Psychoanalysis: Difference between revisions

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Psychology concerns itself with the state of mind and the structure of the personality of the individual in question, e.g. in literary criticism, the author. There have been 'proto-Freudian' psychological theories such as that of John Keble, who said that the overpowering emotion, ruling taste or feeling, the direct indulgence of the individual, when repressed leads to some sort of 'indirect expression' e.g. poetry (in literature). This repression is due to the overpowering sentiments of "reticence" (meaning unwillingness to do something or talk about something as a part of one being nervous or careful) and "shame" in an individual. The conflict between the need for expression, on one hand, and compulsion to repress such self-revelation, on the other, is resolved in the case where the poet's ability leads to a “healing relief to secret mental emotion, yet without detriment to modest reserve” by a literary “art which under certain veils and disguises ... reveals the fervent emotions of the mind.” For Keble this concealed mode of self-expression serves as “a safety valve, preserving men from madness.”<ref>John Keble, Lectures on Poetry 1832-1841</ref>
Psychology concerns itself with the state of mind and the structure of the personality of the individual in question, e.g. in literary criticism, the author. There have been 'proto-Freudian' psychological theories such as that of John Keble, who said that the overpowering emotion, ruling taste or feeling, the direct indulgence of the individual, when repressed leads to some sort of 'indirect expression' e.g. poetry (in literature). This repression is due to the overpowering sentiments of "reticence" (meaning unwillingness to do something or talk about something as a part of one being nervous or careful) and "shame" in an individual. The conflict between the need for expression, on one hand, and compulsion to repress such self-revelation, on the other, is resolved in the case where the poet's ability leads to a “healing relief to secret mental emotion, yet without detriment to modest reserve” by a literary “art which under certain veils and disguises ... reveals the fervent emotions of the mind.” For Keble this concealed mode of self-expression serves as “a safety valve, preserving men from madness.”<ref>John Keble, Lectures on Poetry 1832-1841</ref>


However, it was Sigmund Freud who laid the the concrete foundation of psychoanalysis, which became widespread since the inception of twentieth century. '''He developed a dynamic form of psychology that he called "psychoanalysis" which was a procedure for the analysis and therapy of mental conditions as neurosis.'''
However, it was [[Sigmund Freud]] who laid the the concrete foundation of psychoanalysis, which became widespread since the inception of twentieth century. '''He developed a dynamic form of psychology that he called "psychoanalysis" which was a procedure for the analysis and therapy of mental conditions as neurosis.'''


=== '''Freudian Psychoanalysis''' ===
=== '''Freudian Psychoanalysis''' ===
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=== '''Lacanian Psychoanalysis''' ===
=== '''Lacanian Psychoanalysis''' ===


French psychoanalyst Jacques Lacan developed a linguistic or more precisely, semiotic interpretation of Freud where he transformed the concepts central to psychoanalysis into the linguistic theory propounded by Saussure. Lacan's major contribution is his development of a system which emphasises the process of signification. He views the human mind as constituted by the language we use. <blockquote>Because Lacan's structure of psychoanalysis contains semiotics, it is important to learn the workings of semiology. In semiotics, the important part is the consideration of 'signs' as the 'conveyors of meaning', which extends beyond the limits of language. As per Ferdinand de Saussure, a 'sign' has two important parts viz. the 'signifier' and the 'signified'. The 'signifier' contains in it the elements composing the sign (which in semantics would be speech sound or written marks) while the 'signified' is the conceptual meaning of the sign. The 'signifier' and the 'signified' leads to 'signification' which is a French term for 'meaning' or 'significance'. The essence and the focus of semiotics is not in interpreting a particular instance of 'signification' but in establishing the 'general signifying system' that each particular instance relies upon.</blockquote>Lacan reformulated Freud's early stages of psychosexual development and 'Oedipus complex' which is a prelinguistic stage of development that Lacan calls 'imaginary' and the stage after the acquisition of language is called 'symbolic'. In the 'imaginary' stage there is no clear distinction between the subject (individual self) and the object (the other selves). The intervening between the two stages leads to what Lacan would call 'mirror' stage - it is the moment when an infant learns to develop a cognition of a separate self which is also an illusory autonomous subject as viewed by him/her, it happens first when a child begins to learn about his image, watching himself in the mirror and is later aggravated by the factors such as encounters from other people.  
French psychoanalyst [Jacques Lacan]] developed a linguistic or more precisely, semiotic interpretation of Freud where he transformed the concepts central to psychoanalysis into the linguistic theory propounded by [[Ferdinand de Saussure]]. Lacan's major contribution is his development of a system which emphasises the process of signification. He views the human mind as constituted by the language we use. <blockquote>Because Lacan's structure of psychoanalysis contains semiotics, it is important to learn the workings of semiology. In semiotics, the important part is the consideration of 'signs' as the 'conveyors of meaning', which extends beyond the limits of language. As per Saussure, a 'sign' has two important parts viz. the 'signifier' and the 'signified'. The 'signifier' contains in it the elements composing the sign (which in semantics would be speech sound or written marks) while the 'signified' is the conceptual meaning of the sign. The 'signifier' and the 'signified' leads to 'signification' which is a French term for 'meaning' or 'significance'. The essence and the focus of semiotics is not in interpreting a particular instance of 'signification' but in establishing the 'general signifying system' that each particular instance relies upon.</blockquote>Lacan reformulated Freud's early stages of psychosexual development and 'Oedipus complex' which is a prelinguistic stage of development that Lacan calls 'imaginary' and the stage after the acquisition of language is called 'symbolic'. In the 'imaginary' stage there is no clear distinction between the subject (individual self) and the object (the other selves). The intervening between the two stages leads to what Lacan would call 'mirror' stage - it is the moment when an infant learns to develop a cognition of a separate self which is also an illusory autonomous subject as viewed by him/her, it happens first when a child begins to learn about his image, watching himself in the mirror and is later aggravated by the factors such as encounters from other people.  


Now, when the infant subject enters the 'symbolic' or 'linguistic' stage, it assimilates the linguistic differences which are discussed above; the infant subject is constituted by the 'symbolic' and it learns to accept its predetermined "position" in linguistic oppositions such as 'male/female', 'father/son', 'mother/daughter'. This symbolic realm of language is also the realm of the law of the father. Here, the "phallus" (symbolically used for male privilege and authority) is the "privileged signifier" that establishes the mode or the chain of all the other signifiers. It can also be defined as the nodal points in a 'symbolic order' with the "master signifier"– where the 'master signifier' is the "signifier of [...] signification as such", as Haz describes it.<ref>https://youtu.be/w6g_dyS7Aw4?si=x5CJe6POG1LRMJLv&t=306</ref>
Now, when the infant subject enters the 'symbolic' or 'linguistic' stage, it assimilates the linguistic differences which are discussed above; the infant subject is constituted by the 'symbolic' and it learns to accept its predetermined "position" in linguistic oppositions such as 'male/female', 'father/son', 'mother/daughter'. This symbolic realm of language is also the realm of the law of the father. Here, the "phallus" (symbolically used for male privilege and authority) is the "privileged signifier" that establishes the mode or the chain of all the other signifiers. It can also be defined as the nodal points in a 'symbolic order' with the "master signifier"– where the 'master signifier' is the "signifier of [...] signification as such", as Haz describes it.<ref>https://youtu.be/w6g_dyS7Aw4?si=x5CJe6POG1LRMJLv&t=306</ref>
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The embrace of the 'name-of-the-father', the 'master signifier', is important to understand Infrared's stance on being patriotic and Infrared's understanding and criticism of the American left, who, in foreclosing the 'name-of-the-father', have taken for granted to have a concrete and firm basis of politics.<ref>https://youtu.be/w6g_dyS7Aw4?si=olgCwtyd9gOen5x7</ref><ref>https://youtu.be/w6g_dyS7Aw4?si=PNbYxI3UAhhdW1X2</ref><ref>https://youtu.be/37FaKGqGsb0?si=GvouTU6jqWsmEtVk</ref><ref>https://youtu.be/tRcWVFmRwzI?si=80Vvse-gMC_2XI05</ref>
The embrace of the 'name-of-the-father', the 'master signifier', is important to understand Infrared's stance on being patriotic and Infrared's understanding and criticism of the American left, who, in foreclosing the 'name-of-the-father', have taken for granted to have a concrete and firm basis of politics.<ref>https://youtu.be/w6g_dyS7Aw4?si=olgCwtyd9gOen5x7</ref><ref>https://youtu.be/w6g_dyS7Aw4?si=PNbYxI3UAhhdW1X2</ref><ref>https://youtu.be/37FaKGqGsb0?si=GvouTU6jqWsmEtVk</ref><ref>https://youtu.be/tRcWVFmRwzI?si=80Vvse-gMC_2XI05</ref>


Psychoanalysis is important to understand Infrared's stances in politics and the theoretical canon which has been put forward by this media collective over the years. Also, it is important for understanding Continental thinkers of twentieth century and contemporary thinkers like Slavoj Žižek who have a profound influence on the development of Infrared thought.<ref>https://www.youtube.com/live/j6crW80iPv4?si=n7MWfrSZRKR0G8ta</ref><ref>https://www.youtube.com/live/sysTJu0ECOo?si=PhwaNGmsf08NGEia</ref>
Psychoanalysis is important to understand Infrared's stances in politics and the theoretical canon which has been put forward by this media collective over the years. Also, it is important for understanding [[Continental thinkers]] of twentieth century and contemporary thinkers like [[Slavoj Žižek]] who have a profound influence on the development of Infrared thought.<ref>https://www.youtube.com/live/j6crW80iPv4?si=n7MWfrSZRKR0G8ta</ref><ref>https://www.youtube.com/live/sysTJu0ECOo?si=PhwaNGmsf08NGEia</ref>


=== References and For Further Research ===
=== References and For Further Research ===
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