This study examines Henrik Ibsen's play The Master Builder (1892) using Lacanian psychoanalytic theory. It argues that the play shows how the main character's identity crisis comes from his failure to deal with his deepest desires. While many readings focus on Solness's career ambition or his guilt over past tragedies, this analysis looks at the psychological structures that control his actions: his false sense of being a master, his failure as a father figure, and his dangerous meeting with his own trauma through the character Hilde Wangel. Using Jacques Lacan's ideas about how we form our identity, the role of the father, the unattainable object of desire, and forbidden pleasure, this study asks three main questions: How does Solness's identity as "master builder" hide his inner emptiness? How does the idea of the "troll" represent his suppressed desires? And why does Hilde's arrival cause Solness to lose touch with reality? The analysis shows that Solness's search for professional mastery covers up his deep sense of lack, while Hilde represents the impossible desire that promises fulfillment but leads to destruction. The study concludes that Ibsen shows creativity as inseparable from psychological conflict, where chasing the impossible ends in the collapse of reality itself.
Table of Contents
Chapter One: Henrik Ibsen and the Modern Mind
Statement of the Problem
Significance and Methodology
Chapter Two: Lacanian Psychoanalysis as a Theoretical Framework
Chapter Three: Ibsen's The Master Builder as a Psychological Drama
Solness and the False Identity
The Troll and the Return of Repressed Desires
Hilde Wangel as the Impossible Object of Desire
The Social Failure and Mental Breakdown
Aline and the Trauma of Loss
The Collapse of Mastery
Chapter Four: Conclusion: The Architecture of the Unconscious
Research Objectives and Core Themes
This study aims to examine Henrik Ibsen's play The Master Builder through the lens of Lacanian psychoanalytic theory to reveal how the protagonist's identity crisis stems from unaddressed desires. The research explores the intersection of professional ambition and psychological disintegration, questioning how Solness's "master" persona serves as a defense mechanism against a deep-seated sense of lack.
- Analysis of the "master builder" identity as a fragile construction.
- Examination of Lacanian concepts like the Imaginary, Symbolic, and Real within the play.
- Exploration of Hilde Wangel as the embodiment of impossible desire.
- Interpretation of the "troll" as a manifestation of repressed unconscious drives.
- Investigation into the relationship between creative ambition and self-destruction.
Excerpt from the Book
The Troll and the Return of Repressed Desires
Solness speaks repeatedly of a "troll" that works within him a force that compels him to act in destructive and irrational ways (31). This troll can be understood as the return of repressed desires in Lacanian terms: the eruption of unconscious desire that cannot be contained by social structures. The troll represents everything that Solness cannot acknowledge about himself: his ruthlessness, his ambition, his willingness to sacrifice others for his own success. His professional victories, which came at the cost of others' suffering, are attributed to this troll-like force, allowing him to distance himself from his own guilt. His confession that he "began to use my troll-power" (32) shows his awareness of a drive that exceeds his conscious control, a recognition that he is not fully in charge of his own actions.
The troll also represents Solness's connection to the Real the traumatic core of experience that resists symbolization. The fire that destroyed his wife's family home and killed their children is an event that cannot be fully processed or understood; it returns in the form of symptoms, including Solness's compulsive building and his sense of being driven by forces beyond his control. By attributing his actions to a troll, Solness attempts to make sense of the senseless, to give form to the formless trauma that haunts his existence.
Summary of Chapters
Chapter One: Henrik Ibsen and the Modern Mind: This chapter introduces Ibsen’s work as a psychological drama that anticipates psychoanalytic concepts, highlighting the author's focus on social hypocrisy and the costs of personal ambition.
Statement of the Problem: This section frames the protagonist's crisis as a universal human condition, specifically the tension between self-image and the unconscious desires that undermine it.
Significance and Methodology: The section outlines the research approach, which utilizes close textual analysis and Lacanian theory to illuminate the complex psychological forces driving the play.
Chapter Two: Lacanian Psychoanalysis as a Theoretical Framework: This chapter details core Lacanian concepts such as the Imaginary, the Symbolic, and the Real, providing the analytical tools necessary for interpreting the protagonist's psyche.
Chapter Three: Ibsen's The Master Builder as a Psychological Drama: This chapter applies the established theoretical framework to the characters and scenes, focusing on Solness’s false identity, his repressed desires, and his ultimately destructive path toward mastery.
Chapter Four: Conclusion: The Architecture of the Unconscious: The study concludes that the play serves as a profound dramatization of the creative drive’s destructive potential when it is divorced from self-awareness.
Keywords
Lacanian psychoanalysis, The Master Builder, Henrik Ibsen, identity crisis, unconscious desire, objet petit a, professional ambition, trauma, psychological drama, self-deception, symbolic order, master builder, repressed desires, creative drive.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the primary focus of this research?
The study examines Ibsen's play The Master Builder through Lacanian psychoanalytic theory to understand the psychological structures behind the protagonist's actions and his inevitable downfall.
What are the key thematic elements explored in the paper?
Key themes include the construction of false identity, the role of repressed desires, the tension between ambition and guilt, and the Lacanian concepts of the Imaginary, the Symbolic, and the Real.
What is the main research question addressed?
The study primarily investigates how Solness's identity as a "master builder" functions as a defense against inner emptiness and how his desire ultimately leads to his destruction.
Which methodology is applied to the play?
The research employs a close textual analysis of the play, applying specific concepts from Jacques Lacan’s psychoanalytic framework to interpret characters and dialogue.
What does the main body of the work cover?
The body of the work connects Ibsen's themes to modern psychology, analyzes the protagonist’s relationship with figures like Hilde Wangel and his wife Aline, and details the collapse of his professional mastery.
How is the research characterized by its keywords?
The study is characterized by keywords such as Lacanian psychoanalysis, unconscious desire, identity construction, trauma, and psychological drama.
What role does the "troll" play in Solness’s psychology?
The "troll" serves as a metaphor for Solness’s repressed desires and the eruptive, uncontrollable force of the unconscious that drives his destructive behavior.
How does Hilde Wangel embody the Lacanian concept of "objet petit a"?
Hilde represents an unattainable object of desire for Solness; she promises completion and fulfillment but ultimately acts as the catalyst for his ruin.
- Arbeit zitieren
- Nirmal Gurung (Autor:in), 2026, The Architect of Desire. A Lacanian Reading of Ibsen's "The Master Builder", München, GRIN Verlag, https://www.hausarbeiten.de/document/1742876
