Abstract

A Study on Kim Ki Young 「 The Maid」 ― focusing on the aspect of masochistic pleasure ― Roh, Ji-Seung This study aims to analyse the aspect of masochistic pleasure in Kim Ki Young 「The Maid」. Masochistic pleasure are formed by the help with the peculiar structure and the relation of man and women in this film. First, 「The Maid」is characterized by the frame narrative embedded with another narrative. While frame narrative is real, embedded narrative is a fantasy that same hero is ruined by the seduction of the maid. In frame narrative, the hero is masculine but in embedded narrative, he is emasculate, passive. So this hero is controlled by two women-his wife and the maid in embedded narrative. His wife represents super-ego that functions as conscience and moral. On the other hand, having sex with the maid represents pleasure by the violation of law. But his wife and maid are two different faces of mother who has a power. According to the psychoanalytical theory, mother is a object of affection and also a controller to her child in pre-oedipal period(oral period). The hero controlled by two women, is a child who is afraid that he would lose mother's love. But two women who have a maternal image, are also controlled by two kinds of instincts- the reproductive urge and the desire for existence. This two kinds of instincts ruin all characters including two women. Finally, there is a fatality that human must be controlled by instincts. This fatalism is the characteristic viewpoint of 「The Maid」.