“…dead is dead”: A Psychoanalytic Review of “Wither Thou Goest” by Richard Selzer Anonymous College

In Richard Selzer’s “Whither Thou Goest”, Sam’s organs ,“The kidney, liver, lungs, cornea and heart”, are donated to seven people after his death. His widow, Hannah Owen, finds it difficult to come to terms with the fact that her husband is alive in the bodies of different people. Eventually, Hannah Owen gets closure to husband’s death after more than three years. The subject of organ donation is crucial in “Whither Thou Goest”; looking at the implications of the organ donation using the psychoanalytic angle can lay bare the psychological wounds that a deceased person’s kin undergo after organs are donated and parts of his other body buried. A psychoanalytic review of “Whither Thou Goest” offers insights on regression, psychological traumas after loss of loved ones, prolonged mourning, trauma, fear of abandonment , dreams, guilty pleasures and psychological implications of organ donations.

Hannah’s unconscious psychological trauma is apparent as Selzer writes, “that was three years ago. And still, she had only to close her eyes to have the whole of the horror spring vividly before her, as though it had been painted on the inside of her eyelids.” The thoughts about losing her husband overwhelm Hannah. Her current life revolves...