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Cover of Psychoanalysis and Performance

Psychoanalysis and Performance

by Patrick Campbell

Book Details

Publisher:Routledge
Published:2002-09-11
Pages:257
Format:BOOK
Language:en

Reading Info

About This Book

In this volume some of the most distinguished thinkers in the field make an exciting new connection based on the dual principle that psychoanalysis can provide a productive framework for understanding the work of performance, and that performance itself can help to investigate the problem of identity.

Our Review

This compelling academic work bridges the worlds of psychological theory and theatrical practice, demonstrating how psychoanalysis provides a powerful framework for understanding performance art while performance itself offers unique insights into identity formation. Distinguished thinkers in the field explore this symbiotic relationship, revealing how theatrical expression and psychological theory inform and enrich one another in unexpected ways. The collection moves beyond surface-level connections to examine how performance can actively investigate the complex problem of personal identity through embodied practice.

What makes this volume particularly valuable is its dual perspectiveโ€”it doesn't simply apply psychoanalytic theory to performance but shows how performance can challenge and expand our understanding of psychological concepts. Readers interested in theater studies, psychology, or identity politics will find rich material here, as the essays illuminate how the stage becomes a space for working through fundamental questions of selfhood. The intersection of these disciplines creates a thought-provoking dialogue that will resonate long after the final page.

Themes

Art

Subjects

Art