Lacanian Antiphilosophy and the Problem of Anxiety: An Uncanny Little Object PDF
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Lacanian Antiphilosophy and the Problem of Anxiety This page intentionally left blank Lacanian Antiphilosophy and the Problem of Anxiety An Uncanny Little Object Brian Robertson LACANIAN ANTIPHILOSOPHY AND THE PROBLEM OF ANXIETY Copyright © Brian Robertson 2015 Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 2015 978-1-137-51352-6 All rights reserved. No reproduction, copy or transmission of this publication may be made without written permission. No portion of this publication may be reproduced, copied or transmitted save with written permission. In accordance with the provisions of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, or under the terms of any licence permitting limited copying issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency, Saffron House, 6-10 Kirby Street, London EC1N 8TS. Any person who does any unauthorized act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages. First published 2015 by PALGRAVE MACMILLAN The author has asserted his right to be identified as the author of this work in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. Palgrave Macmillan in the UK is an imprint of Macmillan Publishers Limited, registered in England, company number 785998, of Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire, RG21 6XS. Palgrave Macmillan in the US is a division of Nature America, Inc., One New York Plaza, Suite 4500, New York, NY 10004-1562. Palgrave Macmillan is the global academic imprint of the above companies and has companies and representatives throughout the world. E-PDF ISBN: 978-1-137-51353-3 ISBN 978-1-349-56478-1 ISBN 978-1-137-51353-3 (eBook) DOI: 10.1057/9781137513533 Distribution in the UK, Europe and the rest of the world is by Palgrave Macmillan®, a division of Macmillan Publishers Limited, registered in England, company number 785998, of Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 6XS. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Robertson, Brian, 1980– Lacanian antiphilosophy and the problem of anxiety : an uncanny little object / Brian Robertson. pages cm Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-1-349-56478-1 1. Lacan, Jacques, 1901–1981. 2. Psychoanalysis and philosophy. 3. Anxiety. I. Title. B2430.L1464R63 2015 150.19’5092—dc23 2015017985 A catalogue record for the book is available from the British Library. Dedicated to the city and university of Leuven, Belgium This page intentionally left blank Contents Acknowledgments ix Introduction: Have No Fear . . . 1 1 The Uncanny 15 2 Erotic Embarras and the Fetish Object 31 3 Anxiety in Sadism and Masochism 45 4 The Demonic Secret 71 5 Anxiety and Sexual Difference (I): Kierkegaard’s Embarrassing Question 103 6 Anxiety and Sexual Difference (II): Genital Love and Countertransference 137 7 Anxiety in Animals and Speaking Animals 161 8 Adding Two ‘New’ Objects to the List: The Gaze and the Voice 187 Concluding Remarks: ‘Understumbling’ Anxiety 211 Notes 215 Bibliography 227 Index 235 This page intentionally left blank Acknowledgments Without the support, guidance, and collaboration of a handful of people, the present study would not have been possible. First and foremost, I would like to thank Dr. Paul Moyaert of KU Leuven, Belgium, who first threw Lacan’s Anxiety Seminar my way. I am greatly indebted to his kind, insightful criti- cism and the sustained interest that he showed in my work. Had it not been for his support and animated encouragement, the present text, originally sub- mitted as a dissertation, would likely be quietly tucked away somewhere on the shelves of my alma mater’s philosophy library. My thanks also go out to Dr. Rudi Visker and Dr. Roland Breeur, both of KU Leuven, for the helpful criticism they offered me on the drafts of the text’s first chapters. I would also like to thank all of my colleagues and fellow students—in particular, Erica Harris, Kristyn Brown, and Andrew Pines—who showed up with me, week after week, year after year, in a tireless effort to work our way through Lacan’s Seminar together. It is unfortunately quite rare, in a seminar or philosophy reading-group setting, to come across students with such philosophical cour- age, curiosity, and intellectual honesty. In addition, great thanks are due to the overseas editorial support of my dear friend, Ian Van Den Noortgaete, without whose help my bibliography would have been filled with some pretty serious holes. Finally, I thank my wife, Mary Wieskirchen, for her tireless, moral support and for helping me work through the challenges and pitfalls of the writing process.
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