Ophelia complex is the term used by
Gaston Bachelard
Gaston Bachelard (; ; 27 June 1884 – 16 October 1962) was a French philosopher. He made contributions in the fields of poetics and the philosophy of science. To the latter, he introduced the concepts of ''epistemological obstacle'' and '' epi ...
to refer to the links between femininity, liquids, and drowning which he saw as symbolised in the fate of Shakespeare's
Ophelia
Ophelia () is a character in William Shakespeare's drama ''Hamlet'' (1599–1601). She is a young noblewoman of Denmark, the daughter of Polonius, sister of Laertes and potential wife of Prince Hamlet, who, due to Hamlet's actions, ends up in ...
.
Main theme
Bachelard traced in
Romanticism
Romanticism (also known as the Romantic movement or Romantic era) was an artistic, literary, musical, and intellectual movement that originated in Europe towards the end of the 18th century, and in most areas was at its peak in the approximate ...
a nexus of ideas linking the dissolution of the self - male or female - with immersion in the feminine element of water, as symbolised by Ophelia's drowning.
Literary offshoots
Federico García Lorca
Federico del Sagrado Corazón de Jesús García Lorca (5 June 1898 – 19 August 1936), known as Federico García Lorca ( ), was a Spanish poet, playwright, and theatre director. García Lorca achieved international recognition as an emblemat ...
explored the image of water and a despairing sexuality, epitomised in the Ophelia complex, throughout his writings.
Exteriorised adolescence
A later, and unconnected use of the terms Ophelia complex/Ophelia syndrome was introduced by
Mary Pipher
use both this parameter and , birth_date to display the person's date of birth, date of death, and age at death) -->
, death_place =
, death_cause =
, body_discovered =
, resting_place =
, resting_place_coordinates = ...
in her ''
Reviving Ophelia'' of 1994. There she argued for a view of Shakespeare's character as lacking inner direction, and externally defined by men (father/brother); and suggested that similar external pressures were currently faced by post-pubescent girls. The danger of the Ophelia syndrome was that of abandoning a rooted childhood self, for an apparently more sophisticated but over-externalised
facade self.
See also
References
{{Reflist, 2}
Further reading
G. Bachelard, ''L'Eau et les reves'' (Paris 1942)
External links
Ophelia and Isabella
Psychoanalytic terminology
Analytical psychology
Complex (psychology)
Freudian psychology