The Imaginary (psychoanalysis)
The Imaginary order is one of a triptych of terms in the psychoanalytic theory of Jacques Lacan, along with the symbolic and the real. Each of the trio of terms emerged gradually over time, and underwent an evolution during the development of Lacan's thought. 'Of these three terms, the "imaginary" was the first to appear, well before the Rome Report of 1953...he notion of the "symbolic" came to the forefront'. Indeed, looking back at his intellectual development from the vantage point of the 70s, Lacan epitomised it as follows:
I began with the Imaginary, I then had to chew on the story of the Symbolic...and I finished by putting out for you this famous Real.
Accordingly, "Lacan's work is often divided into three periods: the Imaginary (1936–1952), the Symbolic (1953–1962), and the Real (1963–1981)". During the first of these, "Lacan regarded the 'imago' as the proper study of psychology and identification as the fundamental psychical process. The imaginary was then the... dimension of images, conscious or unconscious, perceived or imagined"; and it was in the decade or two following his delivery of Le stade du miroir at Marienbad in 1936 that Lacan's concept of the Imaginary was most fully articulated.
Read more about The Imaginary (psychoanalysis): The Imaginary Order, The Fragmented Body, The Imaginary and The Symbolic, The Imaginary in The Late Lacan, The Imaginary and French Culture, See Also
Famous quotes containing the word imaginary:
“We do not content ourselves with the life we have in ourselves and in our being; we desire to live an imaginary life in the mind of others, and for this purpose we endeavor to shine. We labor unceasingly to adorn and preserve this imaginary existence and neglect the real.”
—Blaise Pascal (16231662)