Journal Title: Free
Associations: Psychoanalysis and Culture, Media, Groups Politics
Number 61, May
2011
ISSN: 2047-0622
URL: http://www.freeassociations.org.uk
AWARENESS
OF THE TRAGIC AND THE EVOLUTION OF THE PSYCHE:
AN ESSAY
EVA MARIA MIGLIAVACCA¤
Abstract: The object of this work is to investigate
possible connections between the classical Greek tragic hero and those
undergoing psychoanalytic investigation, focusing on the question of achieving
awareness of oneself. Initially, some aspects of psychoanalytic theory, as
developed by Sigmund Freud, are considered, proceeding then to a
characterisation of those aspects of the tragedy and the tragic figure that are
relevant to the purposes of this study. The character Oedipus, in SophoclesÕ
plays Oedipus Rex and Oedipus at Colonus, is used as a model
in this discussion and I also point out the significance of such a model in the
origins of psychoanalysis. Finally, I develop a synthesis based on the complex
relationship between tragedy and psychoanalysis, highlighting the value of the
tragic elements for the apprehension of the human psyche.
Key Words: Psychoanalysis; myth, Greek tragedy,
Oedipus, consciousness.
The
use of myths as models to understand the functioning of the mind is part of the
development of psychoanalysis. The fantastical character of mythological
narratives contains the reality of the human psyche, object par excellence of the psychoanalytic
investigation. In the centre is Oedipus,
especially because of the meaning of the complex that takes his name. The
Oedipus complex goes beyond strictly sexual aspects and expands to the
knowledge of oneÕs internal reality.
The
birth of tragedy added to the myth, not only by the dramatisation of the
narrative but also because of the concept of man as a being conscious of
responsibility for his own choices. In this work I use the tragedies Oedipus
Rex and Oedipus at Colonus as inspiration to reflect on the
expansion of oneÕs consciousness. The development of this character, as
presented by Sophocles, provides a representation of the investigative process
proposed by psychoanalysis.
The
passage from the 19th to the 20th
century witnessed the discovery of psychological man. Until then, he could be
found in literary and artistic works as well as in everyday life, but had never
been a subject for observation and systematic studies that would define him by
his specific characteristics. Schorske (1961), a culture historian, when
analysing that decisive period, comments that rational man had to give way to a
richer creature. This would be a more dangerous and inconstant one, a creature
of feelings and instincts, psychological man, who, since early 20th-century has
gained an omnipresent status.
Psychological
Man is, at the same time, an object to be identified and investigated. Sigmund
Freud, curious and insistent, learned through his first patients and discovered
psychoanalysis. As a method of observation and investigation that opens up its
own domain, psychoanalysis has become richer. It is nowadays shaping into a
respectable theoretical corpus, consistent
though incomplete, due to the fluidity of its object as well as to the
limitations of the observer.
In
1900, when publishing The Interpretation
of Dreams, a work he treasured until
the end of his life, Freud presented ideas on the psyche that have influenced
human thought to such an extent – by acceptance or by rejection –
that things have never again been the same. Essentially, he affirmed the
precedence of the unconscious in mental functioning. His purpose was not to
dwell upon the dreams he studied, but rather to make evident how little man
dominates. Yet, he is largely dominated by inner forces unknown to him which
determine his way of being and functioning. The unconscious is a concept that
has evolved from being a noun to a more functional adjective (Freud, 1923).
This displaces the rational side of man to a secondary position and dismantles
the belief in power and control of the mind that had hitherto been accepted.
The
discovery of psychoanalysis had its moments of insight and evolution. Freud
began with his practice and seems to have always focused on the plasticity of
the mind, the surprises always ready to unfold under the psychoanalystÕs eyes.
His ideas have expanded and, over time, have partially changed. Nevertheless,
the initial premise of the division of the psyche into what is conscious and
what is unconscious remains essential in psychoanalysis, defining psychological
man, or better, psychoanalytic man, as a being who lives in conflict.
Indeed,
man is a being in conflict with
himself and with the world! It is unavoidable. In his early works, Freud
already stressed this aspect but he only begins to address these implications
in depth and with some bitterness in 1929 in his perhaps more widely read work Civilisation and its Discontents.
However, frequently, and until the end, he was aware of how fleeting and
changeable the psychoanalytic object is.
Freud had many interlocutors in those early, somewhat heroic and somewhat
anarchic times, when the basis of what would become the most revolutionary
theory about the psyche in the 20th century was still being defined.
With most of these, Freud developed complex and fruitful relationships - albeit
passionate and ambivalent - frequently with disastrous, bitter and melancholic
ends, resulting in sorrow and resentment on both sides. In his own way, each
interlocutor participated in the dawning and flourishing of his ideas either
through encouragement or support, through challenge or even by open opposition
and rupture. Gay (1988) draws a detailed portrait of these relationships,
essentially based upon the correspondence between Freud and his contemporaries.
One of the aspects that remains clear is that Freud always stressed his own thoughts
and was a strong defender of the conclusions drawn from his practice. At the
same time, he valued and appreciated - and often relied on - an exchange of
theories and ideas with collaborators. Furthermore, he was a cultured man and
his clinical observations led him to establish links to other sources, both
poetical and literary. That which would become essential was the myth of
Oedipus: the tragedy Oedipus Rex
written by Sophocles in Greece in the 5th century BC. This would bring about the formation of the key
complex named after the tragic character.
The Oedipus complex (Freud, 1910) centres around a configuration of
human relationship based upon the construction of the psyche that of necessity
includes a triangulation, immediately recognised in the relationship
mother-father-son. This, according to Freud (1905), begins between three and
five years of age. The child experiences strong feelings of love and desire to
possess the parent of the opposite gender and hatred and rivalry towards the
parent of the same gender. Repression of the actions that such feelings might
unleash takes place due to feelings of guilt and the need for the affection of
both parents. The relationship becomes an explosive mix of violent and
contradictory emotions that are never completely resolved. Depending on the
characteristics of the childÕs psyche and the parentsÕ degree of acceptance of
the situation, it evolves satisfactorily and the feeling of reality and
renouncement of childish desires will eventually prevail. During this entire
process, the child gradually grows apart from the parents, shaping its own
identity and developing complex relationships with the environment. It builds
its own individuality and discovers its possibilities and limits. It socialises, creating and perpetuating the culture by
pointing its talents towards behaviour that favours and contributes to its
individual growth and that of the group.
When conceiving Oedipus[1], Freud did not
make a ÔchoiceÕ in the conscious meaning of the word, that is to say he did not
choose the myth of Oedipus. Freud had
a powerful insight perceiving what he had never previously realised. Perhaps he
had not initially noticed the importance and scope of such a formulation. As
Gay (1988) mentions, his ideas germinated slowly and sometimes promises made
for the next summer took years to be fulfilled. Although his contemporaries and
more recent psychoanalysts have excessively emphasised the sexual content of
this concept, there is much more than sexuality at play. The initial impact of
psychoanalysis with its disturbing assertions contributed to the poor
understanding of Oedipus. Due to distortions and misuse it became vulgarised, transformed into irony and a source of
peril. However it is a proposal
fraught with contents related to the core of human existence that has
progressed and continues to expand.
Perhaps FreudÕs
insight, for which he is indebted to SophoclesÕ intuition, has become a source
of nuisance. However, it continues to stimulate new approaches and provides new
associations. The analyst uses the method of investigation of psychical
functioning based upon observation. He becomes disciplined to keep an open mind
for free association and for the unencumbered transit of intuition and
sensitivity. He pays fluctuating attention to the transference phenomena. Work
in analysis connects existing theory with the psychical reality of both the
analyst and the analysand, leaving the way open for new formulations.
Some concepts and theories have shown themselves to be extremely useful
and are unquestionably needed by the psychoanalyst to provide a more solid
support for his work, in addition to his subjective and most decisive
experience. Theories serve to establish a common denominator for analysts to
communicate with one another and also with professionals from other areas.
Freud began by identifying those elements which provide a solid, lasting basis.
Other analysts expanded FreudÕs contributions by adding new elements, gradually
drafting a deeper framework of the psyche.
Psychoanalysis aims to be an investigative method that strongly relies
on intuition, whose purpose is to identify, examine, nominate and describe in
appropriate conditions the elements that disclose an individualÕs inner
dynamics. It proposes that he frees himself from unending repetitive cycles of
passed experiences that hinder him from properly fulfilling his potential.
In this broad field one works with trifles. One works with the
unraveling of childish fixations into complex ways of functioning, with
psychical paths organised to assuage those
anguishes, which are learned very early in life. Since they were efficient at
the time, they continue to be used in an effort to achieve the same effect. As
life and reality relentlessly present new problems, this tenacity becomes
unsatisfactory and insufficient. The long process of becoming aware of opening
the way to the new and to advance from a childish state to adulthood is a
painful, oscillating, non-linear and slow moving experience, to be reinforced
at every moment. What is experienced as real on the unconscious level may be
known and made conscious, allowing the individual to free himself from the
power of his own fantasies. He will create new mental habits and new patterns
of relationships with himself and with the other. This is the task Freud
started and did not consider ended. Analysts after him fine-tuned his observations
and contributed to identifying subtle and sophisticated psychical processes
acting in an area that psychoanalysis proposes to map.
The map of a region is obviously smaller than the region itself. A
cartographic map signals boundaries between places, geographical forms, varying
vegetation, barren and inhabited sites, boundaries between land and water, but
remains a projection of features. Although diminished, the map is an excellent
tool of orientation. That is why everything that is beyond one's immediate
sight will be known, as the map specifies the nature of these features. For
this reason, everything that lies beyond immediate sight must be considered, as
such an area could be the one that is of greatest significance. It is important
to note that, at least at the outset, one deals with the map and not with the
region it represents. Its making relies on direct contact with the region. To
draw a map one must have gone to the field, observed nature, checked what is
assumed and planned the map. It becomes a useful representation to help the
traveller where he has never set foot before.
In the domain of psychical phenomena, drawing a map leads to an
unavoidable diminishment of the varying vastness that is the mind. We seize
effluxes that suggest the unknown. Any mapping of the psyche intuitively
considers what lies beneath the sensorial surface and necessarily entails
clinical observation.
According to the beautiful finite-infinite model proposed by Bion
(1965), the content of the conscious is inserted into the finite and the
unconscious into the infinite. In a more precise form, he writes: ÔAs my model for forms of relatedness
operative in an infinite universe, I use forms of relatedness operative in a
finite universe of discourse and its approximate realisationÕ (pp. 63-4).
Therefore this is an imperfect model, albeit a suggestive one. What is known of
the mind is based upon the unknown. The infinite of the unknown acts as a
magnet, attracting and displacing man from his place, which is limited by the
already known. This stimulates a process of evolution and ongoing discoveries.
By his own natural limitation, man only has real access to the world of
finite truths. The analyst is in charge of operating in the finite, keeping in
mind that he is always facing an infinite universe. To date, there is no other
way of operating; we only work in the finite domain. The infinite is the one
that is intuited. Human language is
far too limited to express it in its entirety. The analyst faces a highly
complex problem. In the first place because of the fluidity and fleetingness of
its object; in the second, due to the delicacy and explosiveness of the
psychological fabric; thirdly because of the unexpectedness and surprise of the
plot, and fourthly, because of the responsibility demanded.
By making use of myth, as depicted in SophoclesÕ tragedy, Freud was able
to point out more clearly a gamut of those human relationships, crucial in the
constitution of the psyche, whose dynamics he observed in his practice. Freud
certainly heard whispers and outcries in a way no one had heard before.
The tragedy of Oedipus addresses an archaic myth that survived in the
oral tradition over hundreds of years. We can surmise that it expresses human
truths with which man from any time can identify. The principles are soundly
established. Despite the many restrictions and criticism, it can be confidently
stated that Freud used the myth of Oedipus and the tragedy of Sophocles in a
manner that helped psychoanalysis more than it harmed the myth.
The tragedy and the tragic
A blossoming of tragedy took place in Athens in the 5th
century B.C. when major changes were taking place in the city. (Kitto 1951).
Athens emerged as a major power after playing a decisive role in fighting off
the invasions of the Persians. The Athenians' self-esteem had perhaps never
been so high. Clysthens was completing SolonÕs reforms, by instituting
democracy, which reached its summit during the ruling of Pericles. The citizen
performed public services and held all the civil and political rights.
Foreigners were welcomed and contributed to the economic prosperity of the polis. Even the numerous slaves could
not be killed by their masters and had the right to denounce them for bad
treatment. It is said that aristocrats protested that at a first glance, a
slave could not be distinguished from a free man (Jard 1977). Furthermore, the
city became a reference for its beautiful monuments made by some of the
greatest bronze and marble artists. The Athenian citizen felt, and lived, as a
free being. The polis was responsible
for promoting his physical and spiritual development (Jaeger, 1986). This was a
totally different standpoint from that found in other contemporary imperial
civilisations, where the people existed as a means of sustaining the ruling
dynasties, i.e., they lived in the moral condition of slaves.
Tragedy appears in a given historical, cultural and
mental context that was politically fostered by Pisistratus, ruler of Athens
from 546 to 527. He encouraged trade and industry, protected literature and
embellished the city (Jard 1977). Under his mild, benevolent and fruitful
government, the political,
economic and intellectual grandeur of Athens began and included tragedies
performed in contests at the yearly Athenian feasts to honour the god Dionysius (Snell, 1960). At such major feasts, the dithyramb choir sang, exalting Dionysius, god of dissipation, of
illusionism and possession. When Thespis – considered the forerunner and
possible creator of the tragedy
– presented the masked choir singing in dialogue with the Choreutha, the historical career of tragedy was launched. According to Bowra
(1933), this presentation of rudimentary drama
took place in the spring of 535 B.C., initiating a new way of artistic
expression for the Athenians.
The basis of these tragedies was myth and oral tradition. Later, around
the 6th century, they were transposed to the written word in the
Homeric poems. The few tragedies that have survived represent the final stages
of a long process about which little is known and much is surmised.
The tragedies evolved in a creative process that lasted throughout the 5th
century and was never again repeated. This coincided with other remarkable
Greek artistic creations together with the long wars that led to the downfall
of the Athenian city and the end of Greek splendour. By the end of the century,
with Athens reduced in stature, the tragic poet became muted but his heritage
remained.
Myths were common knowledge amongst people at that time and were
integral part of Greek imagery, familiar to all social classes. (Bowra 1957).
However, tragedy is both a transformation of myth and a result of the genius of
the great poets. Of some of these outstanding
individuals, only the name and fragments of their plays are known. However, a
few of the many works written by Aeschylus, Sophocles and Euripides were preserved
and luckily this was a sufficient number to bear witness to the undying value
of their work. Despite the individuality of each poet, there is an overarching
unity between them with regard to their central concerns: human actions,
misjudgments and their bleak consequences.
What is so innovative in tragedy that is of interest to our purpose?
From the outset, tragedy concerned itself with the expression of a new means of
conceptualising mankind. Human action is explicitly conceived as the outcome of
an inner process, of a subjective choice. There emerges a man aware of himself
and of the fact that he is responsible for the consequences of his choices. Of
note here is the discovery of his mistakes, of equivocal actions, of
unforeseeable and uncontrolled shadows that obscure his discernment and
therefore lead him to devastating decisions. Truth travels fast and man will
find himself entangled in happenings triggered by his own actions without being
aware of it. This tragic awareness is represented by the hero who is caught up
in the inescapable predicament which destiny sets for him. He has no choice but
to carry on, without ever losing his capacity to make his condition evident.
The tragic man accepts the reality imposed on him but is not a submissive
being. He accepts his destiny aware that he finds himself in an inescapable
situation in which he can both think and feel the tearing apart of his being
with no self-commiseration. He is the victim of his misjudgments but does not victimise himself. In
this heroic condition, he never disparages himself. Although the gods break him
down he does not belittle himself. He does not forsake his dignity and
retrieves his human value even if only crumbs are left of him. From these
crumbs will re-emerge his greatness which is, for example, revealed when he
takes it upon himself to be who he is in an overt way. He stands out from the
rest and clearly denotes his character and individuality which he clings to
ferociously. They are the only things left of him. Antigone is a powerful example of this as are Ajax and Oedipus.
Human drama is experienced by the hero as a fact which he has to deal with and
the aftermath is that he suffers to the last breath. The poetÕs capacity to
describe the tragic events is decisive in attaining catharsis. This purgation
of the intense emotions of pity and awe is felt by the spectator, who follows
the errors that lead the hero to destruction, without condemning him. Perhaps
no other literary form has revealed man to himself in such a poignant,
overwhelming, clear and inevitable manner as the Greek tragedy.
In accord with Lesky (1937), we may
surmise that tragedy dwells in the field of the psyche. More specifically, it
is the psychical action – the quintessence of the
reason for the heroÕs behaviour and of his discovery of how involved he
is in the direction his life is taking since he faces the issue of choice.
Although the tragedy is a major component of a particular culture, it embraces
all men when it illuminates the confrontation of the tragic hero with his
destiny and the influence of his decisions upon himself. Tragedy is apparent
where the individual perceives his subjectivity, his psyche itself. He
understands that he is solely and exclusively responsible for his entire
actions. The tragic hero is presented experiencing and bringing this reality to
the level of consciousness.
Tragedy presents human destiny in its plenitude: it does not
criticise, does not resolve nor finalise our condition. It discloses the
ever-continuing and inconclusive life. At the same time it unmasks the hero
destroyed and rescues him from obscurity. His intense pain and loss are
highlighted, with an eternal brightness, splendour and spiritual elevation.
This effect, ennobling rather than depressing, but rather dignifying, leads the
spectator of the drama to a profound identification with the character. And
everything that the hero, who kindles the tragic, does not disengage from his
destiny ends by leading him precisely to the encounter with himself. This is
man! Oedipus, or rather Sophocles, knew it.
It is stated that Freud is the father of psychoanalysis. But
a father does not generate life by himself, a mother is needed. Together with
the interlocutors he had during life, Freud developed psychoanalysis with
reference to an original maternal body, the Greek tragedy. Intuitively he
sought in its core - and in that which is perfect - a single source that
enabled him to bring a new vision of man and his psyche to humanity and
contemporary culture. Man himself, tragic man. In this sense, the mother of
psychoanalysis is the Greek tragedy. Specifically, it is Sophocles' version of
the myth of Oedipus in Oedipus Rex.
Sophocles
and Oedipus
Sophocles lived for almost the entire 5th century
BC probably from 496 to 406. He was an Athenian citizen, born in Colonus, one
of the small towns near Athens with which it maintained a mutual dependence
regarding subsistence and safety. A contemporary of Pericles, he saw and
experienced the rise and fall of the Athenian empire. From an aristocratic
family, he was a pleasant person, liked by all. Lesky (1971) calls
attention to the contradictions in Sophocles as a person: ÔThis poet who, as no
other was aware of the tragic misery of existence and of all the hidden human
suffering, followed the path of his external life protected by a serene light
and was viewed by his fellow citizens as a happy manÕ (pg. 301). Because
of his charm and good looks, he was chosen to direct the dance of the youths
when Athens celebrated the victory in Salamina in 480. Here Aeschylus fought as
a valiant soldier for his country and at the same time Euripides was born. He
wrote some one hundred and four plays, of which only seven survived. However,
these suffice to clearly establish his style. He received numerous awards, one
posthumously, in the theatrical contests during the Athenian feasts. Sophocles
wrote Oedipus Rex between 430 and 420 (Lesky 1971), probably soon
after 429, a year of plague in Athens, which is possibly represented at the
beginning of the play. He therefore reached an age of more than 65 years. His
last tragedy was Oedipus at Colonus performed posthumously in 401.
The myth of
Oedipus was already old, having been quoted in the Iliad and in the Odyssey. Prior to these,
it originated from oral tradition. Sophocles utilised it with profound
intuition, giving it new life as a tragic form, creating the drama of the
central character in his own version, soon before dying. One can deduce that
the OedipusÕ figure was on the poetÕs mind during many years of his life. It
may be thought that Sophocles owed this last play to himself and one can only
guess how much of the poet himself is in OedipusÕ character.
Sophocles
does not change the corpus of the
myth, but presents Oedipus as the tracking agent of past actions to explain the
present – and without knowing that he was thereby writing his future.
Throughout the play, he decides to seek the truth, whatever the cost, although
it is hidden by appearances and veiled by ambiguous words (Vernant &
Vidal-Naquet 1988). This truth accompanies Oedipus until it finally emerges in an irrefutable manner.
When Oedipus Rex begins, all the recounted
events in the myth had already occurred[2]. In the beginning
Sophocles places the hero at the gates of the palace in a majestic posture
listening to the laments of the choir of the old Thebans, suffering from the
evil that ravages Thebes and willing to do what is needed to placate divine
rage. In view of the reply that Thebes was being punished because it had not
discovered the slayer of Laius, Oedipus intends to make an investigation to
resolve the crime without having the slightest idea that he is looking for
himself.
Throughout
the play, all events from the past are recounted in the dialogues, clearly
displaying the current state of affairs. Oedipus gradually approaches his own
truth. He begins to be aware of himself as imprisoned by inexorable divine
powers. Though awed and vacillating, he continues his search. Upheaval in
events is a distinctive mark of this play with the hero passing through various
and contradictory emotions, in accordance with the developing events. He seems
both afraid and courageous, for instance, in the dialogue with the servant, who
finally corroborates his growing suspicions. When he insists upon knowing the
origin of the child that was saved, the servant says: ÔOh, I am at the horror,
now, to speak!Õ (v. 1169) and Oedipus: ÔAnd I to hear. But I must hear –
no lessÕ (v. 1170). At this crossing point, when the
servant withdraws into himself and the horror is felt, Oedipus cries out: ÔWoe! Woe! It is all plain, indeed! Oh
Light, this be the last time I shall gaze on thee, who am revealed to have been
born of those of whom I ought not – to have wedded whom I ought not
– and slain whom I might not slay!Õ (v. 1182-1186).
The
truth emerges as both undeciphered and decipherable, since
it was so near that it was impossible to ignore it. From this moment on,
everything will be new, different. The immensity, the infinite, the unknown,
the re-encounter with the past are disclosed, governing the encounter of
present and future. Blind, Oedipus exiles himself from Thebes and lives for
many years wandering shelterless throughout
Greece in ignominious disgrace.
Oedipus
– or Sophocles – is plunged into the profound abysses of the mind.
He is a paradigm of the investigation of the unknown powers that make man act
and discover himself. I believe that Sophocles did not intend to conceive his
character as moved by unconscious forces and I am far from wishing to make an
analysis along these lines or even to agree with it. The tragic action in this
play unveils the deepest meanderings of the unconscious that are not merely
suggested or insinuated, but openly experienced by the character. Everything is
visible, except to the hero himself. When portraying his hero as overtly ruled
by his position as king and soothsayer, but being led by parricide and by
incest, Sophocles presents a contrast between the apparent and the occult, both
equally visible and recognisable. This is a way of seeing that suggests a
bifocal vision, which encompasses the figure as well as the background in the
same perception. However, it is not at all feasible to interpret OedipusÕ
Ôunconscious motivationsÕ or anything similar. Such an attitude reveals nothing
more nothing less than a distortion and a total misunderstanding of the
paradigmatic place occupied by his figure.
In
this exemplary place, blindness is in the foreground. Oedipus is clairvoyant
and blind at the same time and such a paradox follows him constantly. It is
through blindness that he leads himself (or is led) to his destiny and not
through light. The light of OedipusÕ blindness is the truth he does not see but
which he will have to face eventually.
Blindness manifests itself in a decisive way at the fork of the road
along which Oedipus was fleeing from Corinth, believing that he was avoiding
the prophecy of the oracle. The fork arises from a path that formerly appeared
as a single direction but now splits into two. For Oedipus, from the moment he
met Laius at the fork of the road, his path changes to one of blind action, and
so it will be until the end. The encounter with Laius is a climactic moment.
Before this meeting, Oedipus is one man; afterwards, he is another and will be
another still. He changes the path from which he had previously been diverted
and the path becomes the only real one, which is of blindness leading him to
his destiny. His destiny, however, is to realise the predictions and ultimately
to find himself in his actions. As with Jocasta, Oedipus does not see the
mother and the mother does not see him. Both see only the outer shells and not
who they truly are. There rests SophoclesÕ genius that guides his character in
a retrospective and at the same time prospective movement, so much so that
Oedipus finds himself again at the decisive bifurcation of his past but also at
a different point, since a great distance has been travelled. The understanding
of the present and evolution in the future lie in this re-encounter with the
past.
The act of piercing his eyes is often interpreted as
punishment but in fact has a greater meaning. The dazzling experiences lived by
Oedipus make him suffer the effects of exposure to a light that is too strong
and the physical feeling is less meaningful. Indeed, he already has all the
light he needs within him, since he begins to see clearly all that was never
seen before. This act that constitutes a modification made by Sophocles of the
older myth, places the hero on a new level. It is the new vision conquered by
him that will guide him from now on. Oedipus is no longer being guided by the
semblance of things, but by the truth of facts. This discovery of himself
changes his position completely. His first destiny was sensorial – the
primitive destiny of the childhood psyche. The second was that of
self-discovery and acceptance of his own reality – the destiny of
adulthood.
At 90 years of age, Sophocles revisits his most touching hero. In Oedipus at Colonus, we see the equivalent to a true amendment process. After many
years wandering throughout Greece, the hero seeks a place that would shelter
his body after death. He approaches the city of Athens and meets the king
Theseus. A noble soul and a hero himself, Theseus acknowledges the nobility and
greatness of the blind man facing him and greets him with respect and
deference. A radiance emanates from Oedipus, an expression of the heights
attained by his spirit through a life of suffering. At this point of meeting,
the sons of Oedipus, involved in the ephemeral games of power and dominance,
will search for him. However, his life is coming to an end and he does not fear
the violence of men, even when clearly perceiving its effects on others as well
as on his own soul.
In this incomparably beautiful drama, Oedipus accepts
himself, comes to terms with his own truth without denying the pain and the
anguish, but also without being overcome by them. He – or Sophocles
– thereby reaches a high level of wisdom while revealing his awareness of
the most absolute impossibility to influence anyone whose perception is
obscured by desire. OedipusÕ status now is one of a truly wise man able to
acknowledge that, practically, life and its events are mostly uncontrollable.
Due to this status, Athens – beloved by Sophocles and his fellow citizens
– will be protected by OedipusÕ numen.
It is at the Garden of the Eumeniades[3]
in Colonus that he will have his mythic disappearance.
One can look at OedipusÕ tragedy as a metaphor for the functioning of
the psyche with respect to the meeting of man with himself, with his own truth.
Being aware of the place of Greek tragedy in 5th century BC Athens,
and specifically in Oedipus Rex, the
psychoanalyst discovers a representation of the amplified process of conscience
together with a model of the existence of the unconscious and the functioning
of the psyche. On suddenly perceiving all of his mistakes, Oedipus is aware of
his entire truth. The effect of this
unveiling is both awesome and cathartic, since it brings about a complete
reformulation in his situation. Things in themselves do not change but their
inclusion into consciousness changes the vertex and this aspect is remarkable
in Oedipus at Colonus. Sophocles
redeems his character from the blindness through the conquest of an awareness
that leads him to the paroxysms of pain, but also to a change of course. These
two tragedies may be seen as representations of the poetÕs realisation that to
face the truth about oneself is an unwavering step to come to rights with oneÕs
own contradictions and to accept the human condition, or, more specifically,
the evolution of the psyche.
In such an inversion, or in the catastrophe experienced by Oedipus,
nothing of that which previously characterised the hero is annulled. Everything
is maintained but now relativised. He keeps his previous characteristics whilst
uncovering previously latent qualities. Oedipus perfectly embodies man as a
being that cannot escape from himself. This is his true destiny determined, not
by oracles, but by his humanity. Finding himself downgraded and bitterly
expiating his guilt, he is given a chance to reformulate the view of man, the
man he is, and thus meet with his real self stripped of earlier illusions. In
the end, Sophocles presents Oedipus as a hero who needed to learn compassion through
extreme personal suffering.
Oedipus and Freud
SophoclesÕ Oedipus admirably illustrates words by Aristotle (1981: 49):
ÔSophocles said that he represented men as they should be and Euripides as they
wereÕ. Here it is worth noting that
when comparing the two poets, the philosopher acknowledges that SophoclesÕ
characters portray the representation of an
ideal man, nonetheless a man who is essentially real.
The narrative of Oedipus is not an instrument for the psychoanalyst to
carry out his work (Bion 1965). A narrative presents situations that may be
understood in terms of cause and effect. The narration of Oedipus is not suitable for psychoanalysis, moreover,
because psychoanalysis is indeed less interested in establishing cause and
effect relations than in following up and identifying a dynamic in constant
change. Tragedy, unlike myth, presents a unique situation in which one sees a
being who marches towards an encounter with himself. Aware of himself step by
step, he comprehends various moments of life and different experiences. He
slowly designs his own silhouette, knowing and recognising the face staring at
him from the shadows. He had turned his back on it, but the silhouette had
never stopped following him. One reaches a summit and an outcome, and tragedy
serves as a paradigm of this process even though it does not entirely contain
it.
Initially, Oedipus only sees what his misguided senses perceive. His
perception of reality is clouded by outward appearances. Sophocles places his
character on route to an accumulation of insights, for in it all unwinds unequivocally and at once,
with the effect of a catastrophe. There is a total inversion in the perception
of things so that what is dark is illuminated and what is lit becomes darkened.
The majestic and remarkable Oedipus is diminished. The unknown Oedipus,
parricide and incestuous, emerges and the character is presented as being fully
aware of this change. He is everything he sees, what was before and what is
now. This is perhaps the best example of what Bion (1970) calls catastrophic
change.
In the realm of fantasy, Oedipal
desires have the value of reality and the awareness of this and its subsequent
elaboration bring enormous relief and open the way for the development of the
psyche. The desirable barrier of contact between the conscious and the
unconscious is necessary up to a certain point. When exceedingly permeable, it
brings about indiscrimination, and when too rigid, the effect is rupture and
lack of communication. Both impoverish and jeopardise the functioning of the
psyche. To know oneÕs own dynamics makes the individual an observer of himself
and enables the formation of a flexible proximity between the various
components of the psyche.
The Oedipus complex refers to a
configuration of relationships that include the
influence of unconscious identification processes. Identification between Laius
and Oedipus is far from being expressed by Sophocles or even by the myth. The
unconscious identification with the father as well as the Oedipal desires
belong to the Oedipus complex, not to the myth or the tragedy. To state that
such identification is part of the character Oedipus, would be the same as to
interpret the myth according to the theory. To ÔpsychoanalyseÕ Oedipus is an
error of focus and a mistaken use of psychoanalysis. His figure is not on a
couch and further I do not believe this is his place, he would not even fit on
it. The Oedipus complex, as we know it, is a concept that allows psychoanalysts
to acknowledge that the identification is formed by a relationship and above
all, the dynamics by which the identifying process takes place.
As noted elsewhere, when conceiving
the complex of Oedipus, Freud stressed the sexual aspects at play, but did not
restrict this concept to sexuality itself, although its role should not be
denied nor underestimated. It is precisely by sexual behaviour that the hero
discovers himself. In his quest, he discloses a doubly misshapen transgressor
of all the rules and boundaries that facilitate human co-existence. His acts,
that lead him to be justly banished from human society, exist in the mind of
every man at the level of fantasy and desire. It is to this aspect that the
conception of the Oedipus complex in psychoanalysis refers, thereby enabling
its investigation and elaboration. The longings exist in the innermost part of
everyone, but outside consciousness. This does not make its effect less
powerful, since we are always dealing – either constructively or
destructively – with the aftermaths of the first identifications
experienced in relationship with the parents.
I stated above that the Oedipus
narrative is not an instrument for the psychoanalyst in his practice. The
analyst applies his intuition in opening the pathway through appearances to
reach that which makes the individual what he is. Modern man suffers from the
aftermaths of anguish that lead him to keep the desires and fantasies
unacceptable to his moral conscience out of his consciousness, producing the
most varied symptoms - deformed expressions from their repressed contents. He
endures the results of the excessive aggression of the libido on his imagined
self, that is to say, the exacerbated enhancement of appearances getting away
from his real self. He heavily invests in and inflates the significance of sex,
power, material conditions, in such a way that these aspects are often used to
replace the good human relationship that he needs, but is unable to establish.
While such substitutions are proceeding, the lack of a creative relationship of
the individual with himself and with others is disclosed, the true promoter of
growth and satisfaction. On the contrary, the narcissism that enhances the
ideal to the detriment of the real makes evident the disarray and the pain at
stake here.
Psychoanalysis investigates
and describes this complex man, distant from his reality, off centre, aiming to
help him recover himself, contact his mental life and re-encounter his soul
– as Freud would say. It is this same man we see encompassed in Oedipus,
and also in other tragic characters, although none but Oedipus displays these
conditions so fully. While he recognises himself in his actions, he also
perceives how much he does not know, how little he knows about himself. Thus
knowing oneself entails perception that a great deal remains, to a large
extent, beyond the scope of consciousness. That is when analysis offers a
corrective and repairing possibility.
And, just like Oedipus at the
gates of Colonus, nothing can be done for a man that does not yearn change.
Greek wisdom acknowledges that the longing for transformation, evolution and
development is born in the human heart and cannot be inculcated from outside[4].
Oedipus understands that he can do nothing for his sons, since they have chosen
the path of mutual destruction moved by unarguably opposed reasons[5].
His wisdom lies in freeing himself from the individuals they are and in
recognising that each makes his choice. Often his attitude is misinterpreted as
cruel or insensitive or still opposed to the condition of a wise man who after
his death will take the place of a protective numen. Nevertheless, it is the attitude of a man with foresight who
perceives the depth of human nature and recognises that what is in the individual is his sole responsibility. This
is the point reached by Oedipus. Or by Sophocles.
The therapeutic and
transforming function of psychoanalysis derives from the individualÕs
perception that he is in charge of taking care and being responsible for
everything he feels, consciously or not. Based on FreudÕs Formulations on the two principles of mental
functioning, BionÕs work (1962)
highlights the significance of the
capacity to think which creates a precious mental space between
impulse and action. It is through this mental space that the internal and
subjective reality will become subject to observation and reflection, subject
to continued probing. Resistance to this expansion derives from the unavoidable
pain, from fear of not accomplishing the task and from hatred against a reality
different from the desire to control.
Further, in analysis, one
often observes in adults the need to accept and elaborate pain when perceiving
that the time still to be lived can be shorter than that already lived. There
remains a lot to be done and one can only care for the present. After all, this is the only reparation
possible, because facts do not change. All this is deeply painful and few are
willing to face this truth. I strongly emphasise that these words only reflect
the evidence of clinical observations and do not involve any appraisal,
especially because the mind is a never-ending abyss. No analysis can presume to
be the holder of the truth or judge of decisions or postures of any person.
This is only one point of view.
The analyst is bound to follow
the Delphic maxims. Psychoanalysis did not invent the human mind, even though
its propositions may orient a certain way of seeing. It intends to be an
intuitive investigational method of the already existant. It elaborates
concepts and theories based upon what is observed and perceived, leaving open
the fact that we know very little. It is open-ended knowledge aiming to get rid
of prejudices and observe human experience from a viewpoint exempt of any moral
evaluation.
Indeed, psychoanalysis runs
contrary to myth and more with tragedy. Its purpose is to heal through
expanding the knowledge of the unknown mind. The individual tends to orient
himself in life according to patterns learned in childhood, which sooth the
anguish of the unknown. To guide oneself by the known brings about an illusion
of security and control of the facts of life. To point out the illusory aspect
of this security and control is the task of psychoanalysis, not as a
philosophical and rational activity but by acknowledgement of the emotional
experience, associated with the expansion of conscience. In this process, the
individual experiences the insight of the loneliness in decision, of clear
awareness of this loneliness, the experience of subjective responsibility for
his acts and experience of the pain awoken by awareness. Just as in tragedy,
the experience is of compassion and of terror.
In other
words, Freud himself disclosed this issue and with a thin needle pricked the
inexorable, long-cherished illusions, showing how much man swings all the time
between forces that lead him in opposite directions. In disturbing studies he
exposed the human soul at its most primitive without forgetting the
opportunities to evolve, but he seems to have reached the end of life without
great hopes (Freud 1937).
The man
entering psychoanalysis is one who swings between the consciousness he controls
and the unconscious that rules him. Like Oedipus, he is permanently situated
between the primitive and the developed. The voice of Man facing the Sphynx
howls at the contrast between the savage and the civilised, the cave man and
the man of the polis. When crossing
the gates of Thebes he carries in his innermost being strong remindders of this
world, forgotten under the trappings of civilisation that lead him to action without
his awareness. Once discovered, the experience is one of horror, but only
thereafter is it possible to reconcile in his innermost self the opposed facets
of his truth as it is disclosed. It is in this re-encounter with the beast that
the encounter of man takes place and the domain of true reparation is unveiled.
It is an unforgettable tragedy because while rupture becomes evident,
integration is constructed and everything is consciously experienced, without
which this process would be impossible.
Freud sensed
these depths. Becoming interested in the probing of the unconscious, he opens
the way for the investigation of the hidden Oedipus dwelling in every
individual. Yet what does psychoanalysis propose other than to carry out an
investigation like that of Oedipus and help the individual to know himself and
deal with the lacerations he undergoes because of the internal contradictions
that characterises tragic man? Not by chance, the analytic motto is the Delphic
inscription: ÔKnow thyselfÕ.
Tragic man and
man investigated by psychoanalysis are the same man as they share a common
condition, while fundamental aspects of human nature – but not the whole
of it – are encompassed therein. Every man is enclosed in tragic man,
more precisely in the tragic Oedipus, even though this is not the whole man.
Within SophoclesÕ Oedipus is enclosed
the de-centred man that psychoanalysis investigates, who, on finding himself in
his fragility, conquers the centre. It is a non-static or unfinished centre,
but one that is always dynamic and is translated by the acceptance of reality.
The character Oedipus attains this level, thereby being a perfect model. This
is furthermore the condition that orients the analyst engaged in the quest for
his self, discovering and perfecting his inner conditions, while he is carrying
out the work. Freud as well as Sophocles showed the way. Freud discovered
Oedipus in his self-analysis as can be read in his writings. Yet SophoclesÉ Sophocles wrote Oedipus Rex! We can
surmise that the happy man he seems to have been managed to search his
innermost self and extract his most secret fantasies, elaborating them to reach
wisdom.
As such, if
SophoclesÕ Oedipus is the representation of man Ôas he should beÕ, we can say
that in psychoanalysis, the constant search for this man is carried out, taking
into account that the journey is neverending.
We have
reached a point where, for the psychoanalyst, the true content of the story of
Oedipus is less significant than the investigative attitude of the hero in relation
to himself. And this leads us to remember a comment by Bion (1963: 92): ÔFreud
used the Oedipus myth and the version of the myth made by Sophocles and
discovered psychoanalysis; with psychoanalysis he discovered the Oedipus
complexÕ. By means of myth, one
arrives at psychoanalysis and with psychoanalytic tools the mind is so
thoroughly investigated that at a certain moment the Oedipus complex is
conceived. In my opinion, this focus places myth and tragedy in a highly
valuable primary position. It functions as a lever to unleash an investigatory
process whose development is expanded towards the infinite of the mind.
When all is
said and done, we acknowledge that we are but at the threshold of a complex
issue, but we have the conviction that if to know oneself is tragic, not to
know oneself is disastrous.
Conclusion
Psychoanalysis
is a new science compared to other humanistic sciences such as philosophy or
history. Psychoanalysis has been available to humanity for about a century. We
do not even know if it will survive. Time after time, we find proclamations of
its demise in the printed press and other media, but this does not stop
analysts from continuing their work. Freud opened the doors to unparalleled
investigation and one of the strong reasons that keeps psychoanalysis alive is
the certainty that its discoveries are still at the beginning and far from
ending. In clinical practice, one notices the human relationship that develops
and is built over the analytic process, producing decisive effects on the
quality of life of those who benefit from it. It is impossible to know how far
modern man will allow himself to expand the possibilities to live the
experience of analysis. Certainly, once he takes upon himself to undergo the
investigation of the different aspects of the psyche, it proves to be of great
assistance in dealing with the divisions endemic in present day society.
Greek
tragedy, to which psychoanalysis is indebted, emerged, blossomed and died out
in only one century. A tiny gap in time, but sufficient to attest to an undying
vigour that extends to the present time. What is true is preserved. Perhaps it
may get lost for a certain time, but it always returns in new and beautiful
shapes. This may be an idealised vision of human accomplishment but it
expresses a hopeful certainty about the psychological development of man. After
all, man is an animal able to learn and teach.
We do not
have the slightest possibility of knowing how tragic poetry would have evolved
if conditions had been different. Indeed, to think about this is idle and
useless. We are also unable to foresee what evolution is intended for
psychoanalysis. We hope that it survives and progresses far beyond one century
and remains as an alternative to human blindness, becoming increasingly
accessible to persons interested in knowing their inner reality.
¤ I am very grateful to Paul Holden for his assistance
in editing the text.
[1] I use the expression Oedipus complex, or just
Oedipus, to signify the Freudian concept to avoid possible misunderstanding.
[2] The myth is well known. Nevertheless the enigma sung
by the Sphinx must be remembered: ÔThere is a biped on earth and quadruped with
a single voice, and a tripped, and also those beings that wander on the earth,
in the air and in the sea, and is the only one that goes against nature;
however, nevertheless, it rests upon a greater number of feet, and speed
weakens in his limbs.Õ The simpler
version: ÔWhich is the animal that
has a voice, walks, in the morning, on four feet, at noon with two, and in the
afternoon with three?Õ (Brando 1987: 261).
[3]
Beneficial goddesses, ancient Erinyes, formerly avengers of blood crimes, of
which Oedipus was clearly guilty.
[4] In part this reflects on the fact that Greek
civilisation never entered into religious wars or tried to convert others to
its gods. Much to the contrary it was receptive to the divinities of other peoples,
including them in its Pantheon.
[5] Likewise, in the play The Phoenicians, EuripidesÕ version of the saga of Labdacidas, the
arguments of Jocasta and Antigone, and also of the choir, trying to
convince Eteocles and Polynices to
review their intransigent positions become void and all sufferings are brought
on.
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