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Blog Archive Monday, 7 August 2017 About Me

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► 2021 (9) The Insistence of the Letter in the Unconscious-- drsreekumarenglishliter
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The Insistence
of the Summary of the essay in two parts Tension in Poetry by Allen
Letter in Tate--Theory
the Tension in Poetry Allen Tate
Unconscio Lecture notes by S.
us--J... Part I Sreekumar Allen Tate was a
The Insistence poet, teacher, novelist, and a
of the leading expo...
Letter in
the A General Assessment of Lacan THE LANGUAGE OF
PARADOX---Cleanth Brooks
Unconscio
us--J... THE LANGUAGE OF
PARADOX Cleanth Brooks
► July (1) [ It is hoped that this introduction will provide Lecture Notes by Dr. S.
Sreekumar [This is an attempt
► May (1) an overview of the main ideas propounded by to analyze Cleanth Brook...
► April (7) Lacan] FEMINIST CRITICISM IN
► March (3) THE WILDERNESS--Elaine
Study materials for research scholars of Indian Universities. Showalter--Criticism &
► February (2) Dr. S. Sreekumar Theory
► January (9) Elaine Showalter FEMINIST
CRITICISM IN THE
WILDERNESS [lecture notes
► 2016 (65) JACQUES LACAN (1901 – 81) by Dr. S. Sree Kumar]
Contemporary fem...
Introduction THE FOUR KINDS OF
Search This Blog MEANING—I A
RICHARDS
Lacan is the most important psychoanalyst THE FOUR KINDS OF
Search MEANING—I A
since Freud. Lacan’s works have changed the RICHARDS A revised
discipline both as a theory of the mind and version, (11th Feb 2021).
S.Sreekumar The following
as clinical practice so much so that over is an attempt t...

50 % of the world’s analysts now employ FREUD AND

LITERATURE--Lionel
Lacanian methods. Trilling
FREUD AND LITERATURE
Lionel Trilling S. Sreekumar
Trilling was an American
literary critic and teacher who
brought psychological, ...

Literary Studies in an Age

of Environmental Crisis
Cheryll Glotfelty--
Ecocriticism
Literary Studies in an Age of
Environmental Crisis Cheryll
Glotfelty An avid reader,
nature lover, and concerned
planetary citiz...

THE DECONSTRUCTIVE
ANGEL--M.H.ABRAMS
 THE
DECONST
RUCTIVE
ANGEL
Lacan’s thoughts now pervades the M.H.ABRA
MS Critical
summary by Dr. S.
disciplines of literary and film studies, Sreekumar for students of
women’s studies and social theory and is Indian Universities [The
PAPER is close...
applied in diverse fields such as CRITICISM, Inc. JOHN
education, legal studies and international CROWE RANSOM
CRITICISM, Inc . JOHN
relations. CROWE RANSOM
(Lecture notes by Dr S.
Sreekumar) (Revised )
Lacan’s significant contributions to Introduction J. C. Ransom
(1888 –1974), on...
Psychoanalysis
[Tripartite model] Technique as
Discovery---
- Mark
Lacan’s most significant contribution to Schorer
Technique as
psychoanalysis is his Tripartite model of Discovery--
Criticism & Theory Dr. S.
the human psyche:- Sree Kumar Mark Schorer
believes that technique is the
means by which the wr...
1. The Imaginary [the mirror stage]
2. The Symbolic Order CRISIS IN ORIENTALISM--
Edward Said
3. The final order is the Real. CRISIS IN ORIENTALISM
Edward Said [ Lecture notes
by S. Sreekumar for PG
1. The Imaginary [The Mirror stage] students] Edward Said—A
Biographical Note Edward
Said ...

From birth to around 6 months we live in a

world of wishes, images, united with the
mother. Our self image is in flux because
we do not yet differentiate. Between the
age of 6 to 18 months we enter a
transitional stage, the mirror stage. We
literally or metaphorically begin to see
ourselves in the mirror, as a
differentiated being. We recognize the
separation of objects from ourselves,
leading to a feeling of lack (lost
harmony). As we pass through the Imaginary
order we long for the Mother, as a
representation of total unity and
wholeness.
2. The Symbolic Order

The Symbolic Order is the next phase in our

development. We are conscious of
separation, of difference. Males vs
females. Right vs. wrong. We learn
language. Really, language masters us,
shapes us as individuals. The father figure
dominates in this phase. He represents the
rules, the laws, norms. The symbolic
represents a further remove from the
mother.

3. The Real

The final order is the Real. It includes

the physical world; it includes everything
the person is not. In the Real Order we are
conscious of our perennial lack.

Differences between Lacan and Freud

1. Lacan was concerned to distinguish the

ego from the subject and to elaborate a
conception of subjectivity as divided or
‘alienated’. In Freud the ‘Ego’ is often
associated with consciousness. But Lacan
felt that this was a mistake. He felt that
the subjectivity is essentially divided.

2. The unconscious is structured like a

language. Freud viewed the unconscious as
chaotic. Lacan felt that it was not so. On
the other hand the unconscious is ordered
and is structured like a language.

Lacan—a brief biography

Jacques Lacan (1901 – 81 )

Full name: JACQUES MARIE ÉMILE LACAN.
Lacan earned a medical degree in 1932 and
was a practicing psychiatrist and
psychoanalyst in Paris for much of his
career. He reached prominence only after he
began conducting regular seminars at the
University of Paris in 1953. He acquired
celebrity status in France after the
publication of his essays and lectures in
Écrits (1966). The book established his
reputation as an original interpreter of
Freud's work.

Later in 1964, Lacan founded and headed an

organization called the Freudian School of
Paris. However, he was not satisfied with
its functioning. Finally, he disbanded the
school in 1980 for its failure to adhere
‘with sufficient strictness’ to Freudian
principles.

Lacan—A Critical Estimate

Achievements

1. Lacan emphasized the primacy of language

as the mirror of the unconscious mind. He
introduced the study of language into
psychoanalytic theory. His major
achievement was his reinterpretation of
Freud's work in terms of structural
linguistics.

2. The influence he gained extended well

beyond the field of psychoanalysis to make
him one of the dominant figures in French
cultural life during the 1970s.
3. In his own psychoanalytic practice,
Lacan was known for his unorthodox, and
even eccentric therapeutic methods.

Adverse Critical Opinions

To say that Lacan is a controversial figure

is an understatement. He was a charismatic
teacher, flamboyant, charming and something
of a dandy [a man who cares a lot about his
clothes and appearance]. He was also
extremely ambitious, arrogant and
authoritarian.

Raymond Tallis writes thus in Times Higher

Education Supplement:

“Future historians trying to account for

the institutionalized fraud that goes under
the name of ‘theory’ will surely accord a
central place to the influence of the
French psychoanalyst Jacques Lacan. He is
one of the fattest spiders at the heart of