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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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- Bilis, A. E. (2018). Yorgos lanthimos filmlerinde distopyan temsiller. Akdeniz Üniversitesi İletişim Fakültesi Dergisi, 29, 54-72. [https://doi.org/10.31123/akil.395605]
- 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.
- Erdem, R. (Director). (2009). Kosmos [Film]. Atlantik Film; İmaj.
- 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
Authors
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