The Object Relation: The Seminar of Jacques Lacan, Book IV (Seminar of Jacques Lacan, 4)

'The unfulfilled and unsatisfied mother around whom the child ascends the upward slope of his narcissism is someone real. She is right there, and like all other unfulfilled creatures, she is in search of what she can devour, quaerens quem devoret . What the child once found as a means of quashing the symbolic unfulfilment is what he may possibly find across from him again as a wide-open maw [...] To be devoured is a grave danger that our fantasies reveal to us. We find it at the origin, and we find it again at this turn in the path where it yields us the essential form in which phobia presents. We find it again when we look at the fears of Little Hans [...] With the support of what I have shown you today, you will better see the relationships between phobia and perversion [...] I shall go so far as to say that you will interpret the case better than did Freud himself [...]' Extract from Chapter XI '[...] it's no accident that what has been perceived but dimly, yet perceived nevertheless, is that castration bears just as much relation to the mother as to the father. We can see in the description of the primordial situation how maternal castration implies for the child the possibility of devoration and biting. In relation to this anteriority of maternal castration, paternal castration is a substitute [...]' Extract from Chapter XXI '[In the case of little Hans] The initial transformation, which will prove decisive, is [...] the transformation of the biting into the unscrewing of the bathtub, which is something utterly different, in particular for the relationship between the protagonists. Voraciously to bite the mother, as an act or an apprehension of her altogether natural signification, indeed to dread in return the notorious biting that is incarnated by the horse, is something quite different from unscrewing, from ousting, the mother, and mobilising her in this business, bringing her into the system as a whole, for this first time as a mobile element and, by like token, an element that is equivalent to all the rest.' Extract from Chapter XXIII ‘the Unfulfilled And Unsatisfied Mother Around Whom The Child Ascends The Upward Slope Of His Narcissism Is Someone Real. She Is Right There, And Like All Other Unfulfilled Creatures, She Is In Search Of What She Can Devour, Quaerens Quem Devoret. What The Child Once Found As A Means Of Quashing The Symbolic Unfulfilment Is What He May Possibly Find Across From Him Again As A Wide-open Maw... To Be Devoured Is A Grave Danger That Our Fantasies Reveal To Us. We Find It At The Origin, And We Find It Again At This Turn In The Path Where It Yields Us The Essential Form In Which Phobia Presents. We Find It Again When We Look At The Fears Of Little Hans... With The Support Of What I Have Shown You Today, You Will Better See The Relationships Between Phobia And Perversion... I Will Go So Far As To Say That You Will Interpret The Case Better Than Did Freud Himself.’ Extract From Chapter Xi ‘it’s No Accident That What Has Been Perceived But Dimly, Yet Perceived Nevertheless, Is That Castration Bears Just As Much Relation To The Mother As To The Father. We Can See In The Description Of The Primordial Situation How Maternal Castration Implies For The Child The Possibility Of Devoration And Biting. In Relation To This Anteriority Of Maternal Castration, Paternal Castration Is A Substitute.’ Extract From Chapter Xxi ‘[in The Case Of Little Hans] The Initial Transformation, Which Will Prove Decisive, [is] The Transformation Of The Biting Into The Unscrewing Of The Bathtub, Which Is Something Utterly Different, In Particular For The Relationship Between The Protagonists. Voraciously To Bite The Mother, As An Act Or An Apprehension Of Her Altogether Natural Signification, Indeed To Dread In Return The Notorious Biting That Is Incarnated By The Horse, Is Something Quite Different From Unscrewing, From Ousting, The Mother, And Mobilising Her In This Business, Bringing Her Into The System As A Whole, For This First Time As A Mobile Element And, By Like Token, An Element That Is Equivalent To All The Rest.’ Extract From Chapter Xxiii I Introduction II The Three Forms of the Lack of Object III The Signifier and the Holy Spirit IV The Dialectic of Frustration V On Analysis as Bundling and the Consequences Thereof VI The Primacy of the Phallus and the Young Homosexual Woman VII A Child is Being Beaten and the Young Homosexual Woman VIII Dora and the Young Homosexual Woman IX The Function of the Veil X Identification with the Phallus XI The Phallus and the Unfulfilled Mother XII On the Oedipus Complex XIII On the Castration Complex XIV The Signifier in the Real XV What Myth is For VI Contents XVI How Myth is Analysed XVII The Signifier and Der Witz XVIII Circuits XIX Permutations XX Transformations XXI The Mother’s Drawers and the Father’s Shortcoming XXII An Essay in Rubber-Sheet Logic XXIII ‘Me donnera sans femme une progeniture' XXIV From Hans-the-Fetish to Leonardo-in-the-Mirror Often controversial, always inspired, French intellectual Jacques Lacan begins the twentieth year of his famous Seminar by weighing theories of the relationship between the desire for love and the attainment of knowledge from such influential and diverse thinkers as Aristotle, Marx, and Freud. From here he leads us through mathematics, philosophy, religion, and, naturally, psychoanalysis into an entirely new and unexpected way of interpreting the two most fundamental human drives. Anticipated by English-speaking readers for more than twenty years, this annotated translation presents Lacan's most sophisticated work on love, desire, and jouissance "An examination of phobia and fetishism by the greatest psychoanalyst since Freud"-- Provided by publisher