Narrating the Ancient Egyptian Glory: Psychological ‎Immunity of Selected Royal Female Pharaohs as Depicted in ‎Pauline Gedge’s Child of the Morning and Michelle Moran’s ‎Nefertiti, an Interdisciplinary Study

The increasing complexity of life and the biological disposition of humankind to seek happiness and avoid pain have attracted the attention of scholars to the significance of the Psychological Immune System. As the Biological Immune System defends the body against attacks by viruses or diseases, the Psychological Immune System serves a similar defensive function, allowing the individuals to overcome challenges and stressors, thereby preserving their sense of well-being. Remarkably, most studies conducted on Psychological Immunity belong to medicinal or psychopathological domains. Thus, this study aims to apply Attila Oláh’s theory of Psychological Immunity to some prominent royal female pharaohs, namely Hatshepsut and Nefertiti. Oláh structured his psychological theory and designed a related psychometric tool, the Psychological Immune Competence Inventory, to measure the strength of individuals’ Psychological Immune Competence System and adaptive capacities. Accordingly, Oláh’s multidimensional model is adopted in this study to measure the psychological competencies of the selected royal female models and to examine the strength of their psychological immunity while fulfilling their royal duties. Two historical novels were selected: Child of the Morning (2010) by Pauline Gedge and  Nefertiti: A Novel (2007) by Michelle Moran. Adopting the interdisciplinary approach, the study concluded that not all characters possess the same psychological competencies included in Oláh’s psychological model. The study also elucidated the impact of the environment on the psychological immunity of the selected female models. This interdisciplinary study combines the magic of the Pharaonic history and  literary creativity through a critical psychological framework.