The aim of this paper is to offer an explanation of masochism in political behavior using the concepts developed by the French psychoanalyst Jacques Lacan. For the purposes of this paper, masochism in political behavior is defi ned as any political behavior in which the protagonists willingly pursue self-directed pain and suffering in order to accomplish their political goals. It involves the self-chosen endangerment of one's life and liberty and thus includes a whole range of contemporary behaviors, from hunger strikes and suicide bombers to the old "escape from freedom" phenomena now on the rise even in the established democracies. Lacan's basic thesis is that masochistic behavior is an effort on the part of the subject to establish law-giving structures where there were none before. In other words, the masochist's sacrifi ce is a provocative attempt to carve out an autonomous space in the political environment whose structure does not allow it. This is why the masochist's "victories" will by necessity be temporary and will require constant repetition. Lasting changes in political structures necessitate other types of behavior. In order to provide evidence for this thesis, I will present two detailed case studies. One will explore the issue of masochism in the Russian political culture based on the studies by Daniel Rancour-Laferriere. The second case study will be based on my own research and fi rst-hand experiences as an active participant in the political life of Montenegro.
Filip Kovacevic is a professor at the University of Montenegro.
No abstract
How should one live in order to live well? What are the defining characteristics of the good life? These questions - the perennial concern of classical scholars - have in the last 25 years become the subject of debates in contemporary social and political theory as well. Foucault (1986), Taylor (1989), Kekes (1995), Cottingham (1998) and Nehamas (1998) have all stressed the importance of the “art of living” or “caring for the self” in light of contemporary political and economic developments. This article, as my contribution to the debate, offers the analysis of two models of the “good life”: the one as presented by Plato and embodied in the literary character of Socrates, and the other as presented by Nikos Kazantzakis and embodied in the literary figure of Zorba. In general terms, Socrates advocates the rule of reason and the denigration and submission of the bodily Eros, while Zorba remains suspicious of the mind - “a careful little shopkeeper” - and stresses the significance of bodily experiences as ways of linking oneself with the rest of the universe. Hence in the article I formulate an ethic of sensual Eros by focusing on Zorba’s way of life and contrast it to the Socratic ethics. I conclude that the concern and respect for the body, for the house in which Eros dwells, is the necessary a priori for the living of the good life. This way of life is not one that rejects reason altogether, but what it does reject is the desire of reason to monopolize the individual’s life processes
In the century-old history of psychoanalysis, Jacques Lacan was one of its most controversial practitioners. Though found opaque and convoluted by many, Lacan's ideas have transcended the confines of psychoanalytic practice and have since the 1960s been applied to the study of cultural, social, and political processes and phenomena. In this article, the author presents the main aspects of a Lacanian approach to the interpretation of dreams. He examines Lacan's reinterpretation of a crucial dream from Freud's classic work Interpretation of Dreams: Freud's own dream of Irma's injection. He shows the importance of Lacan's conceptualization of the psyche as the structure containing the registers of the Imaginary, the Symbolic, and the Real for the interpretation of this dream. Furthermore, he demonstrates the applicability of a Lacanian approach by interpreting several other dreams: Descartes' 3 dreams, which have determined the development of modern science, and his own dream. The article is intended for all audiences and its aim is to expand the number of theoretical approaches available in the field of dream interpretation.
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