Psychoanalysis of Moral Masochism in Western and Eastern Culture

The subject of this study is the phenomenon of moral masochism as a psychological state manifested in the individual’s tendency toward self-punishment, self-sacrifice, and the experience of suffering as a form of internal moral regulation. The object of the research is the psychological and cultural mechanisms underlying the formation of moral masochism in different cultural traditions. The author examines the psychoanalytic interpretation of this phenomenon formulated in the works of Sigmund Freud and further developed by his followers. Particular attention is paid to the role of the Superego as an internal moral authority functioning as a strict inner judge that generates feelings of guilt and tendencies toward self-punishment. The study also analyzes the relationship between moral masochism, narcissism, and the dynamics of unconscious drives. The article presents a comparative cultural analysis of manifestations of moral masochism in European, Russian, and Japanese cultures. Historical and socio-cultural conditions that shape different forms of moral self-punishment are examined. Literary examples from the works of Flaubert, Kafka, Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, Kawabata, and Mishima are used to illustrate various cultural representations of this phenomenon. The methodological basis of the study is grounded in the psychoanalytic theory of Sigmund Freud and his followers, as well as in methods of comparative cultural analysis and psychoanalytic interpretation of literary texts. The research employs an interdisciplinary approach combining psychological, cultural, and literary analysis. The novelty of this research lies in a comparative analysis of moral masochism within European, Russian, and Japanese cultural traditions based on psychoanalytic theory. The author’s contribution consists in identifying culturally specific mechanisms of moral masochism and correlating them with universal structures of psychic dynamics. The main conclusions of the study suggest that moral masochism should be understood not only as an individual psychological disposition but also as a culturally conditioned way of experiencing the internal conflict between desire and moral norms. It is shown that in the Russian cultural tradition moral masochism is associated with historically formed models of suffering and submission to authority, whereas in Japanese culture its manifestations are connected with collectivist values and the concept of emotional dependence known as amae. The results of the research expand the possibilities of psychoanalytic interpretation of cultural phenomena and contribute to a deeper understanding of the relationship between morality, suffering, and identity formation.