Alienation, Aggressiveness and Aphasia: A Lacanian Psychoanalysis of the Cowley Father and Son in Sherwood Anderson’s “Queer”

Abstract

Sherwood Anderson’s capture of the subtlety of inner worlds in his short story “Queer” collected in <i>Winesburg, Ohio</i> shows great insights into the complexity and paradoxes of human psychology, in terms of his deep exploration into issues including identity, neurosis and speech impairment, which demonstrate surprising coincidence with symptoms examined by Lacan. Elmer Cowley’s queer behaviors suggest that he has developed “self-punishment paranoia,” a mental disorder Lacan found and examined in his doctoral thesis. The term illustrates the paradoxical and alienating nature of the relationship between subjects and their identities. Elmer’s attacking of George Willard, the only newspaper reporter of Winesburg and the incarnation of the big Other, is equivalent to the attacking of himself, for George serves as Elmer’s ego-ideal through the mechanism of symbolic identification. Besides, the Cowley father and son also show a certain degree of aphasia. The seemingly nonsensical expression about laundry, which the Cowleys often utters unintendedly when they try to confront Winesburg residents, discloses the truth of the unconscious subject that they desire to be normal like other town folks. The Cowleys’ aphasia indicates their failure of being integrated into the Winesburg community. Anderson’s foresights of Lacanian psychoanalysis yet to be born in his time prove the prophet role a truly insightful writer can assume.