OBSESSIVE-COMPULSIVE DISORDER IN FIVE SELECTED POEMS

Authors

  • Amelia Insaniyah Universitas Pamulang
  • Latifah Latifah Universitas Pamulang

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.51878/language.v6i4.15868

Keywords:

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, Pikiran Intrusif, Kompulsi, Puisi, Bentuk Puitik

Abstract

This study investigates the literary representation of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and the dialectical relationship between obsessive-compulsive psychological mechanisms and poetic form across five selected poems. The corpus comprises "O.C.D." and "Static Electricity" by Neil Hilborn, "You Can Take Off Your Sweater, I’ve Made Today Warm" by Paige Lewis, and "I’m Not Crazy" and "I Can…I Will…Replace Those Weeds with Beautiful Flowers!" by Cherry Pedrick. Utilizing a descriptive qualitative design, the analysis conducts heuristic-hermeneutic close readings grounded in Sigmund Freud’s psychoanalytic defence mechanisms alongside cognitive models of intrusive thoughts and compulsive neutralisation. The comparative findings reveal that OCD does not merely operate as topical content; rather, it functions as a generative principle that governs the structural and aesthetic architecture of the poems. Obsessive-compulsive traits are formally encoded through phonological-syntactic repetition, typographical fragmentation via white space, hyperfocused surreal imagery, and conceptual metaphors of agricultural management. This research demonstrates how poetic discourse translates psychological dissonance into literary form, establishing a medium for destabilising social stigma, navigating relational intimacy, and articulating cognitive resilience.

ABSTRAK

Penelitian ini mengkaji representasi obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) serta relasi dialektis antara karakteristik psikologis obsesif-kompulsif dan pengorganisasian bentuk puitik dalam lima puisi terpilih. Objek material penelitian meliputi "O.C.D." dan "Static Electricity" karya Neil Hilborn, "You Can Take Off Your Sweater, I’ve Made Today Warm" karya Paige Lewis, serta "I’m Not Crazy" dan "I Can…I Will…Replace Those Weeds with Beautiful Flowers!" karya Cherry Pedrick. Pendekatan deskriptif kualitatif diterapkan melalui pembacaan heuristik-hermeneutik serta analisis mikrostilistika baris demi baris. Kerangka teoretis memadukan psikoanalisis Sigmund Freud mengenai mekanisme pertahanan ego dengan model kognitif siklus netralisasi intrusi. Temuan komparatif menunjukkan bahwa karakteristik OCD tidak sekadar beroperasi sebagai muatan tematik, melainkan bertindak sebagai prinsip generatif pembentuk konvensi estetika teks. Manifestasi obsesi dan kompulsi ditransformasikan secara struktural menjadi repetisi fonologis-sintaksis, fragmentasi tipografi ruang putih (white space), hiperfokus citraan hiperbolik-surealis, serta rekonseptualisasi metafora agrikultural. Penelitian ini membuktikan bahwa artikulasi puitik mampu mengonversi disonansi kognitif dan penderitaan psikis menjadi sarana resistensi terhadap stigma, renegosiasi keintiman, serta trajektori pemulihan berbasis agensi diri.

 

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

Abramowitz, J. S., Blakey, S. M., Reuman, L., & Buchholz, J. L. (2018). New directions in the cognitive-behavioral treatment of OCD: Theory, research, and practice. Behavior Therapy, 49(3), 311–322. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.beth.2017.09.002

Alshammari, S., & Burnazi, A. (2026). Investigating bipolar expression in confessional poetry. Digital Scholarship in the Humanities, 41(1), Article fqag001. https://doi.org/10.1093/llc/fqag001

Bala, A. (2025). Beyond therapeutics: Psychosis and poetics. Anthropology & Humanism, 50(1). https://doi.org/10.1111/anhu.70024

Bolton, K. W., Teater, B. A., Congress, E. P., Gruber, C., Simmons, C. A., Shapiro, V. B., Accomazzo, S., Manthey, T. J., Frankel, A. J., Cobb, N. H., Knox, K. S., Roberts, A. R., Mancini, M. A., Cooper?Sadlo, S., Levenson, J., de Motter, A. V., Bischkopf, J., & Stansbury, K. L. (2021). Theoretical perspectives for direct social work practice. In P. Lehmann & J. C. Hall (Eds.), Theoretical perspectives for direct social work practice. Springer Publishing Company.

Chester, E. (2017). Obsessive-compulsive ir/rationality in Watt. Samuel Beckett Today / Aujourd’hui, 29(1), 92–103. https://doi.org/10.1163/18757405-02901008

Clark, D. A., & Purdon, C. L. (1995). The assessment of unwanted intrusive thoughts: A review and critique of the literature. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 33(8), 967–976. https://doi.org/10.1016/0005-7967(95)00030-2

Fajnerová, I., Greguš, D., Francová, A., Nosková, E., Kop?ivová, J., Stopková, P., Hlinka, J., & Horá?ek, J. (2020). Functional connectivity changes in obsessive–compulsive disorder correspond to interference control and obsessions severity. Frontiers in Neurology, 11, Article 568. https://doi.org/10.3389/fneur.2020.00568

Freud, S. (2005). The unconscious. Penguin Books.

Friedrich, P. (2015a). Recurrent doubt: A brief story of OCD through its literary texts. Palgrave Macmillan.

Friedrich, P. (2015b). The literary and linguistic construction of obsessive-compulsive disorder. Palgrave Macmillan.

Gallardo, S. R. (2026). Narrating madness. REVISIT: Humanities & Medicine in Dialogue, 4(2). https://doi.org/10.57974/re:visit_2025_4.2_3

Haryanto, F. A. R., & Suroso, E. (2025). Bahasa trauma: Pada kehidupan miris Farel Prayoga dalam podcast Denny Sumargo unggahan YouTube Juli 2025. Paedagogy: Jurnal Ilmu Pendidikan dan Psikologi, 5(3), 1276–1286. https://doi.org/10.51878/paedagogy.v5i3.7585

Helal, S. M. (2026). The language of torment: A transitivity and cognitive poetics analysis of Arthur Dimmesdale in Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter. Cogent Arts & Humanities, 13(1). https://doi.org/10.1080/23311983.2026.2696118

Hilborn, N. (2015a, 1 Maret). O.C.D. Weebly. https://ocdpoetry.weebly.com/ocd.html

Hilborn, N. (2015b, 15 Maret). Static electricity. Words for the Year. https://wordsfortheyear.com/2015/03/15/static-electricity-by-neil-hilborn/

Lewis, P. (2018). You can take off your sweater, I’ve made today warm. Poetry, 211(4), 342–343. https://doi.org/10.1353/poe.2018.0012

Mills, M., & Sanchez, R. (Eds.). (2023). Crip authorship: Disability as method. New York University Press.

Mora, V. L. (2026). Materiales para una teoría del papel en blanco: Semiótica del espejo vacío del poema. Signa: Revista de la Asociación Española de Semiótica, 35, 471–491. https://doi.org/10.5944/signa.vol35.2026.44000

Pedrick, C. (2015a). I’m not crazy. Cherry Pedrick Resources. http://www.cherrypedrick.com/poetry.html

Pedrick, C. (2015b). I can…I will…replace those weeds with beautiful flowers! Cherry Pedrick Resources. http://www.cherrypedrick.com/poetry.html

Pickenhan, L., & Milton, A. (2024). Opening new vistas on obsessive-compulsive disorder with the observing response task. Cognitive, Affective, & Behavioral Neuroscience, 24(2), 249–265. https://doi.org/10.3758/s13415-023-01153-w

Rachman, S. R., & Jannah, N. A. (2022). Bentuk gejala tokoh obsesif-kompulsif dalam novel Aroma Karsa karya Dewi Lestari. Belajar Bahasa, 7(1), 149–160. https://doi.org/10.32528/bb.v7i1.15

Rasse, C., Onysko, A., & Citron, F. (2020). Conceptual metaphors in poetry interpretation: A psycholinguistic approach. Language and Cognition, 12(2), 310–342. https://doi.org/10.1017/langcog.2019.47

Richmond, K. J. (2018). Mental illness in young adult literature: Exploring real struggles through fictional characters. Libraries Unlimited.

Rigoux, L., Stephan, K. ?., & Petzschner, F. H. (2024). Beliefs, compulsive behavior and reduced confidence in control. PLOS Computational Biology, 20(6), Article e1012207. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1012207

Salkovskis, P. M. (1985). Obsessional-compulsive problems: A cognitive-behavioural analysis. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 23(5), 571–583. https://doi.org/10.1016/0005-7967(85)90105-6

Sankaran, S., & Jeyasala, V. R. (2026). An analysis of typographical elements in Laurie Halse Anderson’s Wintergirls. SMART MOVES JOURNAL IJELLH, 14(2). https://doi.org/10.24113/smji.v14i2.11688

Soros, E. (2024). The prairies always see you. In Creative writing and critical care (pp. 215–224). Routledge.

Synnes, O., Romm, K. L., & Bondevik, H. (2021). The poetics of vulnerability: Creative writing among young adults in treatment for psychosis in light of Ricoeur’s and Kristeva’s philosophy of language and subjectivity. Medicine, Health Care and Philosophy, 24(2), 173–187. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11019-020-09998-5

Virtianti, R., Yuliasari, R., & Sari, F. P. (2025). Intrusive narratives: Mental health and discourse patterns in “Turtle All The Way Down.” Pujangga, 11(2), 197–222. https://doi.org/10.47313/pujangga.v11i2.4261

Westby, C. L., Erlandsen, A. R., Nilsen, S. A., Visted, E., & Thimm, J. C. (2021). Depression, anxiety, PTSD, and OCD after stillbirth: A systematic review. BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth, 21(1), Article 782. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12884-021-04254-x

Downloads

Published

2026-11-03

How to Cite

Insaniyah, A., & Latifah, L. (2026). OBSESSIVE-COMPULSIVE DISORDER IN FIVE SELECTED POEMS. LANGUAGE : Jurnal Inovasi Pendidikan Bahasa Dan Sastra, 6(4), 785–793. https://doi.org/10.51878/language.v6i4.15868

Issue

Section

Articles

Similar Articles

1 2 3 4 > >> 

You may also start an advanced similarity search for this article.