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In this paper, we will examine the concept of the double as it relates to various psychiatric syndromes and theories. We will purview the role of the double in literature, especially, at the middle of the 19th Century, when psychology was separating itself from the realm of metaphysics. We will delineate how the double has become a metaphor or symbol for the hero torn asunder by psychological conflict. Our thesis is that the development of the double results from a failure to develop the bonds of intimacy between parent (mother) and child. This failure creates a need for a double, or an alternate or magical self.
Many artists are akin to this hero in their failure to experience real intimacy. This creates the necessity of a double — an intermediary between the self and the real world of people. The artist's art or actions may serve as a bridge and represent an attempt to re-create that special union, which Freud alludes to as the oceanic experience, once tasted and then lost. In the process of creating, the artist may achieve feelings of illusory and transitory integration.
We also will discuss the implications of these findings and their relevance to the psychotherapeutic process.