Lacanian Psychoanalysis and American Literature: Metaphoric Truth, Imaginary Fiction, Letter Jouissance, and Nomination

By: Raul Moncayo

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Synopsis: Lacanian Psychoanalysis and American Literature considers the psychoanalytic applications of three classic works of nineteenth-century literature, applying Lacanian concepts throughout. Moncayo imports the dynamisms and texture of three English and American stories with the aim of developing psychoanalytic theory, rather than simply confirming or applying previously adopted psychoanalytic concepts and theory. The author begins with The Purloined Letter by Edgar Allan Poe, assessing the differences between Derrida and Lacan’s analysis of this famous story. The book then considers The Turn of the Screw by Henry James, using James’ text for an in-depth analysis of Lacan’s Seminar on the Logic of the Fantasy, and Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë, considering "passage à l'acte," and the objet a as the Wind and Heart of the Signifier. The authors use Lacan’s later theories to cast a new interpretative light on the stories, much as Lacan himself did with the work of James Joyce. Lacanian Psychoanalysis and American Literature will be of interest to academics and scholars of literary studies, psychoanalytic and Lacanian studies and Philosophy.