In this Book
Fordham University Press
- The Singularity of Being: Lacan and the Immortal Within
- Book
- 2012
- Published by: Fordham University Press
- Series: Psychoanalytic Interventions
summary
The Singularity of Being presents a Lacanian vision of what makes each of us an inimitable and irreplaceable creature. It argues that, unlike the "subject" (who comes into existence as a result of symbolic prohibition) or the "person" (who is aligned with the narcissistic conceits of the imaginary), the singular self emerges in response to a galvanizing directive arising from the real. This directive carries the force of an obligation that cannot be resisted and that summons the individual to a "character" beyond his or her social investments. Consequently, singularity expresses something about the individual's non-negotiable distinctiveness, eccentricity, or idiosyncrasy at the same time it prevents both symbolic and imaginary closure. It opens to layers of rebelliousness, indicating that there are components of human life exceeding the realm of normative sociality.Written with an unusual blend of rigor and clarity, The Singularity of Being combines incisive readings of Lacan with the best insights of recent Lacanian theory to reach beyond the dogmas of the field. Moving from what, thanks in part to Slavoj Zizek, has come to be known as the "ethics of the act" to a nuanced interpretation of Lacan's "ethics of sublimation," the book offers a sweeping overview of Lacan's thought while making an original contribution to contemporary theory and ethics. Aimed at specialists and nonspecialists alike, the book manages to educate at the same time as it intervenes in current debates about subjectivity, agency, resistance, creativity, the self-other relationship, and effective political and ethical action. By focusing on the Lacanian real, Ruti honors the uniqueness of subjective experience without losing sight of the social and intersubjective components of human life.
Table of Contents
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- Title Page, Copyright
- pp. 1-6
- Author’s Note
- pp. ix-12
- Introduction
- pp. 1-9
- Part I: The Call of the Immortal
- pp. 11-24
- 1. The Singularity of Being
- pp. 13-35
- 2. The Rewriting of Destiny
- pp. 36-58
- 3. The Ethics of the Act
- pp. 59-82
- 4. The Possibility of the Impossible
- pp. 83-101
- Part II: The Echo of the Thing
- pp. 103-116
- 5. The Jouissance of the Signifier
- pp. 105-126
- 6. The Dignity of the Thing
- pp. 127-147
- 7. The Ethics of Sublimation
- pp. 148-167
- 8. The Sublimity of Love
- pp. 168-188
- Conclusion: The Other as Face
- pp. 189-215
- Works Cited
- pp. 245-247
Additional Information
ISBN
9780823253630
Related ISBN(s)
9780823243143
MARC Record
OCLC
867784825
Pages
272
Launched on MUSE
2013-05-20
Language
English
Open Access
No