use body language, intonations, and other techniques to induce fear towards its source of narcissistic supply (original victim) and compassion towards itself. A fear that if the current target (flying monkey) doesn't help the narcissist (now portrayed as a victim) something really bad will happen. An evil thing will happen to the narcissist unless the flying monkey helps. The induced emotion in its target is so strong, that the flying monkey feels compelled to act, to help the narcissist from its alleged abuser. The hypnotized victim cannot not act. It must help. It cannot resist its own emotion. It is Solzhenitsyn, describing labor camps in Gulag Archipelago who said "To do evil a human being must first of all believe that what he's doing is good..."
Once in this state, the logic (of the flying monkey) which is seeded by the narcissist will follow and justify why the narcissist needs help. At this point, the victim becomes a flying monkey. They've been gas-lighted. And they so want to protect the narcissist, that they are willing to lie, manipulate, do anything to protect the narcissist. Because protecting this "victim" (a narcissist) justifies any means of doing so. And they really believe that they are doing the right thing. That they are fighting abuse, meanwhile they are propagating it.
Flying monkeys are victims of psychological abuse of the narcissist.
In family courts for example, judges who are so persuaded that the abuser is the "victim", they will punish or restrain the actual victim in order to 'protect' the children and the narcissist. And in doing so, the judge hands the children right to the narcissist.
If the reader has been abused by a narcissist, the reader has most likely been in a relationship with one for years. Gas-lighted for years. Not knowing the difference between a reality and what is being told. Under hypnosis and induced psychosis. Is the reader then surprised that a flying monkey succumbs to the same during a much shorter period of time?
Once hypnotized, flying monkey cannot be persuaded. If you try to show evidence or tell the flying monkey that it is wrong, it will backfire, as it will go against the psychosis and the flying monkey's logical conclusion will be that the narcissist is correct. It will solidify its position to protect the narcissist.
If you must approach a flying monkey, DO NOT confront it. The best thing to do is 1) realize that what happened to the flying monkey is the same thing (gas-lighting / psychosis) that was happening to you - so be compassionate - show no anger or frustration, even if attacks are directed at you (part of your healing). And 2) if you must say something say this: "What happened to you with him/her is the same thing that was happening to me for years." Nothing more. Do not explain, do not elaborate. The monkey has to come out of the psychosis by self. There is nothing you can do to help the process. The above saying will challenge the psychosis and hopefully, with time, the flying monkey will realize the distortion of reality.
Every single person on this planet (excluding the hosts of narcissistic paradigm who are under it all the time) is prone to induced psychosis. It all happens within Level 1 and 2 of Paradigm Blindness. This psychosis can be on individual (family) level, but also corporate, religious, or political levels. Under the psychosis, we become the Warriors for the Narcissistic Paradigm. That is why it is so powerful, yet fragile. It will create conflicts from family discord to global wars.
In order not to succumb to the psychosis of the Narcissistic Paradigm one MUST HEAL by seeing its own paradigm and fight one's own Paradigm Blindness. There is no other way. Fighting the narcissist, fighting the flying monkeys only solidifies their position and provides narcissistic supply. That's why When Fighting Abuse Actually Enables Abuse.