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Volume 06 Number 02 Year 2020, 60-65 eISSN 0000-0000

An analysis of Kevin’s ego in “Split” movie (A psychoanalysis study)

Deni Pratama1,a, Merry Rullyanti1,b

Affiliation
1. Dehasen University of Bengkulu

Correspondence
a. [email protected]
b. [email protected]

Article History Abstract

1. Submitted date 23rd
August 2021 Split movie is an interesting psycholinguistically analyzed movie in
2. Reviewed date 26th August the last decade. The movie criticizes a bad psychological relationship
2021 between the main character and his community. Through this study,
3. Accepted date 29th August
the researcher analyzed the multiple personality of main character on
2021
4. Published date 29th August Split movie and used the theory of Sigmund Freud within the title “An
2021 Analysis of Kevin’s Ego in “Split” Movie (a Psychoanalysis Study)”.
The purpose of this study are to find out Kevin’s ego based on the
Sigmund Freud’s defence mechanism in the movie and to find out
Kevin’s most frequently emerging ego based on the Sigmund Freud’s
defence mechanism. In this study the researcher used a qualitative
descriptive method by collecting data on all character conversations
in “Split” movie. The data were analyzed based on Frued's theory of
defence mechanism. Furthermore, the data were also anaylized by
using Spradley's theory. There are three steps that must be taken in
using this theory, namely domain analysis, taxonomic analysis and
component analysis. The researcher found 8 Kevin’s egos that got
involved in real dialogues in Split movie. They are childish, firm man,
mother-like, effeminate person, firm and effeminate, cruel, cool man,
and weak lady. The highest val ue of frequently emerging ego goes to
childish. Whereas, the lowest frequently emerging ego is a weak lady.
Hopefully, the results of this study will increase the knowledge in
English letters, especially in psychoanalysis study about various egos
of movie characters or even real persons and the defence mechanism
based on Sigmund Freud’s and Spradley’s theories.

Keyword: Psychoanalysis, Split movie, Kevin’s ego, defence

mechanism, MPD.

How to cite this article

Pratama, Deni. Rullyanti, Merry. (2020). An analysis of Kevin’s ego in “Split” movie (A
psychoanalysis study). Literary Criticism, 06(02), 60-65.

A. Introduction

Literary Criticism, Fakultas Sastra Program Studi Sastra Inggris UNIVED Bengkulu
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Psychoanalysis is a branch of science developed by Sigmund Freud in 1856-1939. It studies human

personality or psychological behavior. It can be applied into a method of treating psychological or
emotional illness (Yorke, 2015). It is also a form of therapy based on the understanding that humans
are generally unaware of the mental processes associated with their thoughts, feelings and behavior.
Freud described the human personality as an iceberg with the part above sea level as the area of
consciousness and the part below the sea level as the area of the unconsciousness. Between the two
regions there is an area of preconsciuousness. The topological model was then transformed into a
structural model. Freud developed the structure of personality as a dynamic relationship between its
elements. In this structure, the human personality consists of three elements, namely the id, ego, and
superego.
Of those three elements above, the ego is an important part of the defence mechanism. According to
Freud, the defence mechanism is a strategy used by individuals to prevent the open emergence of id
urges and to deal with superego pressure on id, with the aim of reducing or alleviating the anxiety
experienced by individuals (Kuntojo, 2015: 46). The defence mechanism can occur in the real life as
well as in literature. In the world of literature, there are much literary work that discuss or display the
diversity of the ego. One of the literary work that is successful in presenting a defence mechanism by
bringing out various characters of the ego is the movie discussed in this study.
In this study, the researcher analyzed the multiple personality of main character on Split movie and
use the theory of Sigmund Freud (psychoanalysis). Split is a United States film released in 2017. The
movie was directed by M. Night Shyamalan. The movie, especially the actor, successfully exposed the
multiple personality that the character, namely Kevin, has in his life. This psychological condition was
analyzed by the reseacher of this study through a descriptive method of research.
Starting the study, the researcher has observed some of previous researches. The first previous
research was conducted by Sudrazat (2016) and entitled “Id, Ego, and Superego Represented by the
Main Character of Fifty Shades of Grey Movie Christian Grey”. It was found that Christian Grey’s
personality is leaning on his id which is BDSM, i.e. involving bondage and discipline, dominance and
submission, sadism and masochism. Then, the ego and superego work to restrict the id into non-
destructive ways.
The second previous research is from Astuti (2015). The research was entitled “The Personality
Structure and Defence Mechanism of the Main Character in The House at the End of the Street Film”.
This research focuses on Ryan Jacobson as the main character in the movie. The findings show that
Ryan Jacobson has abnormal obsession to have his sister named Carrie Anne alive. Due to a traumatic
experience, Ryan has unbalanced personality structure caused by disturbance in his childhood. His
ego is dominated by the id when it is about his secret and trauma in the past. Although Ryan has done
some defence mechanism, it is not enough for him to remove his trauma and anxiety.
The next reviewed study is about “Anxiety and Defence Mechanism of Will Hunting in Good Will
Hunting Movie” conducted by Masykuroh (2017). The analysis of data led to the conclusion that
through the story, Will Hunting has three kinds of anxiety; realistic anxiety, neurotic anxiety, and moral
anxiety. Will Hunting suffers from the realistic anxiety because of Sean and the difficult situation
around him. He also has the neurotic anxiety because of his imagination that something dreadful will
happen to him. Therefore, he also suffers from moral anxiety because he breaks a moral value. Will
Hunting tries to deal with his anxieties by doing defence mechanism.
The fourth previous research was done by Ria Anita (2017) written in her thesis entitled “Sybil’s
Dissociative Identity Disorder (A Psychoanalysis Study in Sybil Novel by Flora Rheta Schreiber,
1973)”. Based on the finding, Sybil is the main character and she is a woman who always experiences
nervousness. There are 15 individuals who are Sybil's personalities as minor figures. They are Vicky,
Peggy Lou, Peggy Ann, Marcia, Vanessa, Mary, Sybil Ann, Marjorie, Helen, Clara, Nancy, Mike and
Sid, Ruthie and the Blonde. Among all minor personalities, Vicky and Peggy Lou are the strongest
individuals who often appear and control Sybil's body. Vicky is a jolly woman who knows many things,
she is an observer. Whereas Peggy Lou is an emotional female personality and she endures the anger
that can’t be expressed by Sybil. The dissociative identity disorder in Sybil’s characters is physical and
sexual abuse during childhood done by her mother.
The Last but not the least research previewed was done by Mutmainnah (2017). The title of the
research is “Psychopathic by the main character in the Movie Maniac”. The result shows that there are

Literary Criticism, Fakultas Sastra Program Studi Sastra Inggris UNIVED Bengkulu
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Volume 06 Number 02 Year 2020, 60-65 eISSN 0000-0000

five characteristics of psychophat that were found in Frank’s character. They are glib and superficial,
lack of remorse or guilt, impulsive, poor behavior control, and lack of empathy. The researcher also
found that the factor that made frank be a psychophat is his id which became the dominant one over his
ego and superego.
All of the above researchers used descriptive and qualitative method and focused on various kinds
of psychological condition in literary work. The results found are general. The observations by the
researchers towards previous studies were done by analyzing the forms of human psyche based on
Sigmund Freud’s theory. In the previous researches, there apparently is no specific discussion about the
ego and the defence mechanism of the main character that is also analyzed by Spradley’s theory. Thus,
the researcher focused on the ego and the defence mechanism of the main character in a movie that was
also analyzed by Spradley’s theory. Furthermore, the character has multiple personality as well
shown on “Split” movie which is an interesting psycholinguistically analyzed movie in the last
decade. For those reasons the researcher took the title “An Analysis of Kevin’s Ego in “Split” Movie (a
Psychoanalysis Study)”. The researcher of this study analyzed all utterances of main character in the
movie. The discussion is about the use of words in the nature of psychological situation. Hopefully, the
results of this study will increase the knowledge in English letters, especially in psycholinguist ic study
about various egos of movie characters or even real persons and the defence mechanism based on
Sigmund Freud’s and Spradley’s theories.

B. Methods
This research is a qualitative descriptive study. A qualitative descriptive study discusses the
phenomenon of what is experienced by the subject of research such as behavior, perceptions,
motivations, actions, etc., holistically, and in a descriptive way (Moleong, 2007). The researcher
collected data from “Split” movie. They were then analyzed and reported by fulfilling the
systematics of scientific writing from Chapter I, together with the cover, to Appendices. The data found
were analyzed by using Spradley’s theory (Spradley, 1979).

C. Result
All of Kevin’s utterances in Split movie are the data of this research. This chapter presents the
research findings and discussion of the utterances based on Sigmund Freud’s theory of defence
mechanism and Spradley’s theory of analysing descriptive-qualiative data.
1. Kevin’s Ego
The researcher found 8 Kevin’s egos that got involved in real dialogues in Split movie. They are
explained in the following table.

Table 1. Domain Analysis of Kevin’s Ego

Data First Utterance and Expression Character Ego
1. I choose you first Dennis Firm man
2. Hey! I was inspired Barry Effeminate person
3. Dennis, admit what you've done. Patricia Mother-like
4. My name's Hedwig. I have red socks. Hedwig Childish
5. Thank you for helping us till now. The Beast Brutal
6. Wait, no! Don't do that! Jade Weak lady
7. Have I done something? Barry (Dennis) Effeminate-Firm
8. Thank you, Dennis. Kevin Cool man

The above table shows the domain of Kevin’s egos. They are the first words uttered by the characters.
The ego of Dennis was found as a defense mechanism emerging in the situation that Kevin was trying
to be a firm man. It was shown in his character that is firm and uses to the point words. In stead of
saying more polite utterance like “I’d like to choose you, first, OK?”, he used a more firm utterance “I
choose you first” as he is acting in the situation. Moreover, in the scene, the character is showing a
firm expression.

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Meanwhile, the ego of Barry was found as a defense mechanism emerging in the situation that Kevin
was trying to be an effeminate person. It was shown in his character that is feminine and uses tender
words. In stead of saying firmer utterance like “Wow! That’s cool”, he used more feminine utterance
“Hey! I was inspired” as he is acting in the situation. Moreover, in the scene, the character is showing
an effeminate expression.
Whereas the ego of Patricia was found as a defense mechanism emerging in the situation that Kevin
was trying to be a mother. It was shown in his character that is motherly and uses words often said by a
mother. In stead of saying more tender utterance like “Dennis, please, say the truth about what you've
done.”, he used words often said by a mother “Dennis, admit what you've done.” as he is acting in the
situation. Moreover, in the scene, the character is showing a motherly expression.
In the meantime, there is a nine year old child was found to be the characteristic of Kevin’s ego as
Hedwig. It was shown in his character that is childish and uses words often said by a child. In stead of
saying more common utterances spoken by an adult man like “I’m Hedwig and has these socks”, he
used a more childish utterance “My name's Hedwig. I have red socks” as he is acting in the situation.
Moreover, in the scene, the character is showing a childish expression.
In addition, monster-like character was found in Kevin’s ego as The Beast. It was shown in his
character that is brutal and uses tones of voice produced by a monster or even words uttered by a monster
or in a critical situation. In stead of using more common tone of voice of a man in this utterance “Thank
you for helping us till now”, he produced a monster-like tone of voice as he is acting in the situation.
Next, Kevin also became a woman who suffered from diabetes who named Jade. It was shown in
his character that is suffering and uses words often said by unhealthy or powerless person. In stead of
saying more powerful utterance like “No way! (while doing evading action)”, he used begging words
“Wait, no! Don't do that!” as he is acting in the situation. Moreover, in the scene, the character is showing
a powerless expression and attitude.
At last but not the least, Kevin is the real character in this movie. It was shown when his mother
got so angry and yelled at him by saying his name so loudly “Keviiin...!”. Beside that, Kevin is also a
silent and cool man. In stead of saying more feminine and longer utterance as Barry said “Wow, it’s so
touching, thank you so much, Babe”, Kevin used less words in a cool way “Thank you, Dennis” as he
is acting in the situation. Moreover, in the scene, the character is showing a cool expression.

2. Kevin’s Most Frequently Emerging Ego

After finding the eight Kevin’s egos, the researcher analyzed the taxonomy of the egos. The
following is the taxonomy analysis of the egos with the number of 151 data.

Table 2. Taxonomy Analysis of Kevin’s Ego

Number of Data Character – Ego Percentages
47 Hedwig – Childish 31.13 %
38 Dennis – Firm man 25.16 %
19 Patricia – Mother-like 12.58 %
18 Barry – Effeminate person 11.92 %
15 Dennis as Barry – Effeminate-Firm 9.93 %
7 The Beast – Cruel 4.64 %
6 Kevin – Cool man 3.97 %
1 Jade – Weak lady 0.66 %

Table 2 above shows the taxonomy analysis of Kevin’s ego. Each ego has its own value. Based on
the table, the ego of Hedwig i.e. childish was more often found in the movie for about 47 times. This
data answers the second question of this research which is about what Kevin’s most frequently emerging
ego is based on the Sigmund Freud’s defence mechanism in “Split” movie. Whereas, the ego of jade
i.e. weak lady was only found once. It is the least ego shown in the movie.
The last part is doing the componential analysis. The percentages shown in the last column of Table
2 were concluded based on the values. The highest and the lowest values determined the result of the
research. Below is the analysis table.

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Table 3. Componential Analysis

Component Number of Data Percentage

Maximum: Hedwig – Childish 47 31.13 %

Ego
Minimum: Jade – Weak lady 1 0.66 %

The above table shows a componential analysis where the maximum level of emerging ego is for
Hedwig (Childish) i.e. 13.31 % and the minimum level of emerging ego is for Jade (Weak lady) i.e.
0.66 %. Based on Freud’s theory of defence mechanism, 8 egos were found in Split movie. Among the
egos, the defence mechanism used most frequently is in the egos of childish shown by Hedwig. The value
indicate that the movie tends to use the ego that shows an abused childhood memory. The movie was
made for telling the audience about something serious and memorable happened in Kevin’s childhood
moment. Through flashbacks, it is known that Kevin's mother was abusive and suffered from diabetes.
After Kevin's father mysteriously disappeared on a train one day, the young boy grew up suffering from
abuse at the hands of his mother which caused Kevin to retreat into other personalities to protect himself.
This condition in psychoanalysis is known as defence mechanism and MPD.
The appearance of Hedwig which characterized a nine year old child is intensive in the movie. Poor
Hedwig, he lost his normal and happy childhood. The love of a normal mother and father could not be
got during his childhood. His sick mother and missing father made him thirsty for his parents' caresses.
Behaving like a child is the way he defends himself from the feeling of losing his happy childhood,
from wanting to be loved by both parents, father and mother. This kind of analysis is not found in the
previous literary work and analyses on Split movie and on other researches that the researcher of this
study has reviewed before.
Beside for entertainment, the movie itself criticizes a bad psychological relationship between
someone and his community. The movie shows the audience about the effects of abusive treatment to a
child in his future. One of the effects is multiple personality disorder as the defence mechanism. By
using the issue of MPD and defence mechanism, the movie makes the audience realize that an abused
child needs help. Their bad characters are something that can be learnt and solved.

D. Conclusion
According to the analysis, it can be concluded that the highest value of frequently emerging ego goes
to the character of Hedwig i.e. childish. It was mostly used because the writer wants the character to be
cared more seriously. Whereas, the lowest frequently emerging ego is a weak lady that is Jade. This ego
is exposed so to show that Kevin has a touching memory about an old woman. All egos relate to what
the writer needs to tell. The movie was produced to show a unique character of a person. Not all human
beings are commonly the same.
Meanwhile, based on the results of reviewing the previous studies, it can be concluded that Kevin’s
ego i.e. childish is indeed the character that the writer wants to emerge frequently. It means that the
movie is really a movie of a person who has a bad childhood memory

E. References
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Literary Criticism, Fakultas Sastra Program Studi Sastra Inggris UNIVED Bengkulu
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