Shame or the Exercise of Self-Dislocation in Literature

From a psychoanalytic perspective, in the article we will explore the expressions of shame in literature, in particular we will refer to ontological shame – a representation of psycho-affective aggressiveness reflected in the novel Uprooting, by Sasha Zare, with some explanatory and illustrative interferences, with Shame, by Annie Ernaux, Metamorphosis, by Franz Kafka, Vara în care mama a avut ochii verzi, Grădina de sticlă, by Tatiana Țîbuleac, and On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous, by Ocean Vuong. The protagonist of uprooting, Sasha Vlas, empathizes with and internalizes family and social traumas, affecting her self-esteem, and narcissism is an essential, organic part of a child’s personality formation. The perspective from which the child views his or her family reflects the ego’s relationship with the original self, which is considered wrong, shameful, and emphasizes the ‘exile’, the psychological uprooting from its ontological matrix. From this ideational point of view, the internal world of the character consolidates around this fiental rupture, generating states of uncertainty, shame towards the self, guilt, humiliation, anxiety, excessive worry, therefore, the only defense mechanism against the terror of shame is the denial of authenticity and identification with an Ideal self (the character Alice).