Abstract
Following his death in 1935, Fernando Pessoa became widely known for his unique tendency to create literary alter-egos which he termed “heteronyms.” The heteronyms were given their own biographies, personalities, and literary styles. Pessoa and his creations authored some of the most recognisable works of Portuguese poetry. The life of Pessoa was investigated from a formal psychological perspective using the research design and methodology of psychobiography. Specific areas of focus were the development of Pessoa’s personality across his life span and the psychological significance of his extraordinary creativity. This qualitative study was framed within the interpretivist-constructivist paradigm and Pessoa was selected as the subject using non-probability, purposive sampling. Biographical data was collected from Richard Zenith’s (2021) biography, “Pessoa: An Experimental Life,” and Pessoa’s (2010) semi-autobiographical text, “The Book of Disquiet.” Alexander’s (1988) techniques for managing data were used to identify psychologically salient themes which were analysed according to the central concepts of Heinz Kohut’s theory of self psychology. It was found that Pessoa experienced significant emotional traumas during childhood that affected his emotional, social, and occupational functioning throughout his life. These traumas were conceptualised in terms of selfobject needs, experiences, and relationships, and thereby gave rise to new insights about the different facets of Pessoa’s personality and the role of the heteronyms. The protective function of creativity as an adaptive response to adversity was highlighted and the study contributed to the ongoing development of self psychology by testing its theoretical propositions against the complex real-world case of Fernando Pessoa.
Keywords: psychobiography; Fernando Pessoa; heteronym; Kohut; self.