Research Article

THE RETURN OF “THE ABJECT” IN KOSMOS AND THE KILLING OF A SACRED DEER

Volume: 12 Number: 2 October 27, 2025
TR EN

THE RETURN OF “THE ABJECT” IN KOSMOS AND THE KILLING OF A SACRED DEER

Abstract

Julia Kristeva in Powers of Horror: An Essay on Abjection, defines the “abject” as that which both threatens identity and paradoxically serves to preserve it. This paradoxical condition is not an object or subject that language can define. Ironically, it is at the very center of the formation of identity. What Kristeva calls the “not-I or not-other” threatens the integrity and boundary of identity due to its ambiguous and inexplicable nature. Since the abject does not belong to the defined and determined sphere of subjectivity, it disrupts the orders, rules and boundaries through which individuals and/or societies try to keep their borders intact against this destructive power. Therefore, identity and the boundaries that define identity result from processes in which the not-I and the not-other are tried to be expelled from these boundaries. Accordingly, this study aims to discuss the emergence of this “thing (abject)” that is not-self and not-other in two different narratives, in Reha Erdem's (2009) Kosmos and Yorgos Lanthimos’ (2017) The Killing of a Sacred Deer, and to discuss how identities and cultures that are thought to be perfectly constructed are actually intertwined with the “thing” that is trying to be expelled, and how this threat is incorporated into their lives by people themselves.

Keywords

References

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  4. Erdem, R. (2009). Reha erdem’le a ay’dan kosmos’a: Kosmos’un kars’ı dönülecek değil gidilecek yerler. In F. Yücel (Ed.), Reha erdem sineması: Aşk ve isyan (pp. 174-183).Çitlembik.
  5. Erdem, R. (Director). (2009). Kosmos [Film]. Atlantik Film; İmaj.
  6. Güntürkün, E., & Altunay, D. A. (2023). Gerçeküstü kodlar üzerinden reha erdem sinemasına bakmak. Selçuk Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü Dergisi, 50, 170-183. [https://doi.org/10.52642/susbed.1223510]
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Details

Primary Language

English

Subjects

North American Language, Literature and Culture

Journal Section

Research Article

Early Pub Date

October 23, 2025

Publication Date

October 27, 2025

Submission Date

January 10, 2025

Acceptance Date

July 14, 2025

Published in Issue

Year 2025 Volume: 12 Number: 2

APA
Gündoğdu, A. (2025). THE RETURN OF “THE ABJECT” IN KOSMOS AND THE KILLING OF A SACRED DEER. Dokuz Eylül Üniversitesi Edebiyat Fakültesi Dergisi, 12(2), 576-591. https://doi.org/10.69878/deuefad.1617154
AMA
1.Gündoğdu A. THE RETURN OF “THE ABJECT” IN KOSMOS AND THE KILLING OF A SACRED DEER. Dokuz Eylül Üniversitesi Edebiyat Fakültesi Dergisi. 2025;12(2):576-591. doi:10.69878/deuefad.1617154
Chicago
Gündoğdu, Ayşegül. 2025. “THE RETURN OF ‘THE ABJECT’ IN KOSMOS AND THE KILLING OF A SACRED DEER”. Dokuz Eylül Üniversitesi Edebiyat Fakültesi Dergisi 12 (2): 576-91. https://doi.org/10.69878/deuefad.1617154.
EndNote
Gündoğdu A (October 1, 2025) THE RETURN OF “THE ABJECT” IN KOSMOS AND THE KILLING OF A SACRED DEER. Dokuz Eylül Üniversitesi Edebiyat Fakültesi Dergisi 12 2 576–591.
IEEE
[1]A. Gündoğdu, “THE RETURN OF ‘THE ABJECT’ IN KOSMOS AND THE KILLING OF A SACRED DEER”, Dokuz Eylül Üniversitesi Edebiyat Fakültesi Dergisi, vol. 12, no. 2, pp. 576–591, Oct. 2025, doi: 10.69878/deuefad.1617154.
ISNAD
Gündoğdu, Ayşegül. “THE RETURN OF ‘THE ABJECT’ IN KOSMOS AND THE KILLING OF A SACRED DEER”. Dokuz Eylül Üniversitesi Edebiyat Fakültesi Dergisi 12/2 (October 1, 2025): 576-591. https://doi.org/10.69878/deuefad.1617154.
JAMA
1.Gündoğdu A. THE RETURN OF “THE ABJECT” IN KOSMOS AND THE KILLING OF A SACRED DEER. Dokuz Eylül Üniversitesi Edebiyat Fakültesi Dergisi. 2025;12:576–591.
MLA
Gündoğdu, Ayşegül. “THE RETURN OF ‘THE ABJECT’ IN KOSMOS AND THE KILLING OF A SACRED DEER”. Dokuz Eylül Üniversitesi Edebiyat Fakültesi Dergisi, vol. 12, no. 2, Oct. 2025, pp. 576-91, doi:10.69878/deuefad.1617154.
Vancouver
1.Ayşegül Gündoğdu. THE RETURN OF “THE ABJECT” IN KOSMOS AND THE KILLING OF A SACRED DEER. Dokuz Eylül Üniversitesi Edebiyat Fakültesi Dergisi. 2025 Oct. 1;12(2):576-91. doi:10.69878/deuefad.1617154