Transcendence and self-transformation in ottesa moshfegh’s my year of rest and relaxation: a sartarian reading

Abstract EN

Drawing on Jean Paul Sartre’s existential theory, the paper delves into applying his concept of “transcendence” to Ottessa Moshfegh’s my year of rest and relaxation (2018).

it explores how the main character, a privileged young woman living in the capitalist American society in the early 2000s, is withdrawn from the world and alienated from both people and herself.

it also aims to examine how the main character, as a representative of the American society, is in a quest for a state of transcendence through a year-long sleep experiment.

it essentially deals with how the author uses various literary techniques to convey her protagonist’s transcendence.

through using analytical and theoretical approaches, this paper finds out that the main character goes through a journey towards achieving her authenticity in an unauthentic world, while significantly grappling with the ways she employs to achieve it, mainly her self-chosen alienation through drugs consuming.