Figures and Meanings of the Mythic Double Self in Literature: Explanatory Theories

Abstract

This paper explores the mythic theme of the double in relation to the mysterious identity of the human being. Attention is paid to the figures and meanings progres-sively acquired by the double from ancient civilizations until it became a distressing and fascinating theme in the Romantic period (chiefly with the fantastic story) which is still greatly drawn upon these days. The two major variations whereby the double is articulated in literary texts are thus examined, to wit, the «subjective» double and the «objective» one. We sub-sequently proceed to present and com-ment upon a number of theories which have contributed to making sense of the complex meanings of the double (Rank, Freud, Jung, Girard, Rosset, Bargalló, Herdman, etc). All in all, we mean to draw attention to the study of specific literary works where the enigmatic figure of the double comes into the picture