ABSTRACT

Shame is a hidden emotion. The organs of shame are the eyes; when we feel ashamed, we want to hide, not be seen. In the film Shame, the director Steve McQueen lingers on and explores the dynamics of shame hidden behind sex addiction. I argue that shame is the underlying cause of the sex addiction here, while there is also a vicious cycle, as addiction invariably turns into a new source of shame. The focus on the phenomenology of shame, in the here and now of the film, reveals two siblings struggling with threats of vulnerability, neediness, helplessness, and unlovability. One sibling presents a meticulously neat appearance, and his mask-like face functions as an invulnerable armor against shame, while the other sibling has no armor against her neediness and helplessness. We witness the vicissitudes of their shame and are left wondering whether their encounter, which ends in a suicide attempt and in the unravelling of defensive enactments, leads to a possibility of transformation and internal change. The director ends the film abruptly and inconclusively, sending us back into it to review and search nachträglich for clues to the outcome.

摘要

羞耻是一种隐藏的情绪。羞耻的器官是眼睛；当我们感到羞耻时，我们想躲起来，不被人看到。在电影《耻辱》中，导演史蒂夫·麦昆 (Steve McQueen) 继续探索性瘾背后隐藏的羞耻感。我认为羞耻是这里性成瘾的根本原因，同时也存在一个恶性循环，因为成瘾总是变成一种新的羞耻感。在电影的此时此地，对羞耻现象的关注揭示了两个兄弟姐妹在脆弱、需要、无助和不可爱的威胁下挣扎。一个姐弟打扮得一丝不苟，面具般的脸庞，就像是抵御羞耻的无懈可击的盔甲，而另一个姐弟却没有任何盔甲可以抵御她的需要和无助。我们目睹了他们耻辱的变迁，并想知道他们的相遇是否以自杀企图和防御性法规的瓦解而告终，导致转变和内部变化的可能性。导演突然且不确定地结束了电影，让我们重新审视和搜索nachträglich以获取结果的线索。