Desire and Repression in Tennessee Williams’ The Glass Menagerie (1944) and Milan Kundera’s Life is Elsewhere (1973)
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Date
2025-07-02
Authors
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Publisher
Université Mouloud Mammeri Tizi Ouzou
Abstract
This dissertation explores the psychological dimensions of Tennessee Williams’ play The Glass Menagerie (1944) and Milan Kundera’s novel Life is Elsewhere (1973), Our purpose in this piece of research is to explore the complex representation of desire and repression and their constraints in both works and the ways into which they shape and limit the lives of the characters of each work. By analysing the protagonists in behavioral pattern and identities, this analysis reveals that repressed desires influence people’s lives and lead them to make choices that transform their sense of self. Based on psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud’s theory on the ‘Desire’ and ‘Repression’ as a model, this research contributes to a deeper understanding of Williams’ and Kundera’s representation of fundemental psychological conflicts in their literary works. The first chapter highlights the Freudian concept of desire in the context of human need focusing on identity and personal freedom in both works, while the second chapter examines some symbols of repression caused by external forces and societal expectations imposed on individuals.
Description
54p. ; (+CD-Rom)
Keywords
Desire, Milan Kundera, Psychoanalysis, Repression, Sigmund Freud, Tennessee Williams.
Citation
Literature and Interdisciplinary Approaches