Viola Hastings: A Psychoanalytic Analysis

Viola Hastings is not your average conflicted teenager; she comes from an affluent family and has had a rather privileged upbringing, however, her conflict is very unconventional. Her preliminary issue seems to rise when the school she attends, Cornwall, cuts her soccer team, and she is forced to devise a plan to get back on the field. Her brother, Sebastian runs off to London and asks Viola to cover for him while he is away, which allows Viola the platform for her master plan. This is an example of biosocial development because adolescents make the transition to becoming emerging adults by taking risks. (Berger, 2014) According to the text, “A theory of human development that holds that irrational, unconscious drives and motives, often originating in childhood, underlie human behavior.” (Berger, 2014) Viola is a proclaimed tomboy, is very outgoing and exudes an immense amount of courage and conviction. She is not afraid of fighting for what she believes in and what she feels she deserves. (Gilbert, 2014) Her lack of femininity does not deter her dedication to girl-power and hatred toward sexism, because her premise surrounds the idea that girls can in fact beat boys. Regarding theories of human development

In stage 5 adolescents are in pursuit of their personal identity, and this is very relevant to the situation Viola is going through.(Schwartz) Although she may not have been aware of it, all of her decisions and the relationships she makes will affect the foundation of her adulthood. As she transitions to the sixth stage, Viola is faced with the conflict of intimacy when she realizes she has feeling for her roommate Duke. This is difficult for her because she is forced to maintain her exterior and remain focused to make the soccer team. (Gilbert, 2014) The most important event of this stage is finding the ability to create and maintain deeper relationships on a personal level.