Lacan reminds us that Freud’s contention that the germs of perversion inherent in all subjects remains one of the most important, if widely refuted discoveries of psychoanalysis. This paper aims to interrogate in more detail the oft-quoted phrase ‘neuroses are, so to say, the negative of perversions.’[1] An in-depth examination of the analytic perspective allows us to understand this statement more fully and to grasp how the development of sexuality relates to the emergence of a neurotic position.
Keywords: Freud; Neurosis; Perversion; Infantile Sexuality; Civilisation
[1] Freud, S. Three Essays on the Theory of Sexuality (1905) Standard Edition VII,
London, Hogarth Press, p. 165.
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Issue 71 now available
The latest issue of The Letter is now available as a both a print issue and as a pdf. Head to the shop to purchase your copy. (Full Access members will receive their issue in the post as part of their subscription.)
Dedicated to the memory of Charles Melman, issue 71 collects together in one volume the rich contribution made to The Letter by Charles Melman over the last 30 years. This issue also contains several articles by Charles Melman appearing in English translation for the first time.
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