Literature and the unconscious

ISBN-13: 9783639372564 / Angielski / Miękka / 2011 / 324 str.

Onuora Benedict Nweke

Opis

Interdisciplinary approaches to criticism contribute to greater understanding of literary texts. The principles of psychoanalysis reveal that many opinions often expressed about African and African American literary works are interogable. Within the context of psychoanalytic principles, it is unarguable that biology and culture work together to shape the lives of individuals, and literary works which portray human actions should highlight influences of unconscious factors on characters behaviour.This study investigates unconscious determinants of disorientative behaviour in female protagonists of selected novels written by selected Black women. The study utilizes Sigmund Freuds theory of the unconscious, Jacques Lacans theory of the Other, Melanie Kleins Object Relations theory and Julia Kristevas theory of Abjection to investigate and identify unconscious determinants and hidden forces responsible for disorientative behaviour of the protagonists in the texts studied. Some of the disorientative behavioural traits identified in the protagonists include: Neurosis, Psychosis, Sexuality problems, Aggression, Dysfunctional or Horrific Love, Neurotic Depression and Melancholia.

O autorze

Onuora Benedict Nweke (PhD), teaches Literature Courses at the Department of English, University of Lagos, Akoka, Lagos, Nigeria. His research interests include African Fiction, African American Women Fiction, Gender Studies and Post-colonial Literature. He was a Fulbright Fellow at the University of Iowa, Iowa, USA between 2005 and 2006