22 research outputs found
Film Theory after Copjec
The importation of Lacanian psychoanalysis into film theory in the 1970s and 1980s ushered in a new era of cinema scholarship and criticism. Figures including Raymond Bellour, Laura Mulvey, and Christian Metz are often considered the pioneers of applying Lacanian psychoanalysis in the context of film theory, most notably through their writings in Screen Journal. However, where French and British scholarship on Lacan and film reached its limits, American Lacanianism flourished. When Joan Copjecâs now classic essay âThe Orthopsychic Subject: Film Theory and the Reception of Lacanâ was published in 1989, the trajectory of Lacanian film theory would become radically altered; as Todd McGowan recently put it, the âbutchered operationâ on Lacan committed by Mulvey and (quoting Copjec) the âFoucaultianizationâ of Lacan under the auspices of Screen Journal were finally indicted in one gesture through Copjecâs critique. Copjec and McGowanâs unique American view of Lacan marks a pivotal point in the convergence of psychoanalytic theory and cinema studies; by seeking to wrest Lacan from historist/deconstructionist theories of the subject, and by revisiting Lacan beyond the mirror stage, Copjec and McGowan can be said to have instantiated a resuscitation or even a renaissance of Lacanian theory in film studies in particular and in American scholarship more generally. In this essay, this renaissance of Lacanian theory is examined, focusing on the innovations these two American thinkers brought to psychoanalytic film theory and the multiple paths carved out into other disciplines that followed. First, a detailed summation of the contentions between screen theory and Copjecâs position is introduced, as well as McGowanâs assessment thereof. Then, the trajectory of psychoanalytic film theory after Copjecâs arrival is the focus, including the major innovations in her thought from cinematic subjectivity to sexual difference (most notably from Read My Desire) and the way her position spread to philosophy and ontology. Finally, the article identifies the limitations of Copjecâs and McGowanâs thought and seeks new possibilities through which we may continue to apply psychoanalysis to the cinema in the wake of these two important thinkers.
Lâimportation de la psychanalyse lacanienne dans la thĂ©orie du film au cours des annĂ©es 1970 et 1980 a apportĂ© une nouvelle Ăšre de recherche et de critique cinĂ©matographiques. Des figures comme Raymond Bellour, Laura Mulvey et Christian Metz sont souvent considĂ©rĂ©es comme Ă©tant les pionniers dans lâapplication de la psychanalyse lacanienne au contexte de la thĂ©orie du film, surtout dans leurs Ă©crits pour le Screen Journal. Par contre, lĂ oĂč les recherches françaises et britanniques sur Lacan et la cinĂ©matographie ont atteint leurs limites, le lacanisme amĂ©ricain a prospĂ©rĂ©. La publication en 1989 de « The Orthopsychic Subject: Film Theory and the Reception of Lacan », lâessai classique de Joan Copjec, a complĂštement changĂ© la trajectoire de la thĂ©orie lacanienne du film; comme Todd McGowan lâa rĂ©cemment exprimĂ©, « lâopĂ©ration massacrĂ©e » commise sur Lacan par Mulvey et (citant Copjec) la « Foucaultisation » de Lacan sous les auspices de Screen Journal avaient finalement Ă©tĂ© accusĂ©es dâun seul coup par la critique de Copjec. Le point de vue uniquement amĂ©ricain de Copjec et de McGowan sur Lacan marque un tournant dans la convergence de la thĂ©orie psychanalytique et des Ă©tudes cinĂ©matographiques. En cherchant Ă arracher Lacan des thĂ©ories historicistes/dĂ©constructivistes du sujet, et en revisitant Lacan au-delĂ du stade du miroir, Copjec et McGowan ont instanciĂ© une ressuscitation, voire une renaissance, de la thĂ©orie lacanienne dans les Ă©tudes cinĂ©matographiques en particulier et dans les Ă©tudes amĂ©ricaines en gĂ©nĂ©ral. Dans cet article, cette renaissance de la thĂ©orie lacanienne est examinĂ©e, mettant lâaccent sur les innovations que ces deux penseurs amĂ©ricains ont apportĂ©es Ă la thĂ©orie psychanalytique du film et les multiples chemins tracĂ©s dans dâautres disciplines subsĂ©quentes. PremiĂšrement, un rĂ©sumĂ© dĂ©taillĂ© des diffĂ©rends entre la thĂ©orie du film et la position de Copjec est prĂ©sentĂ©, ainsi que lâĂ©valuation de McGowan Ă ce sujet. Puis, la trajectoire de la thĂ©orie psychanalytique du film aprĂšs lâarrivĂ©e de Copjec est mise de lâavant, notamment les innovations importantes de sa pensĂ©e de la subjectivitĂ© Ă la diffĂ©rence sexuelle (particuliĂšrement dans Read My Desire) et la maniĂšre dont sa position sâest propagĂ©e dans la philosophie et lâontologie. Finalement, lâarticle identifie les limites de la pensĂ©e de Copjec et de McGowan et cherche de nouvelles possibilitĂ©s Ă travers lesquelles nous pourrions continuer dâappliquer la psychanalyse au cinĂ©ma aprĂšs ces deux grands penseurs
Derrida's 'The Purveyor of Truth' and constitutional reading
In this article the author explores Jacques Derridaâs reading in âThe Purveyor of Truthâ of Edgar Allan Poeâs âThe Purloined Letterâ. In his essay, Derrida proposes a reading which differs markedly from the interpretation proposed by Lacan in his Seminar on âThe Purloined Letterâ. To appreciate Derridaâs reading, which is not hermeneutic-semantic in nature like that of Lacan, it is necessary to look at the relation of Derridaâs essay to his other texts on psychoanalysis, more specifically insofar as the Freudian death drive is concerned. The present article explores this ânotionâ as elaborated on by Freud in Beyond the Pleasure Principle as well as Derridaâs reading of this text. It also investigates the importance of the ânotionâ of the death drive as well as the significance of Derridaâs reading of The Purloined Letter for constitutional interpretation
Developing images of self: childhood, youth and family photographs in works by three South African women artists
In 1996, South African artist Bridget Baker (b. 1971), completed So It Goes (Fig. 1), a work comprising four Vicks Vapour Rub containers which each feature the same photograph. A representation of the artist being taught to swim by her father, who died when she was a child, this is the only shot she possesses that shows them together. The photograph is overlaid with progressively increased amounts of the Vapour Rub until, in the last of the four tins, the image is almost entirely obliterated