Abjection
Version 1.0.0 · Updated 2026-07-30
CORE DEFINITION
Things that are neither fully part of the self nor entirely other, and therefore must be rejected to maintain the boundaries of the self (e.g., corpses, excrement, pus from wounds). They evoke disgust and fear, but also fascination.
SCAFFOLDING EFFECT
Reduce cognitive load
- Deep understanding of the uncanny valley effect: Why do zombies or highly realistic robots make people feel disgusted? Because they exist in the ambiguous zone between life and death, human and object (abject), threatening our definition of "human."
Anchor fast decisions
Abject things lie in the ambiguous zone at the boundaries of categories (life/death, inside/outside, human/object), threatening the clear boundaries of the self, thereby triggering disgust and fear, yet also fascinating because they approach the forbidden—a mechanism of rejection that maintains subjectivity.
MINIMUM ACTION
In progress 0/4Practice this model in one real situation:
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Source support: Explicit
- en.wikipedia.orghttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abjectionverified
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