ABSTRACT
The opacity of the word “regret” distinguishes it from its cousins: remorse, compunction, sorrow. This chapter looks at the varied uses of the word psychoanalytically by examining some literary instances of regret. Disgrace captures the journey of the word. It travels from a narcissistic plane where it is a byword for hypocrisy: Where there is an absence of remorse or concern, regret is an empty shell. But eventually the protagonist in exile learns to bear remorse, and mourns, and the original meaning of the word is restored. Having looked passingly at a few stories, what we might cull is that there is a lability in the word which can be seen by comparing its etymological origin to its more common usage. The word allows a gathering in of the emotion it refers to, representing an attempt at containment while its more prevalent usage betrays the terror of its intense potential.
