The Sacred Victim; Paredros in Shakespeare’s Macbeth

Year 2023, , 143 - 159, 15.10.2023

Melisa Genç

https://doi.org/10.20304/humanitas.1232474

Abstract

Shakespeare’s works especially his tragedies can be read as a ritual. The archetypical unconscious overtly present in Shakespearean tragedies offers a rich source of ancient solstice cults and ritual symbols. Shakespeare's emphasis on the contradiction of surrogates, the Great Mother archetype, witches and the Paredros shows that art and ritual forms are combined within the ritual chronotope in Shakespeare’s works. The tragedy of Macbeth constitutes textual evidence in terms of the tragic hero’s quest from a usurper king to a sacred scapegoat. In accordance with the recent studies on psychoanalytical approach to Shakespeare’s characters, Macbeth’s infantilization and his encounter with his anima will guide us to understand the femininity principle in the play as the return of the suppressed Terrible Mother. In this paper, Macbeth’s transfiguration from a tragic hero to an oedipal Paredros will be examined in detail with the ancient origins of the terms.

Keywords

grotesque, carnivalesque, Macbeth, Shakespeare, Sacred

Shakespeare’in Macbeth Eserinde Kutsal Kurban; Paredros

Abstract

Shakespeare'in eserleri, özellikle trajedileri, bir ritüel olarak okunabilir. Arketipik bilinçdışı, antik gündönümü kültleri ve ritüel semboller açısından zengin bir kaynak sunan Shakespeare trajedilerinde bu ritüel biçimi açıkça mevcuttur. Shakespeare'in suretler çatışkısı, Ana tanrıça arketipi, cadılar ve Paredros sembollerine yaptığı vurgu, Shakespeare'in eserlerinde sanat ve ayin biçimlerin ritüel kronotopu içinde birleştirildiğini gösterir. Bu bağlamda Macbeth trajedisi, trajik kahramanın gaspçı bir kraldan kutsal bir günah keçisine dönüşmesi açısından metinsel kanıtlar oluşturmaktadır. Shakespeare karakterlerine psikanalitik yaklaşım üzerine yapılan son araştırmalara uygun olarak, Macbeth'in çocuklaştırılması ve animası ile karşılaşması, oyundaki kadınlık ilkesini bastırılmış Korkunç Anne'nin dönüşü olarak anlamamıza yol gösterecektir. Bu yazıda, Macbeth'in trajik bir kahramandan ödipal bir paredroya dönüşmesi, terimlerin eski kökenleri ile ayrıntılı olarak incelenecektir.

Keywords

grotesk, karnavalesk, Macbeth, Shakespeare, kurban

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