This is a fairly ambitious post. Here I attempt to show how the theory of neurosis developed by the early psychoanalyst Edmund Bergler, particularly his theory of…… Read more “Pseudo aggression, Contradiction, Ideology”
Category: Psychoanalysis
The Politics of Resentment with Samo Tomsic
I'm happy to announce that we have an upcoming keynote lecture by Samo Tomsic on "The Politics of Resentment" on December 3rd at 7 pm. You can… Read more "The Politics of Resentment with Samo Tomsic"
Announcing New Beyond the Pleasure Principle – Reading Series
This coming Thursday I will be starting a reading series on Freud's Beyond the Pleasure Principle (1920). I will host this series via Zoom on Thursday nights… Read more "Announcing New Beyond the Pleasure Principle – Reading Series"
The Subject Supposed to Rebel
I'm pleased to share an article I wrote based on a talk I offered to the Lacanian Forum of Washington, DC earlier this month. The editors at… Read more "The Subject Supposed to Rebel"
Upcoming Talk: On the Virtue of Modesty in Lacan
Lacan has remarked that modesty is the most important virtue. Lacan thinks modesty as an affect that keeps one’s desire or symptom protected behind a veil. Yet when the veil is lifted through the gaze of the other, the subject undergoes shame. Where there is shame, the extimate part of one’s being, precisely their desire is exposed to the other. Shame thus awakens the subject to being riveted to oneself, to a foreign self inside oneself.
Colloquium Workshop: “Islam and Psychoanalysis”
You can attend a workshop I’m pleased to offer on the topic of “Islam and Psychoanalysis” at Georgetown University. Here are the details and a link to…… Read more “Colloquium Workshop: “Islam and Psychoanalysis””
The Psychopolitics of the Oriental Father
Review of The Psychopolitics of the Oriental Father: Between Omnipotence and Emasculation by Bülent Somay
Identification in Lacanian Psychoanalysis – Audio Lecture
As part of the clinical Wednesday series with the DC Lacanian Forum, I gave my third presentation to the group, this time on the theme of identification.… Read more "Identification in Lacanian Psychoanalysis – Audio Lecture"
Community and Subjectivity in Contemporary Theory: Dissertation Abstract
Since I have been away from writing essays and blogs for some time, it might be of interest to readers that I share the abstract of my… Read more "Community and Subjectivity in Contemporary Theory: Dissertation Abstract"
The Veil in Islam: A Psychoanalytic Perspective
The political philosopher Charles Taylor made an excellent observation recently when he pointed out that in those instances when multiculturalism fails to in its effort to promote… Read more "The Veil in Islam: A Psychoanalytic Perspective"
Enjoying What We Don’t Have: Interview with Philosopher Todd McGowan
Film theorist and philosopher Todd McGowan recently spoke with me about his new book, Enjoying What We Don’t Have: The Political Project of Psychoanalysis. For however much… Read more "Enjoying What We Don’t Have: Interview with Philosopher Todd McGowan"
Millennial Narcissism as a Problem of Social Recognition
The Other, for Whitman was a wholly (holy) Other to oneself. To embrace this wholly Other other was the highest ethical act of self-love. While the faint torch of Whitman's gestalt love for the All is carried forward by obscurantist New Age spiritualists, millennials are certainly faced with the challenge of narcissism - but not as a choice they take onto themselves. Rather, millennial narcissism shows signs of revolt against a mode of subjectivity that is imposed upon them.
10 Things I’ve Learned from Psychoanalysis
In this post, I want to share my experience in psychoanalysis. Some things have been truly surprising. Concepts that were once elusive become apparent in a way… Read more "10 Things I’ve Learned from Psychoanalysis"
Two Paradigms of Islam and Psychoanalysis
In the literature on psychoanalysis and Islam there are two general paradigms of the subject. These two paradigms are primarily limited because they limit the question of… Read more "Two Paradigms of Islam and Psychoanalysis"
Chimney Sweeping
Aristotle argued that greatness is always rooted in an excessive melancholia. What he meant was that individuals who posses an extraordinary insight into their own self always… Read more "Chimney Sweeping"