Psychological aspect in the novel “The Gap of Time” by Jeanette Winterson

Abstract

The article analyzes the cover version of Shakespeare’s “The Winter’s Tale”, the focus is on the psychological aspect including psychological theories the reader faces in the novel. The origin of the trauma and the necessity of working through it are easily perceived through the perspective of the psychological aspect in the text. The trauma is in the direct proportion to new role behavior models. According to J. Winterson’s work, temporal and spatial characteristics are inextricably bound up with the trauma issue. The main part of the novel is concentrated on the most important problem of working through grief. Beyond that, there are more questions of significance, for instance, Leo’s ambivalence which affects his personhood and adult life. The novel includes the case of addictive love, which is commonly observed nowadays. Much of the plot involves the analysis of the feelings of guilt and an obsessive-compulsive disorder. There is an allusion to the Oedipus complex: both in the literary work and in the psychological theory. J. Winterson uses A. Aron’s Quiz to describe the characters’ relationships. The “separation” process is analyzed throughout the story of the novel.