The Dybbuk as Imagery and as Psychological State in the Work and Life of Yona Wallach

It is possible to identify in the background of Wallach's creative output two general frames of reference, frames that possess a distinct terminology, both of them dealing with the unconscious by giving pride of place to its non-rational characteristics. One is the psychological frame of conceptualization, which Wallach uses broadly and freely, and the other frame of reference is the mystical system of explanations, a central source of that inspiration being the world of Kabbalah. In this essay, I will focus on states of consciousness in Wallach's poetry similar to that associated with a "dybbuk," and I will argue that such descriptions comprise an attempt to give meaning to a complex and non-defined identity—an attempt that expresses an alternative to psychological conceptualization and medical diagnosis, forming in its stead a different path to express those states of mind.