necrophilia
| Classification according to ICD-10 | |
|---|---|
| F65.8 | Other disorders of sexual preference |
| ICD-10 online (WHO version 2019) | |
Necrophilia refers to a sexual preference that on corpses is directed. Necrophilia is classified as paraphilia in the ICD-10 register of mental disorders under “Other disorders of sexual preference” (F65.8) .
Necrophilia is a modern made-up word that is derived from the ancient Greek words νεκρός nekrós 'dead', ' corpse ' and φιλία philía 'affection'. The name comes from the work Psychopathia Sexualis by Richard von Krafft-Ebing , written in 1886 .
Necrophiles are rarely reported in Germany.
This should be separated from Erich Fromm's description of necrophilia as a character orientation (see below) that only partially overlaps with the aforementioned definition of sexual preference.
Necrophilia according to Erich Fromm
term
In the analytical social psychology of Fromm under Nekrophilie is a character orientation to be understood that in reversal of the forces of the human biophilic ( Biophilie ) in modern social character shows an increasing tendency to destruction. According to Fromm, necrophilia and destructiveness are the "consequence of inanimate life" (and - in contrast to Freud - not an expression of a biologically fixed destructive or death instinct ). Fromm applies this term to the characters of individuals as well as to features of Western civilization.
Similar issues are the authoritarian character or the authoritarian personality .
Origin and development
Fromm took over the term from the Spanish philosopher Miguel de Unamuno , who was rector of the University of Salamanca in 1936 (at the time of the Spanish Civil War ) .
The nationalist General Millán Astray gave a speech there on October 12, 1936. The general's favorite motto was “¡Viva la Muerte!” (German: “Long live death!”). This motto was called out by a supporter of Astray during the event. Unamano then called this a “ necrophilic and senseless call” and a repulsive paradox . According to Unamano, Astray is "a cripple who lacks the intellectual greatness of a Cervantes ". The general also "usually seeks a questionable relief by mutilating everything around him."
According to his own statements, Fromm gained his “theoretical views [...] mainly from observing people in the analysis” and other empirical data. However, the "decisive impetus" for his concept of necrophilicity came from "Freud's theory of the life and death instinct ". He has "studied the phenomenon of characterological necrophilia since 1961" and points to a "preliminary report" in his 1964 paper The Heart of Man .
definition
He defines necrophilia in the characterological sense of Fromm as follows:
“[...] as the passionate attraction of everything that is dead, rotten, decayed and sick; it is the passion to transform what is alive into something inanimate; to destroy for the sake of destruction; the exclusive interest in everything that is purely mechanical. It is the passion to cut up living connections. "
According to Fromm, there are two forms of necrophilia: one that is mixed with sexuality and one in which this “apparently does not” apply. The last external "in acts of pure destructive urge". In both types it refers u. a. on cases from criminology .
features
Most people, according to Fromm, have a mixture of biophilic and necrophilic tendencies. If the necrophilic passions predominate, one could, according to Fromm, speak of a necrophilic character. However, he warns against simplifications and against jumping to conclusions: "The determination of one or two character traits is not sufficient to diagnose a necrophilic character." Only a "relatively small minority" is " completely necrophilic".
“Needless to say, severely necrophilic people are very dangerous. It's the haters, the racists, the proponents of war, bloodshed, and destruction. They are dangerous not only when they are political leaders, but also as the potential cohorts of a dictatorial leader. The executioners, terrorists and torturers are recruited from them; without them, no terror system could be established. "
What is noticeable about people with strong necrophilic tendencies, according to Fromm, is, for example, a preference for bad smells - originally for the smell of rotting or rotting meat. The necrophilic language predominantly uses words related to destruction, excrement and toilets.
In addition, the character orientation is shown by the “conviction that problems and conflicts can only be solved with violence and violence.” This also includes inflicting injuries and damage to property . According to Fromm, “marginal behaviors” such as the habit of “breaking and picking up” objects and living beings also indicate necrophilic tendencies. Necrophilia also shows itself in the “conspicuous interest in illness in all its forms and in death”.
The necrophilic character has his own “attitude to the past and property.” His life is ruled by “institutions, laws, property and possessions”.
Fromm also mentions "[k] linear-methodological principles" with which one can recognize a necrophilic character.
The opposite pole of character is biophilia .
Investigations
In his work Anatomy of Human Destructiveness , Fromm provided an analysis of necrophilia and portrayed Adolf Hitler as a clinical case of necrophilia .
Based on their observations, Fromm and Michael Maccoby developed an interpretive questionnaire and came to the conclusion that biophilic and necrophilic tendencies are measurable and strongly correlated with political and social attitudes. A dominant necrophilic character can be seen, among other things, by advocating “a strengthened military power ”, stricter controls and “suppression of dissenters”.
Empirical studies in a related context are (selection):
- the studies on authority and family of the Frankfurt Institute for Social Research , published in Paris in the 1930s
- the Berlin workers 'and salaried employees' survey from the 1930s
- Investigations into the social structure of a Mexican village by Maccoby and Fromm in the 1960s.
More modern forms
According to Fromm, a characteristic of necrophilia in modern times is the deification of technology . Symbols of the necrophile are “facades made of concrete and steel”, the mega-machine ( technophilia ), the waste of resources in consumerism and the way in which bureaucracy treats people as things.
Necrophilia in the media
Various media also deal with necrophilia. So is the love of corpses example theme in the movies necromancy (1987) and necromancy 2 (1991) of the German Underground - director Jörg Buttgereit and in Kissed (1996) by Lynne Stopkewich . In HP Lovecraft's short story The Beloved Dead (1924), an undertaker turns into a serial killer in order to indulge his insatiable necrophilia. A well-known cinematic implementation of the necrophilia theme is Alfred Hitchcock's Vertigo - From the Realm of the Dead (1958), even if the conventions of the time and Hitchcock's complex directing style are at best artfully coded hints and hints. Another cinematic approach to the love of the dead and even obsession is François Truffaut's La chambre verte ( The Green Room ) from 1978. The work is rich in inter-film allusions, including Vertigo . In the thriller Der Vogelmann (The Birdman) by Mo Hayder , the story of a necrophile is told who invites prostitutes to his home, kills them and then pleasures himself with them. In the video production Visitor Q by director Takashi Miike , the overwhelming demands of the father of a problem-overloaded nuclear family in sexual intercourse with his work colleague who had previously been strangled in affect culminates.
In addition, the lyrics of individual bands deal with necrophilia: The rock band Rammstein deals with the subject in the song Heirate mich ; the Böhsen Onkelz in the song Nekrophil , Insane Clown Posse in the song Cemetery Girl , and the dark metal band Eisregen with the songs Pale Blue Lips and My dead Russian girlfriend (which were indexed ). The song Black Silk about Carl von Cosel , who became known through necrophilia, comes from Subway to Sally .
See also
literature
- Harald Neumann: Contributions to necrophilia , 2., ext. Ed., Herchen, Frankfurt am Main 1988, ISBN 3-89184-037-3 .
- Mark Benecke: Necrophilia: Legal, Yet Still A Problem. (2008) Anil Aggrawal's Internet Journal of Forensic Medicine and Toxicology 2008; Vol. 9, Number 2 (July – December 2008)
Footnotes
- ^ Richard von Krafft-Ebing: Psychopathia Sexualis. 1886
- ↑ E. Fromm: Anatomy of the human destructiveness. Rowohlt-Verlag, Hamburg, 25th edition, November 2015. ISBN 978-3-499-17052-2 . P. 371 f.
- ↑ Fromm refers to " H. Thomas 1961. The Spanish Civil War. Harper & Bros, New York 1961; Ger. The Spanish Civil War. Berlin / Frankfurt / Vienna 1962. " ( Anatomy of human destructiveness : Bibliography , p. 548)
- ↑ In the bibliography of the anatomy of human destructiveness (p. 539) in German: "Das Menschliche in uns, Konstanz 1968."
- ↑ E. Fromm: Anatomy of the human destructiveness. P. 372 f.
- ↑ E. Fromm: Anatomy of human destructiveness , p. 373
- ↑ E. Fromm: Anatomy of the human destructiveness. P. 366 ff.
- ↑ E. Fromm: Anatomy of the human destructiveness. P. 412 ff.
- ↑ E. Fromm: Anatomy of human destructiveness , p. 414
- ↑ E. Fromm: Anatomy of the human destructiveness. P. 371 ff.
- ↑ E. Fromm: Anatomy of human destructiveness , p. 380
- ↑ E. Fromm: Anatomy of the human destructiveness. P. 380
- ↑ E. Fromm: Anatomy of the human destructiveness. , P. 380 f.
- ^ E. Fromm: Anatomy of human destructiveness , p. 381 f.
- ↑ E. Fromm: Anatomy of human destructiveness , p. 412 ff.
- ↑ E. Fromm: Anatomy of human destructiveness , 13. Malignant aggression: Adolf Hitler, a clinical case of necrophilia : p. 415 ff.
- ↑ E. Fromm: Anatomy of human destructiveness , p. 384
- ^ A b E. Fromm: Anatomy of human destructiveness in the bibliography , p. 543 on this study: "Maccoby, M. 1972." Emotional Attitudes and Political Choices. "Politics and Society. (Winter): 209-239."
- ↑ Maccoby's study Emotional Attitudes and Political Choices from 1972 on SAGE . Retrieved July 10, 2017.
- ^ Erich Fromm, Rainer Funk : Erich Fromm-Gesamtausgabe, Volume I: Analytical Social Psychology ; Deutscher Taschenbuch Verlag, Munich 1999. ISBN 3-421-05280-8 . Reference: Introduction by the editor - On the life and work of Erich Fromm , page XXVII-XXVIII: "With Michael Maccoby [...] [Fromm] investigated the social character of the inhabitants of a Mexican village in the sixties. [...] "
- ↑ Ibid., As a study is mentioned in the bibliography : "[Fromm, E.] -, and Michael Maccoby, 1970b: Social Character in a Mexican Village. A Sociopsychoanalytic Study , Eaglewood Cliffs 1970 (Prentice Hall)"
- ↑ E. Fromm: Anatomy of human destructiveness , section " Necrophilia and the deification of technology , p. 384 ff." P. 372 f.
- ↑ HP Lovecraft, CM Eddy Jr.: The beloved dead. In: HP Lovecraft et al .: Azathoth. Suhrkamp, Frankfurt am Main 1989, p. 41 ff.
- ^ Carsten Henkelmann: Visitor Q (2001) - Takashi Miike / Sense of View Review. Retrieved June 21, 2017 .
