Historical–psychological reflections on emotion and human subjectivity (original) (raw)

The changeability of human beings over time is the central theme of this article. Emotion in Western society, in particular grief, is selected to provide a case history of mental change over a long time period. Two historical examples are examined: from Greek Antiquity, a scene from Homer’s Iliad, and from around 90 ce, a consolation letter written by Plutarch to his wife. These are contrasted to modern-day psychological advice given to grieving spouses and parents. It is argued that these three examples show discontinuous changes in lived-through experience, and that the transition to the 20th century is tied to the development of the modern self. Finally, the article suggests that a concept (esthema) similar to Foucault’s episteme is in operation here, which can be used to characterise the differences in ‘emotion’ over the three time periods.