Identity Construction in Black Swan (2010) and Persona (1966): A Psychological Analysis

Abstract

This study examines the psychological processes through which identity construction is represented in Darren Aronofsky’s Black Swan (2010) and Ingmar Bergman’s Persona (1966). Drawing on the theoretical frameworks of Freud, Jung, and Lacan, it comparatively analyzes themes such as repression, splitting, desire, shadow, gaze, silence, and ego dissolution. Designed as a qualitative study, it employs an interpretive and comparative film analysis method. The findings show that neither film presents the female subject as unified or stable. Black Swan depicts a destructive dissolution shaped by performance pressure and bodily discipline, whereas Persona constructs a more abstract dissolution through silence and identification. The study concludes that cinema provides a powerful space for revealing identity crisis and unconscious conflict, and that psychoanalytic film analysis offers an effective framework for interpreting the deeper structure of visual narratives.

Keywords

• Film Analysis
• Black Swan
• Persona
• Freud
• Jung
• Lacan

Black Swan (2010) ve Persona (1966) Filmlerinde Kimlik İnşası: Psikolojik Bir Analiz

Abstract

Bu çalışma, Darren Aronofsky’nin Black Swan (2010) ve Ingmar Bergman’ın Persona (1966) filmlerinde kimlik inşasının hangi psikolojik süreçler üzerinden kurulduğunu incelemektedir. Makale, Freud, Jung ve Lacan’ın kuramsal çerçeveleri doğrultusunda bastırma, bölünme, arzu, gölge, bakış, sessizlik ve benlik çözülmesi temalarının iki filmdeki temsillerini karşılaştırmalı olarak ele almaktadır. Nitel araştırma yaklaşımıyla tasarlanan çalışmada yorumlayıcı ve karşılaştırmalı film çözümlemesi yöntemi kullanılmıştır. Bulgular, her iki filmin de kadın özneyi bütünlüklü bir kimlik olarak sunmadığını göstermektedir. Black Swan, performans baskısı ve beden disiplini üzerinden yıkıcı bir çözülme üretirken; Persona, sessizlik ve özdeşleşme yoluyla daha soyut bir çözülme alanı kurmaktadır. Bu çalışma sinemanın kimlik krizi ve bilinçdışı çatışmaları açığa çıkardığını ve psikanalitik film çözümlemesinin bu süreçleri açıklamada işlevsel olduğunu ortaya koymaktadır.

Keywords

• Film Çözümlemesi
• Black Swan
• Persona
• Freud
• Jung
• Lacan

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