Sigmund Freud would have loved Black Swan (2010). Natalie Portman portrays a ballerina, Nina, who battles against herself for perfection. One of the clearest psychoanalytic readings of this film centers on Freud’s division of the mind in the id, ego, and superego. Nina embodies all three of these in Black Swan.
I see Nina’s id coming through when she dreams about having sex with Lily, played by Mila Kunis, so strongly that the following day she was convinced it actually happened. One needs sex to survive so this event would fit the needs of the id.
Nina’s ego is evident in her perfectionism and determination. While her self-perception is clearly skewed, and everyone tells her that, she is fully aware of what she puts her body through because she is convinced she understands her life. Consider, for example, the extreme dance training as well as her eating disorder. She understands her actions and believes they will result in a specific outcome.
We see the superego when Nina tries to cover her tracks. First, she is very secretive about everything in her life and never seems to open up to others. This could be an attempt to hide the fact that she does not see herself as good enough in general, and to cover up how she deals with these feelings of insecurity. She has no friends and hardly gets along with her mother so she feels isolated and afraid to open up to new people, even when Thomas, her director, asks her too for her role.
I also see Freud’s theory that one can transfer feelings held toward a parent onto an analyst. In the film, Nina does not have a father in her life, or any men for that matter. Her relationship with Thomas could be a reflection of her needing a man’s approval to fill that void of not having a father. While she is surely determined to be the best dancer, one might argue that she wants to be the best dancer in order to obtain Thomas’ attention. She even says with excitement, “he picked me.”
The Official Blog of WRTG 3007, Summer 2012 