THE WRATH OF AJAX - A PSYCHOANALYTIC-STUDY OF ELIZABETHAN DISCOURSE -THE CASE OF HARRINGTONS METAMORPHOSIS

Sir John Harington's irreverent and iconoclastic Metamorphosis is subj ected to the psychobiographic method of inquiry. The author is first a nalyzed in the context of his environment and his personality structur e. The volume is shown ts yield several distinct thematic foci: waste as a product, with its attributions of prurience, omnipotence, divinit y, and evil; the eliminatory process and its prominence in life; and t he jakes as a locale which is intrinsically related to power, vulnerab ility, and thanatos. Each of these themes is pursued in a synthesis of psychoanalysis, text analysis, and historical context. The study yiel ds a poignant profile of a valiant challenge to taboo, while revealing the basic dynamics of a rigid and rule moribund culture.