Psychology (short story)

"Psychology" is a 1920 short story by Katherine Mansfield. It was first published in Bliss and Other Stories . ^[1]

Plot summary

A man visits a woman for tea and remarks that her home is the only place where he pays any attention to the details of its furnishings. During the visit, he also expresses his affection for her “little boy,” a statue she has in her home. The two engage in a conversation about the state of the novel as a literary genre, ultimately agreeing that the psycho-novel is of poor quality. The woman becomes anguished at the prospect that she may have failed by not conforming to this genre. After the man departs and rings the doorbell, a friend of the woman arrives. Although she would normally be annoyed by her presence, this time the woman embraces her and invites her to return soon. Later, the woman begins writing about how much she enjoyed the discussion on psychology with her friend.

Characters

• The man - thoughtful and affectionate but holds back emotionally
• The woman - intelligent and emotionally cautious, valuing her independence
• Bogey (the servant) - briefly interrupts, marking a shift in emotional tension

Major themes

Source: ^[2]

• Fragmented Identity: The story examines the coexistence of a public, private, and secret self, reflecting the modernist belief in a fluid and multifaceted identity.
• Interpersonal Connection and Isolation: Characters long for intimacy yet maintain emotional distance, highlighting the complexities of genuine human connection.
• Critique of Literary Conventions: Through meta-discussion about literary genres—particularly the psycho-novel—the text questions the reduction of rich human experiences to mere psychological case studies.
• Symbolism in Everyday Life: Ordinary objects and settings (e.g., tea, furniture) are charged with deeper significance, mirroring the characters’ hidden emotional states.
• Desire and Restraint: The tension between erotic desire and self-imposed limitations drives much of the narrative’s emotional energy.
• Covert Progression: A hidden narrative movement operates beneath the overt plot, revealing deeper emotional truths and complexities in the characters’ relationships and prompting varied reader interpretations.
• Dual Narrative Dynamics: Recognizing both the overt plot and the covert progression is essential for fully appreciating the narrative’s complexity—critics focusing solely on the plot miss the subtleties of this duality.
• Analysis of "Psychology": The interplay between the female protagonist’s unrequited love and the male protagonist’s emotional detachment is revealed through shifts in focalization and narrative reliability, underscoring the story’s layered narrative movements.
• Reader Engagement: A deeper understanding of the covert progression invites readers to engage more fully with the text, leading to a more nuanced interpretation of character motivations and thematic depth.
• Theoretical Implications: The exploration of these dual dynamics calls for a revision of existing narrative theories to better accommodate the complex interplay between textual presentation and reader response.

Literary significance

The text is written in the modernist mode, without a set structure, and with many shifts in the narrative.

References to other works

• Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland is alluded to through the phrase, 'a sandwich from the hatter's bag', i.e. Mad Hatter. ^[3]
• The Book of Genesis is also alluded to concerning a rich cake that the female playwright serves. ^[4]

Footnotes

1. Katherine Mansfield, Selected Stories, Oxford World's Classics, explanatory notes
2. Shen, Dan (2015). "Dual Textual Dynamics and Dual Readerly Dynamics: Double Narrative Movements in Mansfield's "Psychology"" . Style. 49 (4): 411–438. doi:10.5325/style.49.4.0411. ISSN   0039-4238.
3. Katherine Mansfield, Selected Stories, Oxford World's Classics, explanatory notes
4. Katherine Mansfield, Selected Stories, Oxford World's Classics, explanatory notes

External links

• Full Text