On Acting

Author(s): Otto Fenichel

Source: The Tulane Drama Review, Vol. 4, No. 3 (Mar., 1960), pp. 148-159
Published by: MIT Press
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148 The Tulane Drama Review

Hamlet in the utilization of neurosis upon the stage. Where the full-
blown and strangeneurosisconfrontsus, in real lifewe call the physician
and deem the person in question unsuitableas a stagefigure.
In general, it may perhaps be said that the neuroticliabilityof the
public, and the art of the dramatistin making use of resistancesand
supplyingforepleasure,alone determinethe limitsof the utilizationof
abnormal charactersupon the stage.

Translated by Henry Alden-Bunker

* * 1

On Acting
By OTTO FENICHEL

Adversariesof psychoanalysissometimesstate that psychoanalysis, in

investigatinga psychologicalfield,cannot do anythingbut name the
instinctswhich are supposed to be at the basis of the fieldin question.
That is certainlynot true. No analystwas ever of the opinion that the
significanceof a given phenomenon,for example as "oral" or "anal,"
sufficesto explain the phenomenon; and psychoanalysis does not study
instinctsonly,but the dynamicinterrelationsbetweeninstinctsand the
outer world, or between instinctsand counterforcesfrom the outer
world.
Nevertheless,the question of what instincts(erogenouszones, or par-
tial instincts)formthe basis of a given phenomenonactuallyis a good
startingpoint for a psychoanalyticinvestigation.Sometimesthe "coun-
terforces"and the ways in which theywork can be betterdirectlyap-
proached with the help of an understandingof the nature of the in-
stinctsagainst which theyare directed.
Concerningacting,thereis no doubt about the nature of the under-
lying basic partial instinct:it is exhibitionism.Therefore,let us start
with a few remarksabout exhibitionism.
Exhibitionismis a sexual partial instinct.It is normallypresentin all
children,and it formsa characteristic part of sexual forepleasure.Its aim
is to present the body, or especially the excited erogenous zones and
theirfunctions,to onlookers.'With the establishment of infantilegenital
primacy,the wish to show the genitalsis certainlyin the foregroundin
the exhibitionismof childrenof both sexes. Later the differences in the
developmentof the castrationcomplex in the two sexes determinesa
correspondingdifferencein the developmentof exhibitionism.Male ex-
hibitionismremainsconcentratedon the genitals; thereforeit is apt to
give reassuranceagainst castrationfear. In this way,the partial instinct
First published in PsychoanalyticQuarterly,XV, 1946, pp. 144-160. Reprinted
with permission.

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THE TDR DOCUMENT SERIES 149
of exhibitionismis used in the perversion"exhibitionism,"in which un-
consciouslythe spectatoris eitherexpected to confirmthe presenceof a
penis, or to show his own penis, for the purpose of contradictingthe
existenceof personswithouta penis.
In the female,the idea of being castratedinhibitsgenital exhibition-
ism. Women who have a perversewish to show theirgenitals are rare,
and their analysisreveals unusual circumstanceswhich make them be-
lieve that theystill possessa penis. Instead, the exhibitionismof women
is displaced fromthe genitalsto otherpartsof the body and to the body
in general. This nongenitalexhibitionismof women is not apt to form
a definiteperversion; it is rather socially tolerated and encouraged.2
This displacementof female exhibitionismis the source of all concep-
tions of "female beauty." It justifiesthe feelingthat all "sublimation"
of exhibitionismis somehowfeminine,whereasthe exhibitionisticman
remainswith his exhibitionismin the direct and unsublimatedsexual
sphere.This basic characteristicof exhibitionismmakesit understandable
that the art of acting is generallylooked upon as a feminineart,and-
although one should be careful of making hastygeneralizations-that
the percentageof homosexualsseemsto be higheramong actorsthan in
most other professions.
Also othercharacteristics whichare generallyascribedto actorsmaybe
connectedwiththe specificcharacteristics of exhibitionism.In discussing
acting,a followerof Adler took special occasion to polemize against the
idea of connectingactingwith sexual exhibitionism:actorsare more or
less vain; theyneed applause and glory; theyneed the approbation of
an audience; the will forpower is obvious.The theoryof organ inferior-
itycan oftenbe confirmed.Demosthenesis not the only stammererwho
later became a public speaker. Is there any reason to connect all this
with sexuality?
We know that all these needs, which we call narcissisticneeds, are
not exclusiveof sex. It is truethat,in a normaladult person,narcissistic
and erotic needs are differentiated fromeach otherto a certaindegree,
but thatwas not alwaysso. The infantin its originalprimarynarcissism
feelsomnipotent,and does not need any object. Later, as is well known,
the child loses confidencein its own omnipotence,and instead believes
that the adults around it are omnipotent.When thatoccurs,it has
one tendency:to participateagain in the omnipotencewhichit has only lost,
and which is now representedin personsaround it. It wants to be re-
united withthesepersons,to eat them,to be eaten by them,to rob them
of theirpower,to ingratiateitselfwiththem;any means to influencethe
powerfulpersons to give the necessarygratifications is tried.To be re-
united withthem,or to obtain thesegratifications, is narcissisticand sex-
ual satisfactionsimultaneously.Still later, the regulationof self-esteem
becomesrelativelyindependentof outer gratifications, and is controlled
by the superego.But thisindependenceis nevera completeone, and cer-
tain personsremain fixatedon the phase of
and narcissisticneeds were identical,and where developmentwhere sexual
outergratifications were
needed.
The so-called"neuroticneed foraffection"achievesits
in certain perversionsof submissiveness highestdegree
(H6rigkeit),in addicts,and in
persons with manic-depressivepredisposition.Persons of this type do

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150 The Tulane Drama Review

not know any sexual longingexcept this need of "being fed" or of "be-
ing reunited." Often this need is reinforcedby regressionafter some
decisive anxiety has been experienced,the regressionto the receptive
longing being a means of being protectedagainst the supposed dangers
by magic,supplied by the omnipotentadults. These "oral" persons-like
perverts-arefixatedon thissexual componentof theirchildhoodwhich
promisesto give instinctualpleasure and, simultaneously,security.Se-
curityis denial of the danger that had caused the anxietywhich had
blocked theirfurtherdevelopment.People witha strong"will forpower"
are alwayspersonswho are unconsciouslyafraid,and who need "power"
to counteracttheir anxiety.'
What does all thishave to do with exhibitionism?Exhibitionismis a
partial instinctwhich,by its verynature,is especiallyapt to give nar-
cissisticreassuranceand erogenouspleasure simultaneously.The "char-
acteristicrole" whichexhibitionismplays in normalsexual forepleasure,
which we mentionedbefore,consistsin the factthat it attractsand in-
fluencesthe onlooker; in the perversionit is a means of inducing the
spectatorto give the needed reassuranceagainst castrationanxiety.In
exhibitionism,erogenous pleasure and the narcissisticsatisfactionof
having an audience are not condensed,theyare one and the same. The
sexual pleasure of the exhibitionistconsistsin using the spectatorto
satisfyhis narcissisticneeds. Personswho are fixatedon this partial in-
stinctare regularlypersonswho need this specifictype of pleasure for
the purposeof counteractinginnerfears.In sublimatedand desexualized
exhibitionism,erogenouspleasureis absent; narcissisticpleasureremains.
Actors-that is, persons who supply their dependent needs by a sub-
limated and desexualized exhibitionism-arepersonswith specificanxi-
eties; or rather,with specificways of handling theiranxietiesby influ-
encing an audience.
The use of exhibitionismformagic is millenniumsold. Freud devoted
a paper, published afterhis death, to the apotropaic use of exhibition-
ism.' The man shows his penis as his weapon, to frightenthe demons;
the women showsher genitals,which means: "rememberthe possibility
of castration,and be afraid"-which also frightensthe demons. (The
figureof the frightening phallic woman is a secondaryone; the phallus
attributedto her originallyservedthe purpose of denyingthe fact that
it is absent; but this attemptfails,and the woman remainsfrightening
nevertheless.)
The magic threatof a display or a "show" also determinesthe origin
of the theatre.When priests,in sacred acts,imitatedthe gods, theycer-
tainlydid so for the purpose of influencingthe believers,and probably
the idea of frighteningthem was not the least among the aims of that
influence.We do not knowmuchabout the psychology of ancientpriests,
but we assume that the aim of magicallyinfluencingan audience, or
especiallyof magicallythreateningan audience, plays a part in the un-
conscious of actors.

Summaryof the unconscious aims of "acting."

1. It affordsa certainerogenoussatisfactionof an exhibitionisticna-
ture. (This satisfactionhas to remain at a minimum.If it is more in-
tense,it will disturbthe actor's performance.)

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THE TDR DOCUMENT SERIES 151
2. Direct narcissisticsatisfactionfrom applause, an outwardlypro-
vided increaseof self-esteem.Success on the stage is needed in the same
way as milk and affectionare needed by the infant.
3. Narcissisticsatisfactionfrom a sense of magical influenceon the
audience. This influencemay be directed toward compellingthe audi-
ence to applaud, toward threateningthe audience, or at least toward
showingthe actor'sown superiorityand power,which-as can generally
be said whereverthe "Will to power" is strong-is needed forsoothing
anxiety,probably in an apotropaic way. From our general knowledge
about exhibitionism,we may assume that this anxietyis mostlycastra-
tion fear.

How are these aims of acting approached? By playingparts. What is

"playing"?What is a "part"?
All languages state that the actor "plays." There must be a deep con-
nection betweenactorsacting on the stage and childrenplayinggames.
The playing of "parts" certainlyalso assumesa dominant role in chil-
dren's games."Thanks to Freud,"we know what the psychologyof chil-
dren's play is. Playingis a processof learningwhile developing the abil-
ityto masterthe outerworld. The primitivegame is repetitive.It serves
the purpose of achievinga belated masteryof highlycathectedimpres-
sions. What was endured passivelyis done over again in play in an ac-
tive manner,until the child has become familiarwith the qualities and
quantities involved. The more highlydeveloped game is anticipatory.
It createstensionswhichmightoccur,but,at a timeand in a degreewhich
is determinedby the participanthimself,and which thereforeis under
control. Such playing is an anti-surprisemeasure. Both these
types of
"playing" are also representedin acting on the stage. More frequently
the actor acts by assumingemotionswhich he does not have but which
he mighthave; or he displaces tensions,which he once
his past, onto imaginarypersonsand abreacts"unmastered" experienced in
tensionsin
identificationwiththem."Abreaction"is a termwhichoriginatedin the
world of the theatre (Aristotle).Thus acting provides for the actor
either a belated getting-ridof anxieties,or a defensive
anticipation of
possible futureanxieties.
An actress-patientwho was very much afraid of all her emotions,
frigidalso in her sexual life, always tense and on guard, changed im-
mediatelyon the stage.Identifiedwithher part,she could permitherself
to give in to emotions.
In his "part" the actorshowshimself,but not as he
reallyis. Indeed in
pretendingto be somebodyelse, he does not show himself;he conceals
himself.The importanceof this point is demonstrated the actress-
by
patientdescribed.Her exhibitionism,usuallyinhibited,was permittedto
express itselfunder the conditionsthat she actually did not show her-
self,but some othercharactercreatedby an author.
But that cannot be entirelytrue. A good actor
self. He cannot play an emotion he has not actually reveals him-
experienced. The
actor believesthathe plays his parts; actuallyhe plays himself. good
Somethingvery similar may be observed in certain neurotic charac-
ters.People of this type sometimesgive an ungenuine,affected
impres-

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152 The Tulane Drama Review

sion. Analysisof what theyare pretendingreveals that theyactivelyplay

at what theyare afraid of experiencingpassivelyand in an overwhelm-
ing manner.There are manyvariationsof such pretending,the extreme
representedby thosehabitual liars whose lies in the analysisturnout to
be confessionsof what theyhave actuallyexperienced.'
Certainlythe actor does not play himselfas he actuallyis, but rather
as he mighthave developed under differentcircumstances.Wittels has
described"phantoms,"fantasiedpersonalities,whichin everybody's mind
play a certainrole as ideals or possibilitiesfor theirown development,
and which influencetheiractual behavior.' Althoughobjection may be
made to describingthese "phantoms"as if theywere independentintra-
psychicpersonalities,it cannot be denied that everybodyhas fantasies
and daydreamsabout how he would like to be, about roles which he
would or would not like to assume under certain circumstances.If an
actor's "phantom" fitshis part,we say: "The part suitshim." The good
actor is characterizedby the high multiplicityof his "phantoms."
To my knowledge,there are two schools of acting. One school be-
lievesonlyin "intuition,"withtheactorso in sympathy withhis part that
he feels the suitable emotions,and also in this way the correctexpres-
sion of his emotions. The Stanislavskischool, on the contrary,stresses
extremelydetailed studyof the actor'sexpressions.Nothing can be im-
provised,and the effectis achieved by an exact knowledgeof how any
detail of intonationor movementinfluencesthe audience. Accordingto
our clinical studies,the truthlies in between these two extremes.The
firstschool is rightin so faras the actor'semotionshave to be reallyfelt
by him in order to be impressive.The second school has in its favor
the view not only that "having emotions" is not identical with being
able to express them in an impressiveway, but that acting technique
has to be learned like any othertechnique.There maybe a drop of truth
in the old James-Langetheorythat mimicryof an affectiveexpression
may secondarilyproduce the affectitself.
Playing, like thinking,is a test action: repeating the overwhelming
past, and anticipatingthe possible future.The emotionsof the actor are
testemotions.It has oftenbeen stressedthat the pleasure of the specta-
tor in a tragedyis based on the fact that he knows that the crueltyhe
witnessesis "but a play." This is muchtruerof the actorhimself.He may
welcome the opportunityto act as if he were cruel because he knows
that in realityhe is not cruel. What he does not know, and what he
should not know if he is to be a good actor,is that in a sense it is real
and genuine crueltythat he feels in this role. Playing a part is making
test identifications.The earliest test identificationwas probably the
priests'identificationwith God. This identificationtoo (like the identi-
ficationof the believer with the priestwho imitatesGod) was possible
because the imitatorfelt simultaneouslythe infinitedistance between
himselfand what he imitated,in the same way that the playing child
imitatesthe seriousactionsof adults.'
Does this mean that the best actor would be a characterwho has not
developed an actual marked personality,but who is ready to play any
part given him,who has no ego, but is rathera bundle of identification
possibilities?Some great actorshave been of this type,and did on the
stage what Caligula did in life.'" But it is not all necessarilyso. Cer-

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tainlythereare actorswho have well-integrated personalities.They are

not well integratedonly in those partsof theirpersonalitiesinvolved in
theirwork.They are Caligulas on the stage,but not in life.
We can now betterunderstandsome typesof failureon the stage. If
a part somehowcomes too close to painful emotionsin the actor's un-
conscious,if he tends to become aware that the pretendedemotionsof
his role also have realityvalues to him, then he can no longer success-
fullyact the part. He is faced with the immediatenecessityof further
repressionof the emotions,and becomesincapable of acting.
If the magic influenceof the audience, whichthe actor unconsciously
strivesfor,threatensto become too real so that the whole performance
loses its "play" character,the actor will fail. Certainlythe average actor
does not use his playing directlyto affecthis audience as Hamlet uses
the players.His onlyconsciousaim is applause. His wish forreassurances
against castrationfear,or of "charming"the audience, remainsuncon-
scious.
Acting on the stage is endangered by the same two dangers which
threatenthe "double-edgedcharacter"of children'splay. The pleasure
in playingturnsinto displeasureif the intended "mastery"failsand the
playing gets out of control. The fearsomeloss of control may involve
the playerhimself(he mightbecome forgood the animal he pretended
to be), or the audience (he mightcharmor destroyit in an irreparable
way).
III
Let us consider the "magic influence"upon the audience to which
referencehas been made and ask of what thisinfluenceactuallyconsists.
Sachs, followingFreud, developed a well-knowngeneral theoryabout
the unconscious processeswithin the artist." By presentinghis work,
which unconsciouslyrepresentsan expression of repressedinstinctual
wishes,derivationsof the oedipus complex,the artistinduces in his pub-
lic a participation in the forbiddenwishes through acceptance and
praise of his work.To see thatthe public accepts the artisticexpressions
of his unconsciousguilt-ladenimpulsesis forhim a belated approval of
them and removesor decreaseshis feelingsof guilt about them. After
having withdrawnfromreality into daydreaming,the artist findshis
way back fromdaydreamingto societyby inducing an audience to par-
ticipate in his guilt.
While this applies to all artists,it is especially true for the actor. It
is the unconsciousaim of all acting to make the audience feel the same
emotions that the actor displays.The spectatorsgo to the theatrewith
the tacitlyacknowledgedintentionof identifyingthemselveswith the
actors' portrayals.The theatreremainsthe realm of the infantile"ocu-
lar identification.""The actor seeks to induce the audience's participa-
tion and approval of the commissionof the deeds which he, under the
guise of pretense,would like to commit.If he succeeds, he feels less
guilty.
That the audience is compelled to give up its spontaneityto accept
hypnoticallywhat the actor suggests(possiblythroughthe "omnipotence
of gesture"),"givesthe actora satisfying feelingof superiorityand of hav-
ing the audience dependenton him. Actually,he is dependent upon the

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154 The Tulane Drama Review

audience. He has become an actor because he feelsguiltyunless he can

draw the reassuringapplause his narcissismrequires.The actorneeds the
audience forthe same reason thatthe audience needs the actor: both get
reassurancesagainst guilt feelingswhich make possible otherwisefor-
bidden dischargesof instinctual tension by mutual participation. In
good theatricalperformance(as in ancient worship)actor and audience
feel, "We do it together."The audience, knowingit is "only a play,"
loses its fearof the deed, and the actor (and likewisethe author),secure
in the same knowledge,loses his feelingof guilt throughthe approval
of the brothers(audience), whichreleaseshim,the hero,of his loneliness.
The magic induction is in the last analysisa seductionto participation
in a repetitionof the oedipus.
In a variationof "charming"the audience by his acting,the actor se-
duces the audience not only in order to win approval of his deed. His
self-esteem, reestablishedby approval, immediatelyincreasesby stressing
the differenceand distance between him and the audience: "You are
but mypuppets; I am God and you are nothing."By thisfeelingof power
over the audience, he feelsthe unconscioustemptationto reassurehim-
self by destroyingand castratingthe audience, against any futurepossi-
bilityof reproach fromit. Many actorsare afraid not only of a lack of
response from the audience, but also of too great an effecton it by
evoking a response theycan no longer control,and threateningthe re-
taliation of the audience.
An actress-patient felton the stagean impulseto make grimaceswhich
was verydisturbingto her work.It was relativelyeasy to understandthat
this meant: "I am afraid that just those characteristics of mine which I
am tryingto hide by actingmightcome out againstmywill. I am afraid
that I shall not act what I intend to act, but what is reallyin myuncon-
scious." But whywere the "guilt-ladenimpulses"or the "lack of a penis"
representedjust by making faces?In the deepest layer of the uncon-
scious they were chewing movements,and representedthe impulse to
devour the dismemberedaudience.
Iv
The actor prepares by long preliminarywork for the nightwhen he
will charmeverybody.If he succeeds,a pleasurewhichhas been forbidden
to him hithertowill become accessibleagain. The workof the actormay
be compared to the mechanismsof sexual forepleasureand end-pleasure.
Rehearsals are usually very strenuousand painful and arduous. They
are neverthelesspleasurable by reason of a mountinganticipatoryten-
sion strainingtowardthe end-pleasureof the opening nightforrelease.
The movie actor is cheated of this end-pleasure,but acting for the
filmsgives the actor an exceptional narcissisticsatisfaction.The actor
cannot feel with his audience, but he can actuallybe a spectatorof his
own performance.But other pleasures,and especiallythe specificend-
pleasure, are denied him. He feels frustrated.He is deprived of the
unique experienceof a unio mysticawith the audience, and of the satis-
faction of performinga complete part fromthe beginningto the end
of the plot. The endless repetitionof incoherentscenes is all rehearsal,
and the only pleasure is anticipationof the satisfactionnot of an actor,
but at most of a spectator.The essentialpleasure of the actor to bring

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THE TDR DOCUMENT SERIES 155

"disjected membra" together,and to presentthemas a whole, is partly

shiftedto the director."I was not surprisedto findthatthosefewmotion
picture actorsI had the opportunityto analyze were longing to return
to the stage. The filmshave many possibilitiesfor the expression of
modern needs and for providingthe abreactionof the audience, which
the stage neverhad. The actor is worseoff.The knowledgethatmillions
will see him is no reparationforthe directapplause of hundreds.
v
If the actor succeeds,he has fewerguilt feelings,and if he has fewer
feelingsof guilt,he feelsprivilegedto indulgemore freelyhis instinctual
pleasure and seeks greatersexual freedom.That societyactuallygrants
him such privileges,more or less,is connectedwiththe peculiar position
of the artistin bourgeoissociety.The artistis stillregardedas nearerto
God, and enjoys the privilegesof the priest.As is well known,the privi-
legesaccordedthe artistare veryambivalentin intent.The actoris privi-
leged, but he remainssomewhatbeyondthe pale of "honest"society.He
sins publiclyand therebyexculpatesthe others(thoughhe, subjectively,
has also the strivingof being himselfexculpated). Like the whore,he is
held in contemptbut secretlyenvied."5
Since the timesof totemfestivalssocietyhas developed institutionsto
give an outlet to dammed-upinstincts.At rare festivaloccasions deeds
were permittedwhich normallywere forbidden.They were permitted,
however,only as long as the "deeds" were done in a mannerof play en-
tirelyprescribedand accordingto ritual. The participantsin these in-
stitutionswere subject to taboos designed to insure the maintenanceof
the prescribedand institutionalizedrituals. Within the restrictionsof
the taboos, and outside their contactswith their employers,theywere
grantedcertain privileges.'"
In the classicbourgeoissociety,the actorhad sexual privileges,if often
only a pseudo-sexuality. We have describedwhythosewho are disposed
and who are in need of externaloral
easily to develop identifications,
gratifications,are those who are especially inclined to become actors.
These individuals are frequentlyinhibitedin theirobject relationsbe-
cause theysee in the personsaround themonly objects foridentification
or sourcesof narcissistic
gratification.It mayhave been that the majority
of actorsacted in a mannermore sexual than otherpeople, but perhaps
experiencedless satisfaction;or that at timestheywere able to indulge
and achieve satisfactiononly aftertheirexpiatingsuccesson the stage.
VI
The unconsciousaims of the magic influence,which the actor triesto
conveyto his audience, and whichhas the value of exculpatinghim,are
mainlytwo: seductionto participatein the actor'sguilt,and the craving
to gratifypassive oral needs by any means, including if necessary,de-
structionor "castration"of the audience.
In the plots in which theatreis used to wringan actual confessionof
guilt froma spectator,as in Hamlet or in Schiller's"Cranes of Ibicus,"
not a repressedinstinctbut a suppressedfeelingof guilt and expectation
of punishmentis mobilized.This, too, to a certainextent,seemsto be a
componentof all theatre.Pity and fear have to be provoked,and the

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156 The Tulane Drama Review

evocationof fear-thefearof God who was imitatedby theactingpriests-

was certainlyone of the main aims of the primevaltheatre.Not alone
fear,but certainlyalso hope of salvationwas aroused; otherwisethe audi-
ence would have fledin panic and would not have remainedtrueto God.
Seduction and intimidationwere both achieved by means of magical
gestures.This combinationof seductionand intimidationis the essential
contentof all totemfestivals,initiationrites,religiousrites,and theatri-
cal performances.It states in effect:"You are given permissionfor in-
stinctualsatisfactions(or you are given yournarcissisticindulgence),but
only if you fulfillour conditions.And do not forgetthat you will be
dreadfullypunished if you transgress theseconditions."
Not only has the spectatorto be given protectivereassurances("it is
only a play") if the attemptedseductionis to succeed,but the actor,too,
has to denydangerswhichare believed to be connectedwithhis seducing
and imitatingactivity.He wants to seduce, or charm,or even to destroy
the spectator,but not in sucha manneror to a degreethatmightprovoke
the spectatorto turn against him. The more he doubts inwardlyits de-
pendence on him, the more urgenthis need forouter proofsof it. Seek-
ing applause, as the actor invariablydoes, he denies to himselfand
othersthat he actuallyis dependenton the spectators.
An actress-patient, who had a deep oral fixationand whose object
relationshipsconsistedalmostexclusivelyin tryingto make people give
to her, had, since her childhood, always had several dogs. Her later
relationshipsincluded a numberof men,all temperamentally depressive,
who needed her sympathybut who actuallytyrannizedher. She had the
illusion that the dogs and the men were dependent on her,whereasac-
tually she was entirelydependent on them,even to the point of sub-
missiveness(Horigkeit).Her actingwas (a) consciouslythe expressionof
the fantasy,"Look how rich I am; how much I am able to give away";
(b) unconsciouslythe expressionof the fantasy,"You have to give me
something,namely,the stuffwhich I in turn will give away again." "I
feed you," was the surface."If I act well, you will have to feed me," was
the depth. Her words and gestureson the stage had forher the uncon-
scious significanceof food, and were "magical gestures"to demonstrate
to the audience what she expected the audience to give to her. The nar-
cissisticpleasure consistedin the fact that the playwright's"food" had
passed throughthe actor's personality.This was the same patient who
was sometimesdisturbedwhile acting by the compulsion to make faces,
which turnedout to be chewingmovements,expressingan unconscious
impulse to devour the audience.
Exhibitionismin general, and acting in particular,has a deep con-
nectionwith the castrationcomplex.There are manywaysin which the
"charm" of acting may serve the purpose of denyingcastrationor any
possibilityof it,or of denyingthatcastrationis a danger,and influencing
the audience to give some equivalent reassurance.
I have had opportunityto observe a strangeurethralway of gaining
such reassurance.An actresswho spoke veryquickly,was often afraid
of "losing control" over the wordswhich gushed fromher mouth,and
was sometimesinhibitedto the point of speechlessnessor forgetting her
lines. Her magic means of avoiding that was, betweenscenes,to drink
one or several glasses of w iter wherebyshe filledherselfwith the sub-

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THE TDR DOCUMENT SERIES 157

stancewhich thencame out in the formof her words.Unconsciouslyher

copious urinationwas identical with having a penis.
The mostdrasticidea of forcingthe audience to give such reassurance
is the unconsciousfantasyof castratingthe audience. Such a castratingat-
titudewas decisivein the structureof the neurosisof a patientwho loved
to act." Analysis of her acting provided the opportunityto analyze
grotesque-comicacting in general. This patient'sacting had the uncon-
scious aim of statingby magic gestures:"None of you has a penis. I,
actingthe part of a castratedperson(in a deeper layer:actingthe part of
a penis whichhas been cut off),am showingyou how you are supposed to
look." The comic characterof the acting concealed and denied the real
aim of the grotesquenessto achieve a frightening effect.The neurosisof
this patient expressed the failure of this defense,owing to its double-
edged character.Her symptomsexpressedthe fear that the play might
become real and she might lose both her audience and her penis for
good.'"
It is temptingto studythe same influencesfromthe standpointof the
spectator.The social functionof the theatreis fulfilledtoday by the
moviesand withgreatereffectiveness than the mediumwhichservednar-
cissisticneeds of individual actors.To discoverin this new medium the
old elementswhich,since ancienttimes,have been the constituentsof all
theatre,would be veryinteresting.But we shall limit our discussionto
the actor.
A discussionof the psychologyof the actor should not fail to include
commentabout the typicalactor'sneurosis,stage fright.'"
The general cause of stage frightis to be found in the double-edged
characterof all the psychologicalmechanismswe have discussed.The re-
assurancewhich theatricalperformanceunconsciouslypromisesthe ac-
tor is not always achieved. Stage frightoccurs when the unconscious
motives of the actor threatento become conscious (when the "play"
threatensto become "real"). Instead of participatingin the actor'sguilty
misdeeds,the audience may turn againsthim and become the represen-
tativeof the punishingsuperego.And stage frighthas a special quality;
it is the specificfrightof an exhibitionist:shame. Unconsciously,it is
the shameof an inferiority (being castrated),to coverwhichhas been the
chiefmotivationin the choice of actingas a profession.The shame may
derive in addition fromthe threatof display of unconsciousintentions
hidden in the acting,of sexual tendencies(oedipus), and of primitive
destructiveimpulses to obtain, by deception, gratificationof the nar-
cissisticdemands. Shame and anxietyarise fromthe dread of being ex-
posed as a sham,of having expropriatedsomething,of adorningoneself
withborrowedplumes.The playingof a part on the stageis moreovera
source of potential shame because of the real dependencyof the actor
who triesto make believe that the othersare dependenton him.-"
NOTES

SS. Freud,Three Essayson theTheoryof Sexuality,London,Imago,1949.

2 Cf. J. Harnik,"The Various
Developments Undergoneby Narcissismin
Men and Women,"Int.J.Psa.,Vol. 5, 1924.
3 For a moredetaileddiscussion
of thesepointsand fortheliterature,
cf.O.
Fenichel,"EarlyStagesof Ego Development," No. 3 in thisvolume.

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158 The Tulane DramaReview

4 S. Freud, "Medusa's Head," Collected Papers, Vol. 5, London, Hogarth,

1950.
5 Cf. M. Klein, "Personificationin the Play of Children,"Int. J. Psa., Vol. 10,
1929.
1 S. Freud,
Beyond the Pleasure Principle, London, Hogarth, 1948. Cf. also
the summaryby R. Waelder, "The PsychoanalyticTheory of Play," Psa. Quart.,
Vol. 2, 1933.
7 Cf. H. Deutsch, "Ueber die pathologischeLuege (Pseudologia phantastica),"

Int. Z. Psa., Vol. 8, 1922; and 0. Fenichel, "The Economics of Pseudologia

Phantastica," No. 9 in this volume.
8
The "phantoms" are developed under the influenceof real experiencesand
represent earlier identifications,not necessarilyidentificationswith real ob-
jects but also with objects as the child saw them, or as the child would have
liked them to be. Cf. F. Wittels, "Unconscious Phantoms in Neurotics," Psa.
Quart., Vol. 8, 1939.
1 The imitationof idealized
personsoftenrepresentsan attemptto "tryout"
their ways of feeling,without losing the knowledge of the "trial" character.
The "test" character of such limited "identifications"in the service of some
purpose of the ego, differentiates imitationfromfull identification,which takes
place unconsciouslyand independentlyof the ego's wishes.
10 H. Sachs, Caligula, London, Elkin Mathews &cMarrot, 1931.
11H. Sachs, The Creative Unconscious; Studies in the Psychoanalysisof Art,
Cambridge, Sci-Art,1942.
12Cf. O. Fenichel, "The Scoptophilic Instinct and Identification,"No. 33,
FirstSeries.
13 S. Ferenczi, "Stages in the Development of the Sense of Reality," Sex in
Psychoanalysis,New York, Brunner,1950.
14It would be interestingto compare the psychologyof the scenario writer,
who is furnishedthe complete plot of a storyand prepares the script fromit,
with the psychologyof the playwright.
15Cf. E. Kris and 0. Kurz, Die Legende vom Kuenstler,Vienna, Krystallyer-
lag, 1934.
16There are many reasons why this position of the artistis especially marked
for the actor. The theatrehas retained certain archaic featureswhich, by their
very archaic nature, are apt to mobilize repressed impulses and to arouse
ambivalent feelings. The actors were, for long periods, nomads-like the
gypsies-while all others had long settled. Actors are also looked upon like
gypsies,and gypsies were often performers.Cf. O. Fenichel, "Elements of a
PsychoanalyticTheory of Anti-Semitism,"No. 25 in this volume.
17A. Reich, "The structure of the Grotesque-Comic Sublimation," Bull.
Menninger Clin., Vol. 13, 1949.
18
The same mechanism can often be observed in people who like to "per-
form" by telling jokes. An unconscious aggressionmay be given expression if
hidden in the form of a joke, particularly if one succeeds in inducing the
audience to participate in the aggression.But this too may have a "double-
edged character."The fearis that a real magical effectof the joke mightdestroy
its characteras a joke. Cf. S. Freud, "Wit and Its Relation to the Unconscious,"
The Basic Writings,New York, 1938.
I once analyzed the traditional figureof the "clown" as the exhibition of a
phallic figure,which has been regressivelydebased to the pregenital level for
the purpose of denying the seriousnessof castration.The many storiesof the

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THE TDR DOCUMENT SERIES 159

uncannytragicclownrepresent the failureof theseattempts. Cf.O. Fenichel,

"The SymbolicEquation:Girl = Phallus,"No. 1 in thisvolume.
191 do not rememberany publishedcase of the psychoanalysis of stage
fright.There is a greatdeal of literature about the relatedsymptoms suchas
fearof examinations and erythrophobia: E. Blum,"The Psychology of Study
and Examinations." Int. J. Psa., Vol. 7, 1926;J. C. Flugel,"The Examination
as InitiationRiteand AnxietySituation," Int.J.Psa.,Vol. 20, 1939;E. Stengle,
"Pruefungsangst und Pruefungsneurose," Z. Psa. Paed.,Vol. 10,1936;E. Jones,
"Pathologyof MorbidAnxiety," Paperson Psychoanalysis, 4thed., Baltimore,
Wood, 1938;S. Feldmann,"Ueberdas Erroeten.Beitragzur Psychologie der
Scham,"Int. Z. Psa., Vol. 8, 1922.
20 Compulsive mechanisms of actorshave unconsciously the meaningof en-
suringthatactingis only"playing"to overcomestagefright. "Gettingstuck"
mayexpressthe resistance againstany tendency whichwas supposedto find
an outletin theacting.It mayalso have the muchmorespecificmeaningof
"gettingstuck"beforethecastratedstate,whichone had intendedto play,is
achieved;and/or"gettingstuck"in the castratedstate.

On Actingand Stage Fright

By EDMUND BERGLER

A ratherstrangefact is to be recorded in the psychologyof acting:

Popular and psychoanalyticinterpretations coincide. This seemshighly
suspicious.Generallythesetwo "explanations" are at odds, and thisdis-
crepancy contributesa good deal to the popular misconceptionthat
analysisis a scienceof spite and sophism,concernedonly withconfusion
of the layman.In the case of acting,however,the macroscopicview seems
identical with the microscopicone. True enough, analysis uses more
"highbrow"words in explanation, but when reduced to plain English,
both popular consentand analytic"interpretation"agree that the actor
bubbles overwithexhibitionism,thisbeing the alleged basis of his talent
and calling. Both agree thatthe actoris a show-offand a "ham."
The question arises: Is popular opinion so perspicacious,or is the ac-
cepted analyticinterpretationso naive? The presentwriterbelieves the
latter.
First of all, acting representsa sublimation.Now a sublimationis a
highlycomplex phenomenonin whichthe originalrepressedwish never
comes directlyto the fore.Quite the opposite,what appears as the "end
product"is theresultof a seriesof psychicdetours,compromises, counter-
Reprinted withpermissionfromThe PsychiatricQuarterlySupplement,XXIII,
1949,pp. 313-319.

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