Diss. Stockholm : Stockholms universitet, 2006.

This paper argues that the notion of death is omnipresent and essential for Emmanuel Levinas through all periods of his thought, although not always explicitly thematized. It tries to show this through a close reading of, firstly, his early period as an explicit polemic against Martin Heidegger’s analysis of death in Being and Time; secondly, his middle period, as an implicit polemic against Alexandre Kojèves influential readings of Hegel; and thirdly, his late period, in the light of psychoanalytical theories about trauma, loss, mourning and survival. This paper further argues that this notion of death, explicitly or implicitly present through all periods of Levinas’s thought, can be characterized as a traumatic survival experience in which a refusal to mourn holds sway. Finally, the paper sketches some consequences that this survival experience of death might have for contemporary post-Levinasian philosophy, to be examined in future research.

Denna uppsats undersöker vilka litterära gotiska motiv och begrepp som rockbandet The Cure använder sig av i sin visuella estetik, närmare bestämt i tre av deras musikvideor: "Charlotte Sometimes (1981), "The Lovecats" (1983) och "Lullaby" (1989). Analysen och undersökningen utgår från teorier kring semiotisk bildanalys samt ett intermedialt perspektiv där det tidigare skrivna ordet transformeras till visuella bilder. Andra teoretiska inriktningar som används i denna text är bland annat genusteorier kring receptionen av bilder samt ett psykoanalytiskt perspektiv där främst det undermedvetnas funktion inom den litterära texten granskas. Undersökningen kring och om gotiken utgår ifrån Mattias Fyhr definition av den litterära gotikens kännetecken. Undersökningen visar att The Cure använder sig av typiska gotiska motiv och könsstereotyper i sin visuella estetik men anpassar samt omvandlar gotikens uttryckssätt till att fungera i en postmodern kontext. De ursprungliga gotiska begreppen och skildringarna av kön, psykologi och konst är genomgående synliga i musikvideorerna men manifesterar sig på ett nytt sätt genom The Cures visuella konstnärsskap. / <p>Författaren har bytt efternamn till Wallenheim.</p>

This study attempts to find out if a reading of Michael Romekys novel I, Vampire through the theories presented by psychoanalyst C. G. Jung adds anything to the understanding of the novels narrative. More precisely it attempts to read the novel as an individuation process, a Jungian concept in which an individuals damaged psyche heals itself, of the novels protagonist. This reading is based upon the assumption that the protagonist, David, suffers a trauma when he divorces his wife Clarice. This trauma, and divorce, is read as a split between David ego and his anima, his female aspect. When he is on the brink of suicide, Tatiana shows up, turn him in to a vampire and give his life new meaning. Tatiana is read as his anima, the part of himself that i distanced himself from during the divorce, and he now needs to assimilate with again. This assimilationwhat Jung names the conuncitio, is the goal of the individuation process. In order to success with this individuation process David has to meet and overcome the dark and damaged parts of himself; his shadow aspects to use the Jungian language. These are represented by the evil vampires Jack the Ripper and von Baden. It is only after meeting, and defeating this shadow aspects, and after a rigorous mental training, in order to strengthen his mental abilities, that David can unite with his anima, Tatiana, in the alchemical wedding. The Jungian goal of the individuation process. I find in this study that to read this novel through a Jungian screen show aspects otherwise hidden. The narrative structure, and the symbols in the novel, have a distinct Jungian flavour which give the novel a meaning perhaps not seen on the surface.

Deleuze and Guattaris extensive critique of psychoanalysis is clearly demonstrated in their reading of Freuds famous case study The Wolfman. This paper aims to examine this critique, addressed in the chapter One or Several Wolves? of A Thousand Plateaus. The aim is to illustrate an alternative view of the subject to the one presented by Freud. Freuds's method is understanding the self by interpreting the unconscious as seen from the analyst's perspective. This paper seeks to present a different approach by regarding the unconscious as productive and collective. This description of the self formulate alternative suggestions as to how to treat mental illness. The paper uses the anti-psychiatric clinic La Borde as an example of this in practice. / Deleuze och Guattaris omfattande kritik av psykoanalysen framgår tydligt i deras läsning av Freuds fallstudie av Vargmannen. I Tusen Platåer kapitlet ”En eller flera vargar?” behandlas kritiken som denna uppsats syftar till att undersöka. Uppsatsen belyser kritiken med avsikten att öppna för en annan syn på subjektet än den Freud förmedlar. Freuds metod är att utifrån en analytikers position förstå jaget genom att tolka det omedvetna. Den här uppsatsen syftar till att framhålla ett annat förhållningssätt till jaget med ingången att det omedvetna ses som produktivt och kollektivt. Denna subjektsbeskrivning föreslår en alternativ behandling av psykiskt sjuka. I uppsatsen används den antipsykiatriska kliniken La Borde för att exemplifiera detta i praktiken.

Inledning: Depression är en av de vanligaste psykiatriska diagnoserna i Sverige (Folkhälsomyndigheten, 2017). Depression leder till att livet känns meningslöst, vilket ger lidandet en existentiell dimension. Att studera psykoterapeuters syn på lidande utifrån existentiella och psykoanalytiska perspektiv motiveras eftersom forskning har visat att interventioner som adresserar dessa specifikt har varit framgångsrika. Syftet med studien var att undersöka denna fråga ytterligare. Frågeställningar: Hur föreställer sig psykodynamiska psykoterapeuter psykiskt lidande och hur arbetar de med det i terapin? Vilken betydelse tillskriver de, de existentiella dimensionerna för det psykiska lidandet? Metod: En kvalitativ metod har använts. Sex terapeuter intervjuades med utgångspunkt från en semi-strukturerad intervjuguide, intervjuerna analyserades tematiskt. Resultat: Tre huvudteman om lidande framkom i intervjuerna: Att vara människa, skapar både möjlighet och hinder för mening och läkande, kärlekens betydelse. Diskussion: Analysen pekade på en mångfald av uppfattningar om lidandet och sättet att arbeta med det. Den visade dock på en samstämmighet vad gäller upplevelsen av kärlekens betydelse för lidandet och pekade på att psykodynamiska terapeuter, i diskussionen om konfidenters lidande i kärlek och religion, närmade sig existentiella perspektiv. / Introduction: Depression is one of the most common psychiatric diagnoses in Sweden (Folkhälsomyndigheten, 2017). Depression causes life to feel meaningless, which gives it an existential dimension. Studying psychotherapists’ views of suffering from an existential and psychoanalytic perspective is motivated since research has shown that interventions that address it have been successful. The purpose of the study was to investigate this question further. Research questions: How do psychotherapists envisage mental suffering and how do they work with it in therapy? What significance do psychotherapists attribute to the importance of the existential dimensions for mental suffering? Method: A qualitative has been used. Six therapists were interviewed based on a semi-structured interview guide, the interview responses were thematically analysed. Results: Three main themes on suffering emerged in the interview responses: To be human, suffering creates both opportunities and obstacles to meaning and healing, the importance of love. Discussion: The interviews indicated a variety of ideas about suffering and ways of working with it. However, they pointed to a consensus regarding the experience of the importance of love for suffering and showed that psychodynamic therapists, in the discussion of clients’ suffering in love and religion, approached existential perspectives.

Den biologiska skr􏰍äcken eller kallad p􏰎å engelska 􏰏body horror􏰐 􏰍är en subgenre av skräck som visar människokroppen i syfte till att kränka, kroppsligt eller psykologiskt för att framhäva en obehaglig och skrämmande känsla hos åskådaren. Teman som avvikande kön, mutationer, zombiefiering eller onaturliga rörelser av kroppen är vanliga inom denna genre. Syftet med denna uppsats är att undersöka den kvinnliga kroppen i de tre samtida psykologiska skräckfilmerna Black Swan (Darren Aronofsky, 2010), Suspiria (Luca Guadagnino, 2018) och Horse Girl (Jeff Baena, 2020) med fokus på den kvinnliga kroppen och dess effekt hos åskådaren. Anledning till att just dessa tre filmer används i min undersökning beror på att de alla använder den kvinnliga kroppen som ett verktyg för att framkalla den biologiska skräcken som sedan skrämmer åskådaren. I stället för att välja tre liknande filmer har jag försökt välja filmer som använder sig av samma genre men på olika sätt. Varför är vi fascinerade av grafiska bilder av det kroppsliga? Hur används den kvinnliga kroppen i koppling till något äckligt och obehagligt för att skapa känslor hos åskådaren? Genom att applicera olika psykoanalytiska och feministiska teorier på de tre filmerna, kommer uppsatsen undersöka hur den kvinnliga kroppen används i koppling till något skrämmande samt diskutera den kroppsliga reaktionen åskådaren får och varför vi använder oss av detta när vi skapar en film inom genren skräck. Jag kommer ta hjälp av begrepp som fetischism, voyeurism, den nyfikna blicken och abjektion.

This essay examines the possible meaning of light as a symbol according to Tyra Kleen. The illustrated prose poetic tale En psykesaga (1902) is packed with mythological and symbolist references, and it becomes clear from the first page of the saga that Kleen was truly a symbolist of her time. The story is a paraphrase of the myth of Cupid and the Psyche, but with a new independent agent. To investigate the meaning of light, the thesis studies contextual studies in relation to the symbolism of Facos and Lundberg, in order to get close to the meta poetry of En psykesaga. In addition, a dream theoretical perspective according to Freud's psychoanalysis has been applied for a further dimension of the possible meaning of light.

The Revenant (Alejandro González Iñárritu, 2015) is a film that invites the audience to rediscover the gaze of nature that has been a part of cinema since its birth. Nature is often treated as a tool to broaden our understanding of the inner world of humans but it is rarely explored in the manner that allows us to deepen our understanding of nature. Ecocinema is, to a large extent, concerned with how films communicate environmental processes, although the place of nature within this field may be contentious. This thesis aims to explore how the gaze of nature is being constructed in The Revenant in order to expand our understanding of the position of nature in film. The approach involves a close reading of the film where a selection of scenes were rendered by psychoanalytic film theory within the context of ecocinema. Particular attention was given to the concept of spectatorship, where investigations into how cinema positions us as subjects are crucial. The gaze of nature can shape the identity of ecocinema and position itself as a function of the unconscious that allows viewers to process their traumas related to the ecological crisis we are facing. This gaze facilitates an emotional and cognitive encounter with repressed realities. Through the lens of this gaze, nature is positioned as a subject with its own function and identity, of which humans are not independent but merely a small part.

In this study I discuss the forms of practical knowledge inherent in parent-child-relation, as described by the british pediatrician and psychoanalytic DonaldWinnicott. Winnicott was a successful broadcaster for the BBC during and after thesecond world war, he spoke on subjects concerning child rearing, psychology andfamily dynamics. The material of this study is the written versions of Winnicott’sbroadcasting, published as parental guiding books aimed specifically at mothers butalso addressing a wider public. The method consist of identifying and naming the twodifferent kinds of practical knowledge that Winnicott discuss, which I have calledintuitive knowledge and instructional knowledge. The results show that Winnicott’sview of knowledge influences the way he adresses his subjects, and that it is anintegrated part of his social criticism. In the study I show that the division betweenintuitive knowledge and instructional knowledge is crucial for a deeper understandingof Winnicott’s view’s on parenthood and society, as well as for the wider historicalunderstanding of the inter- and after-war periods in Great Britain.