A Cognitivist Interpretation of the Social Function of Empathy in the Play Cassandra by Boris A. Novak
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.3986/pkn.v43.i2.04Keywords:
Slovenian drama, cognitive literary criticism, empathy, trauma, Novak, Boris A.: CassandraAbstract
Boris A. Novak’s Cassandra was created after the author’s experience of the Balkan wars, so it is not surprising that it includes a socio-critical perspective. Beyond the parallels between the author’s biography and his attitude to war, the emergence of war trauma and its resolution in a post-socialist mental context is highlighted. The solution proves interesting, because of its unexpectedness and exceptionality on the one hand, and on the other with its focus on the subjective aspect of reconciliation. In this paper, based on the theoretical underpinnings of cognitive literary science and, particularly, the distinction between cognitive and emotional empathy, I analyze the circumstances, cognitive mechanisms, and social function of Cassandra’s decision to forgive Agamemnon. From an evolutionary point of view, it has an irritating effect at first, but from a personal point of view, it enables individual self-fulfillment through love. The fundamental dilemma of Novak’s drama is the following: is it possible, at the level of cognitive analysis, to justify either individual or collective overcoming of trauma in Cassandra’s way?
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