Verdi's Rigoletto: The dialectic interplay of the psychic positions in seemingly ‘mindless’ violence

Abstract

In this paper the author demonstrates the interplay of the psychic positions (paranoid‐schizoid and depressive, alongside more primitive mental states) as they may appear in experiences of overwhelming anxieties relating to fragmentation and disintegration. These are examined in relation to the appearance of what has been described in the literature as ‘mindless’ violence. The vehicle for this demonstration is Verdi's opera Rigoletto, which the author examines using Fonagy and Target's model for the understanding of mindless violence. The opera is ‘read’ as a case study of the protagonist, using the drama as a reflection of Rigoletto's internal object representations. The author attempts to extend Fonagy and Target's model to include primitive mental states, in order to understand ‘mindless’ violence as a result of collapse of the dialectical relationship of the psychic positions, leading to the violent act as a desperate attempt at re‐establishing a sense of self. From this perspective, the moment of the violent act may be seen as use of an autistic object and as supplying of autistic shape. The violence is ultimately directed against the already fragmenting self, especially cherished parts of it, however it may enable acknowledgement of repudiated, unmentalised emotions previously experienced as a void.