Trauma and Austerlitz: Psychoanalytical comments on the novel by W.G. Sebald | Das Trauma und Austerlitz: Psychoanalytische Anmerkungen zum Roman von W.G. Sebald

The topic of trauma and the dissociative state represents a renewed reflection of psychoanalytic thinking: for approximately 20 years the problem of traumatic memory content has once again attracted our attention. The trauma elicits a disorganization of mental functions, which can vary in severity depending on the compromising of abilities to mentalize and regulate affects. As a result, traumatic memories remain as unassimilated contents in the patient’s body and psyche detached from other mental functions. With respect to dissociation, we recognize the achievement of Pierre Janet for having formulated a complex and scientifically valid theory of what he called “désagrégation”, i.e., a disorder of the capacity for integration that involves a mental fragmentation on several levels: from the deficit of the field of consciousness up to the impairment of the unity of the personality of the individual himself. In the latter case we are referring to a structural failure that is evoked by overwhelming emotions due to traumatic experiences. In our work we deal with the topic of trauma and dissociation based on the literary text Austerlitz by W.G. Sebald.