Discourses of daughters and mothers: a Lacanian study on eating problems

Date

2023-9

Author

Tezerişir, Ayça

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Eating problems have constituted a subject of investigation for psychoanalytically oriented theorists since the 20th century. Given that eating problems are particularly prevalent in adolescent young women, theorists have proposed a connection between eating problems and conflicts surrounding femininity, addressing the matter within the context of separation problems in mother-daughter relationships. The primary objective of this thesis is to analyze the discursive dynamics of eating problems within the context of the mother-daughter relationship from the viewpoint of Lacanian psychoanalytic theory. More specifically, the study aims to examine how the daughters diagnosed with eating disorder and their mothers attribute meaning to eating problem and symptoms, how the symptoms function and how this affects the dynamics of mother-daughter relationship and how the discourses of mothers and daughters resemble and differ. In this direction, semi-structured interviews with six young women and their mothers were examined with Lacanian discourse analysis, a qualitative research method. According to the findings, firstly, recurring patterns of symptoms were identified across all daughters and their mothers. Secondly, the study delved into the function of the symptoms particularly within the intricate framework of the mother-daughter relationship. Thirdly, the analysis explored the ambiguity of boundaries within the mother-daughter relationship and how the issue of separation becomes prominent within their discourses. Based on these findings, a theoretical discourse was undertaken. The consideration of discourses from the viewpoints of both girls and mothers is believed to offer a foundational framework for comprehending the intergenerational dynamics of eating issues through a Lacanian psychoanalytic lens.

Subject Keywords

Eating problems, Intergenerational mother-daughter relationships, Separation, Psychoanalytic theory, Lacanian discourse analysis

URI

https://hdl.handle.net/11511/105415

Collections

Graduate School of Social Sciences, Thesis