Julia Kristeva pursues her exploration of the core emotions of the human psyche through a series of philosophical and literary texts. She focuses on the role of narcissism and idealization in the formation of a love object, accounting for the role of the death drive by coining the term “love/hate.” Tales of Love offers illuminating psychoanalytic readings of Thomas Aquinas, courtly romances, Romeo and Juliet, Baudelaire, Stendhal, and Bataille, among others.

Translated by: Leon Roudiez