Attachment Transformation in Aloners (2021): A Psychoanalytic Exploration of Jina’s Isolation and Reconnection
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.36312/jolls.v5i3.3371Keywords:
Avoidant attachment, Shadow archetype, Individuation, Psychological, Growth, AlonersAbstract
The previous studies mostly focus on individuation archetype and role of attachment from the psychological perspective. This study examines the psychological journey of the character Jina in the film Aloners (2021) to explore how her attachment patterns evolve. The findings of this study reveal that Jina's rejecting and avoiding attachment style functions as a repressed “shadow,” which, when confronted through a series of external and emotional triggers, facilitates her psychological growth. The film portrays Jina's journey from an emotionally isolated figure to an individual who begins to confront the hidden sides of herself. This study aims to analyze how her psychological journey triggers changes in her attachment patterns and interactions with others. The author employs a literary psychological approach, incorporating John Bowlby’s Attachment Theory and Carl Jung’s Individuation Theory, with a particular focus on the shadow archetype, as well as Semiotics by Peirce and Film Study Theory by Boggs and Petrie. Using a qualitative descriptive method, it examines characters dialogue and visuals in the film. Analysis reveals a gradual transformation from emotional repression and isolation toward vulnerability and a desire to connect, marked by key scenes such as her emotional outburst with her father, her honest confession to a coworker, and symbolic actions like opening her window curtains. This study offers a new perspective in understanding character’s emotional development in modern cinema as well as social isolation, loneliness, attachment, and the process of individuation. This study will contribute to build empathy and encourage viewers to better understand themselves and others.
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