Helplessness and omnipotence in the life and work of Honore de Balzac

PSYCHOANALYSIS OF LITERARY CREATIVITY

Abstract

The article "Helplessness and omnipotence in the life and work of Honore de Balzac" from a psychoanalytic point of view examines the biography and autobiographical novels of the writer: "Shagreen Skin", "Louis Lambert" and "Facino Canet". The research is aimed at comprehending the life of the writer, in which almost all aspirations were subordinated to grandiose plans and, at the same time, the feeling of helplessness and worthlessness. The hypothesis is investigated that insufficient reflection of Balzac's primary needs in childhood led him to identification with an omnipotent mother and a strong ambivalent connection with her. The fates and inclinations of the famous "inhabitants" of the Human Comedy, Raphael de Valentin and Louis Lambert, reveal the living unconscious of the writer himself, striving for an ideal life and an ideal woman (mother). The maternal imago is compared to the very pebbled skin that counts the days of Balzac. The analysis of the genogram leads the researcher to an understanding of his role in the family – the role of a subsitutional child looking for a subsitutional mother.

Honore de Balzac lived in a different era, which was characterized by different customs. Nevertheless, his life and creative path became the subject of reflection of many biographers, filmmakers and journalists who are our contemporaries. This speaks of the relevance and consonance with the present day of the problems reflected in his work. Psychoanalysts also repeatedly turned their attention to the literary work of the writer, finding various manifestations of his identity in fictional and fantasy characters.

From the point of view of practical significance, the article can be useful for psychoanalytic psychotherapists who encounter difficulties in understanding the phenomena of helplessness and omnipotence in their work. This is the first of two articles on the life and work of the writer. Second article pays more attention to the phenomenon of "Balzac woman".