Expression of the death drive in comedy films

Abstract

The death drive remains a marginal and highly contested concept in psychoanalysis and philosophy. Although it has been applied to film analysis, its application to comedy films remains unexplored, and its use in the practical creation of comedy films is virtually absent.

Adopting exegesis methodology, this exegesis emphasises the two-way interaction between theory and practice. Three theoretical death drive models are combined with Freud's humour theory and applied to the analysis of Yorgos Lanthimos's black comedy films; and through my creative practice films, it demonstrates and reflects on how I have drawn inspiration from theories and effectively transformed them into concrete film production strategies.

This exegesis first integrates death drive models of Freud, Klein, and Penot, and analyses pleasure mechanisms of black humour based on Freud’s humour theory. It then applies these theories to analyse narrative absurdity and humour in Yorgos Lanthimos's three black comedies. Finally, drawing inspiration from these analyses, I transform theory into creative strategies for original black comedy short films, reflecting on the interaction between theory and practice and exploring the relationship between death drive and humour.
 
This exegesis demonstrates that there is no direct relationship between the death drive and black humour. Instead, the death drive functions as a deep psychological structure that prompts characters to engage in repetitive, contradictory or irrational behaviour. The contrast of these acts with serious themes and scenes amplifies the absurdity of the narrative and indirectly enhances the black humour. Furthermore, this study suggests that humour in black comedy can be analysed in a psychoanalytic way, providing the audience with a way to deal with the death drive.

This exegesis expands the application of death drive theory into black comedy film production. It also offers new perspectives for integrating psychoanalytic theory with creative practice, opening further possibilities for future studies of drive theory and film production.

Date of Award	18 Jun 2026
Original language	English
Supervisor	Damian Cox (Supervisor), Alison Taylor (Supervisor) & Darren Fisher (Supervisor)