Investigating Erotomania Disorder in Two Stories

Research shows that the study of literary texts about an illness, especially from a phenomenological perspective, can contribute to a better understanding of the patient and the illness and lead to knowledge of the world and the human way of thinking. Obviously, this approach increases the appeal and interest of the audience in the study of literary works and opens up new horizons for them. On the other hand, among human emotions, the expression of love and behavior related to romantic feelings is more frequent in literary works, especially in the works of female writers, and erotomania, or romantic psychosis, is one of the delusional disorders reflected in these works. This descriptive-analytical study examines how the symptoms of erotomania are described in two short stories, named “Rana” from Nazli story collection written by Moniro Ravanipour and “Bad az Tabestan” from Chahar Rah story collection by Ghazaleh Alizadeh, according to DSM-5 diagnostic criteria. The results indicate that the fictional characters in the works studied show symptoms that meet the clinical diagnostic criteria of the disorder in question. In these stories, in addition to the description of clinical symptoms, the authors have also considered sexual, social, economic, and cultural factors. This shows the ability of the writers to create realism and credibility in the plot of the story, which makes the reader better connect with the text and get influenced by it. Moreover, the description of the feelings and beliefs of these characters and their effects on their lives and personal and social relationships can help readers to better understand the way of thinking and the life experience of those people and create communication that comes from understanding a psychotic person in the real world.