The Psychology Book (39 page)

122

THE UNCONSCIOUS

IS THE DISCOURSE

OF THE OTHER

JACQUES LACAN (1901–1981)

IN CONTEXT

The Other
is everything that

APPROACH

lies beyond the boundaries

P
sychoanalysts explain the

unconscious as the place

where all the memories that

we wish to push aside are stored,

Psychoanalysis

of ourselves.

and cannot be retrieved consciously.

BEFORE

The unconscious sometimes speaks

to the conscious self in limited

1807
German philosopher

ways: Carl Jung believed that the

Georg Hegel states that

unconscious presents itself to

consciousness of self depends

We
define and redefine

the waking self through dreams,

on the presence of the Other.

ourselves
through the

symbols, and in the language of

1818
German philosopher

existence of the Other.

archetypes, while Freud saw it

Arthur Schopenhauer claims

as expressing itself through

that there can be no object

motivational behavior and

without a subject to observe it,

accidental “slips of the tongue.”

and that perception of the

The one thing that the various

object is limited by personal

psychoanalytical schools do agree

We understand the world

vision and experience.

on is that the unconscious holds

through the
language

a bigger picture than that retained

1890
William James in

(discourse) of the Other.

by the conscious self. For French

The Principles of Psychology

psychiatrist Jacques Lacan,

distinguishes between the self

however, the language of the

as the knower, or “I,” and the

unconscious is not that of the

self as the known, or “me.”

self, but of the “Other.”

We also use that language for

AFTER

our innermost
thoughts
.

A sense of self

1943
French philosopher

We easily take for granted the

Jean-Paul Sartre states that

notion of the self—that each of us

our perception of the world

exists as a separate, individual

around us, or the Other, alters

being, who views the world through

when another person appears;

The unconscious

our own eyes, is familiar with the

we absorb his or her concept

is the discourse of

boundaries that separate us from

of the Other into our own.

the Other.

others and from the world around

us, and assumes a separateness

PSYCHOTHERAPY 123

See also:
William James 38–45 ■ Sigmund Freud 92–99 ■ Carl Jung 102–07 ■ Donald Hebb 163

of determining that as individuals

we are distinct from the world all

around us is our ability to recognize

the separateness of ourselves from

our environment, or from the Other,

which allows us to become the

The I is always

subject “I.” Lacan therefore

in the field of the Other.

concluded that each of us is a

Jacques Lacan

“self” only because we have a

concept of the Other.

For Lacan, the Other is the

absolute otherness that lies beyond

the self; it is the environment into

which we are born, and which we

Our sense of self
is shaped by our

have to “translate” or make sense

We are only able to think or to

awareness of the “Other,” or the world

of, in order to survive and thrive.

express our ideas and emotions

outside ourselves. However, Lacan

An infant must learn to assemble

through language, and the only

stated, it is the language of the Other

sensations into concepts and

language we have, according to

that forms our deepest thoughts.

categories in order to function in

Lacan, is that of the Other. The

the world, and he or she does this

sensations and images that

in thinking and in the way we

through gradually acquiring an

translate into the thoughts of

interact with our environment.

awareness and understanding

our unconscious must therefore be

But what if there was nothing out

of a series of signifiers—signs or

constructed from this language of

there that we could recognize as

codes. But these signifiers can

the Other, or, as Lacan stated, “the

being separate from ourselves?

only come to us from the external

unconscious is the discourse of

We would then be unable to

world that lies beyond the self,

the Other.” This idea has had a

conceptualize our sense of self,

therefore they must have been

wide influence on the practice of

because there would be no

formed from the language—or

psychoanalysis, leading to a more

delineated being to think

what Lacan prefers to call the

objective and open interpretation

about. The only way we have

“discourse”—of the Other.

of the unconscious. ■

Jacques Lacan

Jacques Marie Émile Lacan was

Lacan’s writings extend into

born in Paris, where he was

philosophy, art, literature, and

educated at the Collège Stanlias.

linguistics, and he gave weekly

He went on to study medicine,

seminars that were attended by

specializing in psychiatry. Lacan

eminent thinkers such as Roland

remained in occupied Paris during

Barthes and Claude Lévi-Strauss.

World War II, working at the

A keen Freudian, Lacan formed

Val-de-Grâce military hospital.

the École Freudienne de Paris in

After the war, psychoanalysis

1963, and the École de la Cause

became the key tool in Lacan’s

Freudienne in 1981.

work. However, he was expelled by

the International Psychoanalytical

Key works

Association in 1953, after an

argument over his “deviant” use

1966
Écrits

of shorter length therapy sessions.

1968
The Language of the Self

Lacan then set up La Société

1954–80
The Seminars

Française de Psychanalytique.

(27 volumes)

MAN’S MAIN TASK

IS TO GIVE

BIRTH

TO

ERICH H

FROMM ( I

190M

0–19 S

80) ELF

126 ERICH FROMM

of this separation and think about

IN CONTEXT

our isolation. Man, gifted with

reason, is life being aware of itself.

APPROACH

T
he ability to find meaning

in our lives is the defining

characteristic of humankind.

According to the German-American

Fromm suggests that our

Humanistic psychoanalysis

psychoanalyst Erich Fromm, it also

separation from nature originated

BEFORE

determines whether we follow a

with the growth of intellect,

path of joy and fulfilment or tread

1258–61
The Sufi mystic

which has made us aware of our

a road of dissatisfaction and strife.

Rumi says that the longing

separateness. It is our ability to

Fromm believed that although life

of the human soul comes from

reason and relate that lets us

is inherently painful, we can make

separation from its source.

transcend nature. It provides the

it bearable by giving it meaning,

capabilities for productive living and

1950s
Rollo May says that

through pursuing and constructing

affords us intellectual superiority,

the “true religion” consists of

an authentic self. The ultimate

but it also makes us realize that

facing life’s challenges with

aim of a human life is to develop

we exist alone in this world.

purpose and meaning, through

what Fromm described as “the

Reason makes us aware of our own

accepting responsibility

most precious quality man is

mortality and the mortality of our

and making choices.

endowed with—the love of life.”

Life is inherently fraught with

AFTER

emotional frustration, according to

1950
Karen Horney says

Fromm, because man lives in a

that the neurotic self is split

state of struggle. He is constantly

between an idealized and

trying to balance his individual

a real self.

nature—his existence as a separate

It seems that nothing is

being—with his need for

more difficult for the average

1960s
Abraham Maslow

connection. There is a part of man’s

man to bear than the feeling of

defines creativity and thinking

inherent self that only knows how

not being identified

of others as characteristics of

to exist in a united state with

with a larger group.

self-actualized people.

others; it lives at one with nature

Erich Fromm

1970s
Fritz Perls says that we

and at one with other people. Yet

must find ourselves in order to

we see ourselves as separated from

achieve self-actualization.