Taking full account of the clinical basis of Lacan's work, the dictionary details the historical and institutional background to Lacanian ideas. Each major concept is traced back to its origins in the work of Freud, Saussure, Hege and otbers. An Introductory Dictionary of Lacanian Psychoanalysis provides a unique source of reference for psychoanalysts in training and in practice. Placing Lacan's ideas in their clinical context, the dictionary is also an ideal companion for readers in other disciplines. He is a Lecturer in Psychoanalytic Studies at the University of Brunel and is in private practice in London.
Psychoanalytic theories are languages in which to discuss psychoanalytic treatment.
Today there are many such languages, each with its own particular lexis and syntax. The fact that these languages use many of the same terms, inherited from Freud, can create the impression that they are in fact all dialects of the same language. Such an impression is, however, misleading. Each psychoanalytic theory articulates these terms in a unique way, as well as introducing new terms of its own, and is thus a unique language, ultimately untranslatable. This dictionary is an attempt to explore and elucidate this language, which bas often been accused of being inflatingly, obscure and sometimes of constituting a totally incomprehensible 'psychotic' system.