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On the Names-of-the-Father

Jacques Lacan Bruce Fink

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Hardback

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English
Polity Press
06 September 2013
What astonishing success the Name-of-the-Father has had! Everyone finds something in it. Who one's father is isn't immediately obvious, hardly being visible to the naked eye. Paternity is first and foremost determined by one's culture. As Lacan said, ""The Name-of-the-Father creates the function of the father."" But then where does the plural stem from?

It isn't pagan, for it is found in the Bible. He who speaks from the burning bush says of Himself that He doesn't have just one Name. In other words, the Father has no proper Name. It is not a figure of speech, but rather a function. The Father has as many names as the function has props.

What is its function? The religious function par excellence, that of tying things together. What things? The signifier and the signified, law and desire, thought and the body. In short, the symbolic and the imaginary. Yet if these two become tied to the real in a three-part knot, the Name-of-the-Father is no longer anything but mere semblance. On the other hand, if without it everything falls apart, it is the symptom of a failed knotting.

- Jacques-Alain Miller
By:  
Translated by:  
Imprint:   Polity Press
Country of Publication:   United Kingdom
Dimensions:   Height: 198mm,  Width: 135mm,  Spine: 16mm
Weight:   227g
ISBN:   9780745659916
ISBN 10:   0745659918
Pages:   96
Publication Date:  
Audience:   Professional and scholarly ,  Undergraduate
Format:   Hardback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Foreword by Jacques-Alain Miller The Symbolic, the Imaginary, and the Real Introduction to the Names-of-the-Father Bio-bibliographical Notes Translator’s Notes

Jacques Lacan (1901–1981) was one of the twentieth century’s most influential thinkers.  His many works include Écrits, The Four Fundamental Concepts of Psycho-analysis and the many other volumes of The Seminars.

Reviews for On the Names-of-the-Father

What astonishing success the Name-of-the-Father has had! Everyone finds something in it. Who one?s father is isn?t immediately obvious, hardly being visible to the naked eye. Paternity is determined first and foremost by one?s culture. As Lacan said, the Name-of-the-Father creates the function of the father. But then where does the plural stem from? It isn?t pagan, for it is found in the Bible. He who speaks from the burning bush says of Himself that He doesn't have just one Name. In other words, the Father has no proper Name. It is not a figure of speech, but rather a function. The Father has as many names as the function has props. What is its function? The religious function par excellence, that of tying things together. What things? The signifier and the signified, law and desire, thought and the body. In short, the symbolic and the imaginary. Yet if these two become tied to the real in a three-part knot, the Name-of-the-Father is no longer anything but mere semblance. On the other hand, if without it everything falls apart, it is the symptom of a failed knotting. Jacques-Alain Miller


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