Idea Post #5: Repetition compulsion

Repetition compulsion is an inherent tendency in the unconscious that impels the individual to repeat certain actions, usually the traumatic ones. This is to master the traumatic event that the person could not master in the trauma itself. After reading this article it explains that not every repetitive compulsive act is out of trauma necessarily. That children that throw their favorite toy to the ground, is upset that it is gone, receives it from a parent, and repeats the cycle all over again. This too is a form of repetition compulsion.

I want repetition to fill my work. I want to repeat processes until they become subconscious. This is seen in the article that later repetition compulsion isn't just for people dealing with a trauma. It is also how people try to relate to others. Inside of your core, you want to be with other individuals. Your body and mind will act a certain way each time to try and gain friends. I am not trying to gain friends by making artwork but I want to do the same action over and over again until I have a new product. I want to cut out and create many characters and create new backgrounds to put them in. The repetition will keep the work changing and concepts will bend. I think it will be good.

"Repetition compulsion is a psychological phenomenon in which a person repeats a traumatic event or its circumstances over and over again"- Repetition Compulsion Info

compulsion /com·pul·sion/ (kom-pul´shun)

1. an overwhelming urge to perform an irrational act or ritual.

2. the repetitive or stereotyped action that is the object of such an urge.compul´sive

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repetition compulsion in psychoanalytic theory, the impulse to reenact earlier emotional experiences or traumatic behavior.

-medical dictionary

"Compulsion - Definition of Compulsion in the Medical Dictionary - by the Free Online Medical Dictionary, Thesaurus and Encyclopedia." Medical Dictionary. Web. 07 Oct. 2010. http://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/compulsion.

"Repetition Compulsion Information (Freud) @ IAmPicky.com." Anal Retentive and Obsessive-Compulsive (Annoyance) @ IAmPicky.com. 27 Sept. 2010. Web. 07 Oct. 2010. http://www.iampicky.com/Repetition_compulsion/encyclopedia.htm.