Abstract
The present contribution aims to discuss the function that the notion of trait acquires in the psychoanalytic discourse, at first in Freud and then in Lacan. This notion looks pivotal for a psychoanalytic theory on the subject of the unconscious. At the same time, its articulation displays a remarkable originality that can contribute to philosophical reflections on the topic of cultural traits.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.
Buying options
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Learn about institutional subscriptionsNotes
- 1.
The possibility to deduce an ontology from a psychoanalytic approach, and especially from Lacan – who was probably the most inclined to open a dialogue with philosophy – is highly problematic. This project was addressed by Jacques-Alain Miller himself in his latest seminars, well aware of Lacan’s fundamental lesson according to which “The gap of the unconscious may be said to be pre-ontological […] it is neither being, nor non-being, but the unrealized” (Lacan 1978: 29–30).
- 2.
Connection: Section 10.3 postulates that traits, to be cultural, must be unconscious, meaning not planned and repeated out of control.
- 3.
References
Derrida, J. (1978). Writing and difference. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Derrida, J. (1997). Of grammatology. Baltimore: John Hopkins University Press.
Derrida, J. (2006). L’animal que donc je suis. Paris: Galilée.
Derrida, J. (2008). N. 5 of “Pension Victoria”. By V. Wardel (Ed.). 28 Nov 2008. Paris.
Derrida, J., & Malabou, C. (2004). Counterpath. Traveling with Jacques Derrida. Stanford: Stanford University Press.
Freud, S. (1956–1974). Freud – complete works. Electronic version of the standard edition of the complete psychological works of Sigmund Freud (translated by James Strachey in collaboration with Anna Freud, assisted by Alix Strachey and Alan Tyson). London: Hogarth Press.
Lacan, J. (1978). The seminar of Jacques Lacan. Book XI. The four fundamental concepts of psychoanalysis 1964. New York/London: W. W. Norton & Co.
Lacan, J. (1992a). The seminar of Jacques Lacan, Book VII. The ethics of psychoanalysis 1959–1960. New York: W.W. Norton & Co.
Lacan, J. (1992b). La troisième. In Lettres de l’Ecole freudienne, 16(1975), 177–203; It. tr. In La Psicoanalisi, 12(1992), 11–38.
Lacan, J. (2001). Le Séminaire. Livre VIII. Le transfert, 1960–1961. Paris: Seuil.
Lacan, J. (2004). Le Séminaire. Livre X. L’angoisse 1962–1963. Paris: Seuil.
Lacan, J. (2006). The freudian thing. In J. Lacan (Ed.), Écrits (translated by Bruce Fink in collaboration with Héloïse Fink and Russell Grigg) (pp. 334–363). New York/London: W.W. Norton & Co.
Mann, T. (1999). Doctor Faustus. The life of the German composer Adrian Leverkün as told by a friend. (Eng. trans: Woods, J. E.). New York: Vintage.
Acknowledgements
Italian to English translation by Pietro Bianchi.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2016 Springer International Publishing Switzerland
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Bonazzi, M. (2016). The Unary Trait of Psychoanalysis. Identification, Transmission, Generation. In: Panebianco, F., Serrelli, E. (eds) Understanding Cultural Traits. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-24349-8_6
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-24349-8_6
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-24347-4
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-24349-8
eBook Packages: Social SciencesSocial Sciences (R0)