Psychosis Lacan Driida

The Navajo, Psychosis, Lacan, and Derrida
Author(s): Bernard Selinger

Source: Texas Studies in Literature and Language, Vol. 49, No. 1, Genetic Criticism (SPRING
2007), pp. 64-100
Published by: University of Texas Press
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The Navajo, Psychosis,Lacan,

and Derrida
BernardSelinger
An infraction
Theeffective
violenceofdisseminating
writing.
marking
the"symbolic."Wouldeverypossibility
of disorderand disorganizationin thesymbolic,fromthevantageof a certainoutsideforce,
would everything
thatforcesthesymbolic,
derivefromthespecular
thatis,froma "real"determined
as the"impos(orthe"imaginary"),
sible"?Fromschizophrenia
or psychosis?In thiscase,whatare the
conclusions
tobe drawn?
- JacquesDerrida,Positions
itself"whenitis confronted
withthose
So psychoanalysis
"recognizes
which
nevertheless
for
that
rather,
(or
verypsychoses
veryreason)it
has scarcelyanymeansofreaching:as ifthepsychosisweredisplayin a modenottoo distant
and offering
ingin a savage illumination,
butjusttoo close,thattowardswhichanalysismustmakeitslaborious way.
- Michel Foucault, TheOrderofThings1
Manyoldercultureshad no specificwordforthekindof statetheterm

to describe,butitwas a statetheywerefamiliar
with
psychosisattempts
and to whichtheyborea morecomplexrelationthandoes contemporary
Western
society.
Althoughpsychosiswas a conditionthatarousedmuch
concernfortheNavajo,or Dine, at least,theirresponseto it was and is
closerto thesentiments
ofDerridaand Foucaultthanto theoutright
fear
thatmostof us would express.Psychoanalysis
tendsto regardpsychoas essentiallyincurable,but the
sis, as it does neurosisand perversion,
treatment
is notrecommended
forpsyclassicalmethodofpsychoanalytic
do notworkwithpsychoticpatients.
chotics,and mostpsychoanalysts
withpsychosisled to his interestin
JacquesLacan, whose fascination
with
his careerbutnever
worked
psychotics
throughout
psychoanalysis,
them.He tendedto regardpsychoelaboratedanyprocedurefortreating
sis as a descentintothedarkestreachesoftheimaginary,
a statewhich,
TexasStudiesin Literature
and Language,Vol. 49, No. 1, Spring2007
2007 by theUniversityofTexas Press,P.O. Box 7819,Austin,TX 78713-7819

TheNavajo,Psychosis,
Lacan,and Derrida
65
no mathe believed,all mustexitin ordertobecomefunctioning

subjects,
terhow rebelliousor compliant.Even thoughpsychosisin manyways
and practical
of theLacaniantheoretical
is on or outsidetheperimeter
underside
I willsuggestthatpsychosisis thealienand familiar
structure,
thatbothsupportsand dismantlespsychoanalysis.
Psychosisperforms
is
in Navajo culture,but theprimarydifference
a similardual function
that
the
thattheNavajo,largelythroughstoryand ceremony,
recognize
theforest
ofinsanity,
windsthrough
pathtopsychichealthandwell-being
as Foucaultassertsand Derridaimplies,has yetto
whilepsychoanalysis,
Lacandid come
that.However,towardtheendofhiscareer,
acknowledge
thatpsychosiswas a placefrom
torealize,I believelargelyunconsciously,
couldarise.
whichhealthand evenenlightenment
between
Inthelaterpartsofthisessay,I willfocuson theintersections
of
the
and
some
and
keyconceptsand
Navajo ceremony story,
psychosis,
thatpsychosis
in
to
demonstrate
and
then
Derrida
order
Lacan
of
figures
is bothcureand poison;itoccupiesa positioninthediscoursesoftheNaand Derrida'sdiffrance.
vajo and ofLacanthatis akintoPlato'spharmakon
in
The Navajo Evilwayceremonyand theCoyoteTransformation
story,
with
and
historical
trauma
how
to
deal
structural
teach
us
can
particular,
how sophisticated
and loss,and LacanandDerridacanhelpus appreciate
thatlessonis. First,though,I willdescribetheNavajo and
and compelling
methodsfordealingwithmentalillness.
thepsychoanalytic
healthto someone
areperformed
to restore
ceremonies
ManyNavajo
ill.
are
intricate
whois mentally They
organizedaroundchants
procedures,
The
or "sings"(hataal)conductedbya medicinemanor "singer"(hataalii).
is endorsed
ceremonial
system,
passedon orallyfromsingertoapprentice,
byand elucidatedin a largenetworkofstorieswhicharealso transmitted
thegenerations.
Mostsystems
containtwomajorparts,thegeneral
through
fromtheunderworlds,
and the
whichincludestheemergence
originstory,
Eachgeneraloriginstoryfollows
originstoryofeachseparateceremonial.
theplotlineof a journeyupwardthroughseverallayersor worlds(anystackedon topofeachother)belowtheEarth's
wherefromtwotofourteen
surface,upon whichorderand balanceis created.One of thesehealing
ceremonials
is "RedAntway"so namedbecauseredantsare deemedrebytheRedAnt
sponsibleformostoftheillsthatareamenabletotreatment
theoneI willfocuson,is
Chant.One ofthetworitualsoftheRedAntway,
also knownas Ghostwayor Uglyway.Usuallylasting
Evilway{hchxj),
itexorcisesdiseases- suchas severeanxiety,
fivenights,
delusions,repeti- causedby "ghostsofanimalsor ofother
hallucinations
tivenightmares,
ofthewhirlingdarkness')"and
beingsthattravelin darkness('witchery
To becomewell,thepatientis taken
otherunknownsinisterinfluences.2
to and through
thetimeofthefirst
illness.Accordingly,
backceremonially
theRed Antwayrelatestheseriesof preemergence
eventsthatestablish

66
BernardSelinger
theChantwayand theprototype
thefirstperformance
ofthe
ceremonial,
chantitself.The Red Antpeoplewereinitially
placedin theunderworlds
toliveinharmony,
buttheycannotstopquarrelling;
theirbehaviorleadsto
violenceand murder,
so theyarecontinually
movedup tothenextlayerof
earthuntiltheyreachthefinalsurface.
AfterDeschinifinishes
the
relating
he continuesseamlesslyintotheCoyoteTransformation
emergence,
story
whereinCoyotedeceivesa younghunterand exchangesskinswithhim,
thereby
takingthehunter'splacewithhisyoungwife.Coyoteis eventually
foundoutand thehunteris discovered,
unabletospeakand neardeath,in
theskinofa coyote.Thehealingceremony,
theHoop Transformation
rite,
is thenperformed,
thekeypresupposition
forwhichis thatthepatient's
illnessis causedbya transformation
thathas lefthimorherenervated
by
someunwantedouterform:specifically,
theformofan animal,themangy
Sincea "largepartof everyritemaybe theexactimitation
of a
coyote.3
or
in
is
scene
the
Transformation
rite
care
incident,"
Hoop
mythical
great
takentorecapitulate
theeventsofthemythand story.4
- enshroudedby an animalskin
The medicinemanleads thepatient
it- who followsthefootsteps
or cloththatrepresents
oftheherothrough
a reconstructed
into
the
while
skin
the
is graduallypulled
setting
hogan
offhisbody.A sandpainting
insidethehogandepictstheHolyPeopleand
othercharacters
fromtheoriginaldrama.The primary
goal is to identify
thepatientwiththeHoly People beinginvoked:he becomes"one with
themby absorption,
imitation,
transformation,
substitution,
recapitulaThemedicineman's
andconcentration."5
tion,repetition,
commemoration,
theequipmentinhismedicinebundleand bymeans
roleis vital:through
thepowersrepresented
ofhisownbodyhe transfers
bythesandpainting
to thepatient.Whileapprenticing
to becomea medicineman he identifieshimselfwiththedifferent
heroeswho undertooka perilousquestto
he
thisprincipleofidentification,
acquirethepowerofthechant;through
and
even
within
himself
the
entire
of
notions
complex godly
"incorporates
thatis,likegods."6Tobe cured,
has thepowertomakeotherslikehimself,
theafflicted
hero.
mimic
the
medicine
man
and thereby
thepatientmust
be
at
an
event
takes
its
effects
FortheNavajo,once
may repeated any
place
lessonis thatpastoccurrences,
no matter
timein thefuture,
so a primary
medicine
man's
the
But
because
of
the
how distant,stillaffect present.
of
the
narrative
the
negativeefknowledgeand thesymbolicrepetition
and ritual.
can
be
ameliorated
fectsofpreviousevents
through
ceremony
in
we
don't
see
Western
medito
treatment,
something
Key successful
and
senses
are
is
the
the
cine,
fullyengaged.The
way patient'smind,body,
with
of
the
inside
the
chanting
repetitive
hoganbegins
segment
ceremony
performed
by themedicinemanand others.The singingand chantingis
eitherbyrestperiodsorbythemedicineman'scerregularly
interrupted
emonialperformances,
which,accordingtoMartinD. Topper,

Lacan,and Derrida
67
ofprayersticksto theHolyPeople,thepumayinvolvetheoffering
rification
ofthepatientin some partofthemyththatunderliesthe
theentryofmaskeddancers,thepreparation
of ceremoceremony,
nialmaterialssuchas sand paintingsand prayersticks,
thetakingof
herbalmedications[includingemetics],thewashingof thepatient,
theblessingofthepatientwhilehe orsheis sitting
on a sandpainting,
thepaintingofthepatientwithashes or claymixedwithanimalfat
and herbalmedicines,
thetakingofa sweatbath.7
The herbalmedicationsall have similareffects
on the nervoussystem.
Mountaintobaccoin particular
slowsthesystemdown,blursthevision,
and can producetheclassical"atropinepsychosis"(Topper,233). Those
who takethemedications
an intensity
ofsensoryawareness,
"experience
a slowingoftheperception
ofthepassageoftime"(Topper234).Although
vividhallucinations
arenotregularly
theconsciousness
ofall
experienced,
who takethemedication
is definitely
altered.Thepatient,
who is painted
withearthand charcoal,"undergoesa significant
transformation
emotionin
and
ally,physiologically
bodyimage"(Topper,235).
and the
Topperbelievesthatthemedicineman'sroleintheceremony
and
the
weakened
status
of
in
the
father
the
traditional
Navacommunity,
transference
jo household,allowsthemedicinemantobecomea powerful
the"ideal traditional
figurewho represents
Navajo father"("TN," 228).
Thiscontention
is supportedbythewidelyheldNavajobeliefthat"a person treatedby a medicinemanbecomesthechildofthatmedicineman"
("TN,"228).ButI wouldliketoemphasizethatbecausethemedicineman
is thesymbolicrepresentative
of and directchannelto theHoly People,
thepatientbecomesthechildofand identifies
withthemedicinemanand
theHoly People all at once.Thiscrucialidentification
comesaboutwith
themedicinemanas mediator;medicinemenarethusvitalto theoverall
healthoftheNavajo,and Toppertakesgreatpainstodemonstrate
thatthe
medicineman is "theepitomeofsuccess,spiritualharmonyand culturbehavior"("TN,"221).Others,however,suggestthatthe
allyappropriate
character
ofthemedicinemanis notas pristine
as Toppercontends.Clyde
Kluckhohn
theNavajo have fearedmedicine
pointsoutthattraditionally
menas witches,largelybecausetheyhave power,which,inevitably,
will
be used forevilas wellas good.Also,medicinemenand witchesareoften
referred
tobythesamelinguistic
term.8
And therehave alwaysbeenNavajo intellectuals,
specialistswho possessmuchknowledgeofthestories
and rituals,who choosenotto practiceas medicinemenbecause ofthe
Sincethemedicineman'sreputation
is
negativesocialfeelingsincurred.
relatedto his successful
treatment
ofpatients,
he mayeventually
directly
becomerelatively
butifhe becomestoowealthy,
he willbe "suswealthy,
pectedofusinghisritualknowledgefortheevilpurposesofwitchcraft."9

68
BernardSelinger
Thereareatleasttwohistorical
reasons,I propose,whymedicinemen
have cometo be associatedwithdangerand witchcraft
as well as with
andhealth.One reasonhas todo withtheallianceofthemedicine
security
manwiththeHolyPeople,who,itis seldomnoted,arelikeHomer'sgods,
and actsofpettiness
preytothesamekindsoffears,desires,perversions,
and destruction
as arehumanbeings.10
ReichardsaysofTalkingGod,"He
is theonlygod I havefoundwitha senseofcompassion/'11
Theothergods
arenotwelldisposedtowardhumans,buttheycanbe persuadedtobe so,
and persuasionis theprimary
taskofthemedicineman,whomanipulates
theirpowertowardconstructive
ends. Jerrold
Levy suggeststhatdiyin,
as
would
be
more
renderedas 'posnormally
glossed "Holy,"
"accurately
without
whether
thepower
sessinggreatsupernatural
power,'
indicating
is goodorevil.Thus,FirstMan is oneoftheDiyinDine'e [sic]whouseshis
FirstMan,alongwithFirst
powerforbothgood and evil."12
supernatural
to theEarth's
Womanand Coyote,is creditedwithbringingwitchcraft
surface.SinceCoyoteis equatedwithevil,desire,incest,and witchcraft,
and sinceit is well knownthatCoyoteand FirstMan were greatpals,
it is understandable
thata medicineman,who makesa livingas an instrument
oftheHoly People,could be a fearful
figure.A secondreason
with
men
are
ambivalence
is rootedinthedistant
medicine
regarded
why
fromNorthwestern
Canada
huntertradition
oftheNavajo.Themigration
UnitedStatesoftheAthapaskanpeople,whomthe
to theSouthwestern
deNabajo,occalledApaches
Spanishcolonistsoftheseventeenth
century
whorelied
curredsomewhere
between1000and 1500AD.13Thesehunters,
their
needs
and
for
them
on shamansfor
procuregame,
spiritual
helping
withan elaboratehiercameintocontactwiththePueblos,agriculturalists
oftheAthapaskansand their
The "strongindividualism
archyofpriests.14
withtherigidlyorganized
strongly
looselyorganizedsocietycontrasted
LuckertbelievesthattheNasystemwithinwhichthePuebloanslived."15
graduallybecamerepressed
byand absorbedinto
vajo shamanictradition
and
Pueblo ceremonialpracticesas theNavajo adoptedan agricultural
who
could
the
trickster-like
shaman,
herdingway oflife.Consequently,
ofscarcegame,was gradually
healan illhunterordivinethewhereabouts
trickster-hero
and
disparagedandbecameassociatedwithCoyote,former
In
the
trickhealeroftheold mythsbutnow defamed. a parallelprocess
medicine
of thearchaichuntersevolvedintoprofessional
ster-shamans
relied
on the
menwho no longerused "tricks";rather,
theyincreasingly
echad
learned
master'
"ceremonial
through
knowledgewhichtheir'first
shamanic
of
of
these
Theexploits many
staticadventure
and trickery.
early
The greatvaricanonsofmythology.
intoauthoritative
heroesgravitated
to
was
into
of
their
adventurous
strung compositenarratives
exploits
ety
of
medicinal
and
to
the
pracconglomerates
explain
prove ever-growing
tices."16
Whereasthepowerof theshamancame fromhis experienceof

Lacan,and Derrida
69
withpotenttutelaryspirits,thepowerof the
ecstasyin his encounters
medicinemancomesfromhispreciseknowledgeand properexecutionof
ceremonies
whichhad beendisclosedlongago in less elaborate,less narrativeformto shamansand cultureheroes.
Levysupportsthebeliefthatshamanismwas supplantedby fertility
and rainmaking
ceremoniesand contendsthattwo opposingtraditions
werecreated:one advocatedshamanismand anothersupportedthemore
ofthe
agricultural
community-oriented
religion.The "orderedregularity
became
to
the
opposed
agricultural
cycle
unpredictability
represented
by
thetrickster
Navajo contactwiththeHopis also forceda diCoyote/'17
chotomization
oftheconceptofsupernatural
and shamanicpower.While
theHopis believedthatwitchcraft
caused illnesstheyplaced greatemifone liveda healthylifeand thought
phasison individualresponsibility:
one
would
be
The
onlygood thoughts
virtuallyimmuneto witchcraft.
shamanwas phased out and mostofthehealingdutiesweredelegated
to the priestsof the ceremonialsodalities.While manyothernations
(suchas thePaiutes,Shoshones,Comanches,and Utes)continuedto refer
toboththeshamanand thewitchas "onewho uses power"
linguistically
theHopisuseddifferent
termsforeachwhichsetup anopposition
between
thepriest(good)and thewitch(evil)whileassociating
theindividualshaman withillnessand death.18
chaos and unpredictability,
Consequently,
whichwereaccommodated
and connectedwith
by thehuntertradition
becamea kindofevilor at leastsomething
to be eitherconshamanism,
trolledor avoided.The ideal Puebloplaced thegood of thecommunity
above his own desires,so controlof "supernatural
powerby individuals and dissociativestatesare disvalued,and greateffort
is expended
to guaranteetheorderlyand predictable
[particularly
ceremonially]
repetitionoftheagricultural
cycle."19
believetheagricultural
whosecentral
tradition,
Kaplanand Johnson
of socialharmony,
principlewas themaintenance
soughtto controlthe
highregardfor"personaland magical'power'" ofthehuntertradition,
a powerthatservedto upsetthe new order.The agricultural
tradition
so that
graduallycame to dominateNavajo conceptionsof "normality,"
thevalues associatedwiththeearliertradition
beginto findexpression
in patterns
of"devianceand psychopathology,"20
thatcontribute
patterns
to theequilibrium
ofNavajo society.Conceptionsofwhatis
significantly
correct,
good,andhealthycannotbe sustainedexceptinoppositiontothat
whichis incorrect,
IfKaplanand Johnson
are correct
evil,and unhealthy.
thatdevianceprovidesbalanceinNavajo society,
a logicalextrapolation
is
thatdeviancecontributes
totheequilibrium
ofmostsocieties.Contempoinitsprimary
institutions
ofschool,church,
raryWestern
society,
certainly
thriveson deviance.Justas intheNavajo situationthe
law,and medicine,
and modernity
cameto demonizethatwhichdid
ideologyofagriculture

70
BernardSelinger
notfititssystemofbelief,so too Westernsocietydemonizesthatwhich

willsubvert.The obviousironyis whatappearsto undermine
is actually
thesystem,keepingit running.Different
factionsof society
supporting
as demonsorwitches.
taketheirturnas scapegoats,ifnotovertly
regularly
Butin theNavajo situationthereis a finelinebetween(thediscredited)
shaman(witch,destroyer)
and medicineman (pillarof society,
healer).
Themedicinemanoftodayis helpingsickindividualstobecomehealthy
and,in mostcases,on thesurfaceat least,to betteraccommodatethemselvestosociety;he thereby
thedesireofan agricultural
society
represents
forharmonyand social control.Yethe is drawingon, identifying
with,
in orderto bringhealth.And as was seen
some fairlyshadycharacters
of a healingceremony,
thetrance-like,
dissofromTopper'sdescription
ciativestatethattheshamanso heavilyreliedon is stilla vitalpartofthe
Eventhoughitappearsthatthemedicinemanuses his dedicaprocess.21
forthegiftoftheshaman,
tionandknowledgeoftheritesas a replacement
it is almostas ifwhatthemedicineman lacksin quality(thatis, in the
witha guardianspirit)he attempts
to make
intenseencounter
singularly
of
with
the
meticulous
stories,
chants,
interweaving
prayers,
up
quantity:
the elaborateand incredibly
songs,and sandpaintingsthatconstitute
theseChantwaynarratives
reflect
beautiful
Viewedcritically,
Chantways.
of
and quantitative
modeofthinking
thatis characteristic
an accumulative
and
and
labor
societies.
agricultural wage
- includingthe accompanyI suggestthatthe Evilwayceremony
and
the
originstoryor CoyoteTransformation
ing generaloriginmyth
and
is
a
of,and themedicine
story
complexconvergence intermingling
historical
and
structural
an
mantheincarnation
of,
duality:theceremony
and
a
the
includestheconflict
between,
of, chaoticundifferentiamerging
of
tradition
and
theorderedparticularity
of
the
hunter
tion
(Athapaskan)
the
medicine
man
embodies
theagricultural
(Puebloan)society.
Similarly,
and thecerwhichtendsto disrupt,
selves,theCoyote/Witch,
competing
eachis partand parceloftheother.
emonialpriest,whichseeksharmony:
themedicineman,encapsulatea
Theceremonial
systemand itsconductor,
insocioeconomic
as wellas a shift
transformation
ofonethingintoanother,
is
is lostand something
and culturalrealities.Withthatshiftsomething
but
that
and
is
is
something privileged;
gained,something denigrated
we mightsay) remainswithinitsother,
whichis denigrated(repressed,
it.
and undermining
supporting
simultaneously
double
this
BeforeI further
dualityand thenput it and
complicate
into
a
theCoyoteTransformation
story
dialoguewiththepsychoanalytic
I shallfocuson therelationships
between
view ofillnessand treatment,
of
what
is
the
foundation
and
psychoanalyperhaps
Coyote,witchcraft,
to referto the
sis- incestualdesire.Kluckhohnuses thetermwitchcraft
thatattempt
to controlpeopleand
different
typesofperniciousactivities

Lacan,and Derrida
71
eventsthrough
ForKluckhohn,
therearetwomasupernatural
techniques.
theWitchery-Sorcery
and Wizardycomplex,and
jor typesofwitchcraft:
FirstManandFirstWomanaretheoriginators
oftheforFrenzyWitchcraft.
mercomplex,and witchesofthisilkareassociatedwithdeathand incest:
and
"SuspicionofincestmeansbythatveryfactsuspicionofWitchactivity
vice-versa.//22
Thosewhocommitincestarealwayssuspectedofwitchcraft
and areregardedas,ordestinedtobecome,insane.Tobecomea witchone
mustkilla close relative,
usuallya sibling.Witchescruiseaboutat high
in
at
thewolfor
speeds,usually night, theskinsofanimals,particularly
When
witches
their
ceremonies
mirror
and
are
the
meet,
coyote.
opposite
ofNavajoceremonies;
informants
have describedtheproceedings
as "just
likea bad sing"(NW,26-27).FrenzyWitchcraft
causes a kindofseizure
similarto thatofepilepsy:whiletheGreeksnamedit thesacreddisease,
thesufferer
tobe possessedbythegods,theNavajobelievethat
regarding
incestcausesthesymptoms
oftheseizure.FrenzyWitchcraft
is used prias
love
and
for
in
success
and
marily
magic
secondarily
gambling,
hunting
The
of
this
of
witchcraft
a
trading. practitioner
type
employs preparation
made froma groupofplants,themostprominent
ofwhich,datura,producesdissociative
in
Datura
states,
hallucinations,
and, largedoses,coma.23
is a precarioussubstance,
bothpoisonand cure:eatingit can protectone
butthe"protection
was almostas fearsome
as thedanagainstwitchcraft,
Some
administer
it
as
a
ceremonies,
ger"(NW,48).
though,
prophylactic
orillness.Thefirst
timea persontakesdaturaitis called
againstmisfortune
nxoziszil
tohydrophobia
or
("heregainedhismind")."Thestem-ziirefers
and
nto
-xoa
condition.
Thetermcouldbe apinsanity, prefix
regaining
orlossofmind"(NW,176).Datura
pliedinanycase oftemporary
insanity
Ifa personlosessomething
is alsousedfordivination.
he orsheeatsa piece
ofdaturaroot,fallsintoa dream,thenwakesup and is abletofindthelost
linkbetweentheformof
object(NW,175).Daturais thustheconnecting
theformofdivination,
and thechantorcuringceremony,
all of
witchcraft,
whicharereferred
tobythesameword:?azile(NW,232).
Thereis disagreement
aboutwhichis theprimarychantforcuring
victimsofFrenzyWitchcraft,
orProstitutionway.
Mothway,
Mothwaywas
used to curethosesuffering
fromseizuresas a resultofincest.
originally
Theceremony
formothmadnessis one ofthemostpowerfuland dangerous ofall theceremonies,
and itspractitioners
areoftensuspectedofbeing
witches,largelybecauseoftheirwillingnessto engagesuchpotentforces.24Prostitutionway
was used primarily
forthosebelievedto be victims
ofFrenzyWitchcraft
orexcessivelewdness,howevercaused(NW,38).At
one timebothceremonies
werecombined:
In MothWaytheymade sandpaintings
on thewestside of thefire,
withthecoyotepicturefacingtowardsthenorth.
Facingsouthwas the

72
BernardSelinger
womanwho sleptwithherbrother.
Southofthefireis anothercoyote
and themanwho sleptwithhissister.
Thepatientworea foxskinora
was a woman.Yousee
coyoteskin... itwasjustthesameifthepatient
That'swhythepatient
coyotecando ittohisfullsisterortohismother.
hastowearcoyoteskin.A singerofProstitution
Waydidn'thaveanyreal
He justhad a coyoteskinandsomemedicine.
(NW,230-31)
equipment.
oftheProstitutionway
would chewup piecesofdaManypractitioners
turaand givethemto thepatient(NW,231). LuckertbelievesMothway
and Prostitutionway
werepushedto nearextinction
forthesame reason
thathuntergodslikeCoyotewereequatedwithwitchcraft
andincest:they
wereall by-products
of the "broaderdefamation
of theentireworldof
prehumanfluxby thenew fixedworldofsupremeshepherdand planter
Itis easytograsptheidea thatone culture,
oneideology,
gods."25
gainsasover
another
and
it
is
this
almost
an
cendancy
bydefaming demonizing
- psychic
- fears,
historicalimperative.
But thereare otherfundamental
desires,and impulsesatworkhereas well.Thereis thefearbyagricultural
manofthechaosofprehumanflux,oftheirrational,
oflosingtheboundariesofself,ofbeingtransformed
intosomething
otherthanhuman.Of
courseforthose,suchas earlyhunters,
shamans,or witches,who are attractedto thestateofprehumanflux,thesefearsaredesires.Traveling
in
theskinofan animal,copulating
witha dead body(a bodywhichis gradua poisonfroma plantthat
allybecomingpartofMotherEarth),concocting
was oncea man- all suggesta movement
totherealmofpre-human
flux.
skins
are
central
of
both
and
ProstitutionCoyote
components
Mothway
and inMothwaya keysceneintheritetodispelmadness
wayceremonies;
causedbyincestrequirestwopatients,
bothwearingfoxskins,toperform
sexualintercourse
whilehowlinglike"whirling
coyotes."26
Ceremonies,
then,are permeatedwiththesame,relatively
unstable,
ambivalence
as aremedicinemenand datura,regardedas beingeitherpoisonorcureorboth:powerful
forcesareall potentially
so when
dangerous,
are
a
an
individual
be
Holy People
presentduring ceremony
may cured
or maybecomeill.Thosewho becomesickaftera ceremony
arebelieved
to havethesameillnessthattheceremony
was designedto cure.Thereis
also disagreement
aboutcertainprayersconnectedwithceremonies;
for
it
is
unclear
whether
was
a
of
witchcraft
example,
"CoyotePrayer
part
or a verypowerfulprotection
(NW,51).
againstand cureforwitchcraft"
The cureformadness,therefore,
a return
to thatstate
is,at leastpartially,
with
ofprehumanflux,a statewhichis virtually
equatedwithinsanity,
theshamanictrance.And thecure,we have seen,is also broughtabout
the patient'smadnessthroughthe ingestionof datura
by reproducing
medicine.Whilemostideologiescannotaccommodate
thepsychotic
state,
thehunter
not
of
the
itbutvalorizesit.
accommodates
ideology
Navajo only

Lacan,and Derrida
73
ofthislieswiththetermnxoziszil:
one
Perhapsthemostsalientindication
regainsone'smindbygoinginsane(NW,176).Bytakingdatura,bygoinginfluxandcommunes
with,evenbecomes,the
sane,onerejoinstheprehuman
This
of
aligns
godsagain,capable godlikeaccomplishments. interpretation
withtheancientGreeks:thepsychotic
stateis sacred.
thehunter
tradition
The greatpuzzle though(puttingaside theneed of an agricultural
ideologyto denigratethetrancein any possibleway) is how psychosis
becomesso closelyassociatedwithincest.Incestualdesire,desirefor
or psychic,
sexualrelationswitha nearrelative,is essentiallystructural
in
and
which,
dreams)
unacknowledged(except
somethingrepressed
I
will
loosen
the
whenactedupon,becomessocialand historical,
illegal.
realm:onedefinidefinition
ofincestualdesiretoslideitintothehistorical
In thecase ofthe
interconnection."
tionI offer
is "desireforinappropriate
with
this
interconnection
would
be
the
the
state
ofprehuman
Navajo,
past,
a
differentiation
and duality.
it
is
a
desire
for
of
oneness, rejection
flux;
A seconddefinition
is "a desireto marrywithinthegroup,"whichis a
ofand a wayofmaintaining
one's difference
fromtheother(the
rejection
- whileit is an
The
second
definition
relates
more
to
the
future
Pueblo).
a linkwiththe
endeavorto maintaina kindof sameness,and therefore
it inhibits
manifestation
is
a
denial
of
the
future
because
past, primary
its outsidepropagationand promotesinbreeding.
out,by
By marrying
openingone's boundaries,one allowstheother'sdesireto invade.In its
broadestdefinition,
and psychosis,
is
then,incest,and therefore
witchery
in
in
a fundamental
1) oflanguage favorofexperience, favorof
rejection:
animalgods) oftheprehumanflux;2) ofthefuture
thegods (particularly
infavoroftheimmediacy
ofthepastwhichis alwayspresent(especiallyin
or trances);3) of agriculture
ceremonies
/Pueblo/modernity
/rationality;
and 4) ofanyoutsideforcewhichseekstodifferentiate.
Incest/psychosis/
in a state
is simultaneously
cureand poison:itkeepsone intact,
witchery
ofunity(whichis perhapsillusory),
butit(ostensibly)
preventsone from
and desiresprovidedby orderssuchas lanexploringotherpossibilities
how alienatingand fragmenting
theseordersmaybe.
guage,no matter
as morecurethanpoison.SincethekillKluckhohn
regardswitchery
brutaland messy,thesewitchesas scapegoats
ingofwitchesis typically
allow forthereleaseofhostility
thatNavajoshave forthemanyhazards
oflife.Inadditiontodefusing
witchcraft
functions
anxietyand aggression,
intwowiderways:"ithelpsmaintaina systemofchecksand balances,so
thattheceremonial
and therich[whoaremostoftenaccused
practitioners
ofwitchery]
arekeptfromattaining
toomuchpower;and itis an implied
threatagainstall sociallydisruptive
action."27
The obviousomissionhere
is thatwitchcraft,
withitsstronglinktoincestand psychosis,
particularly
- a
is sociallydisruptive
action.Witchery,
then,is bothsociallydisruptive
to theDionysianchaosofprehumanflux and socially
poisonousreturn

74
BernardSelinger
ameliorative,
servingas an Apollonian/Puebloancheckon theexcessesof
individualism.
Yettheseare notprecisepolaritiesso much
irresponsible
as interdependent
and interrelated
tendenciesthatflowintoand out of
theother,in a constantstateof transformation.
This dynamicqualityis
and itsTransformation
capturedbytheEvilwayceremony
story.
Inpsychoanalysis,
thereisno "cure"- nohealthyadaptationtoreality,
- without
withone'ssymptom
notruth
aboutone'sdesire,noidentification
thetransference
neurosisthatoccursintheanalytical
situation.
deBriefly
transference
istheredirection
ofdesires,particularly
theunconscious
fined,
towarda newobject,specifically
theperson
onesretainedfromchildhood,
in
the
While
transference
can
occur
conducting therapy.
manyrelationships,
suchas thosebetweenphysicianand patientor teacherand student,the
detachment
createsa novelor secondneurosiswhere
analyst'scultivated
withparentalfigures,
thepatientreliveshis or herunconsciousconflicts
thatbecomeamenableto treatment.
eachpatienthas
conflicts
Ostensibly,
thepatient
a setofproblemsthatthepatientrepeatsinsteadofremembers:
since
won't
allow
the
because
something
long
repressed
patientto
repeats
Fromthefort-da
where
Freud's
remember.
episode
grandsoncompensatedfortheperiodicdisappearanceofhismother
throwing
byrepeatedly
- Freudconcludes
a woodenreelattachedto a string
awayand retrieving
is a sourceof
the reexperiencing
of somethingidentical,
thatrepetition,
control.
The
that
accords
a
measure
of
compulsionto repeatinpleasure
totransform
a passiveand relatively
dicatesan attempt
helplesssituation
thesenseof (self)masterywe all
intoan activeone thatmaystrengthen
are
seek.In theanalyticalsituation,
however,thepatient'sreduplications
therewelcome.Freudcomments
thatthepatient"repeat[s'
notentirely
insteadof... remembering
experience
pressedmaterialas a contemporary
whichemerge
to
the
These
itas something
past.
reproductions,
belonging
have
as
their
withsuchunwished-for
exactitude,
subjectsomeporalways
that
infantile
sexual
life
of
the
of
Oedipuscomplex, is ... and they
trayal
The analyst's
actedoutin thesphereofthetransference."28
areinvariably
limits:to
neurosis"withinthenarrowest
taskis to keepthistransference
and toallowas little
forceas muchas possibleintothechannelofmemory
thereWithout
skilfulintervention,
as possibletoemergeas repetition."29
as
material
would
on
of
the
repressed
play endlessly, longas it
production
Buttheanalyst'sroleinleadingthepatient
is deniedorgoesunrecognized.
toremember
pasttraumashas beenquestionedbyLacan,whomockingly
refersto the analystas "thesubjectsupposedto know,"someonewho
knowsthetruthabouthis or herpatientsand aboutlifein general.The
the"healthy
Lacanbelieved,was to strengthen
goal ofego psychologists,
view
ofreality.
it
to
the
the
to
of
reality: analyst's
part"
patient'sego, adapt
and by thedesignation
oftheego
Lacan was angeredby theconformism
ofthe
as an agencyofreasonbecausetheego's imaginary
misrecognition

Lacan,and Derrida
75
symbolicand how thisordermoldsit and liveson throughitpreventsit

frombecomingan allyoftheanalystor a sourceofautonomousknowlthecarrier
ofneurosis:"At
edge.Theego infactis thesourceofalienation,
theheartofthesubject,itis onlya privilegedsymptom,
thehumansympthementalillnessofman/'30
It is alongthecircuitous
tomparexcellence,
of
the
Lacan
one
can
discoverthetruth
ofhis
that,
believed,
path
symbolic
desireand noton thedistorted
of
reminiscence.
One
must
look
to
the
path
the
of
the
situation
and
not
the
(in
(from
repetition
present)
original
past)
oflostmemories.
totherecovery
the"truth"
aboutoneselfis complicated
becauseitresides
Discovering
in two intersecting
and thehistorical.
realms,thestructural
Structurally,
thepsychoanalytic
narrative
muchthesame.We
implies,we areall pretty
sharethetraumasofbirth,separation,
castration,
loss,and individuation.
we
are
different:
each
of
us
mustcontendwithour
though,
Historically,
ownspecific
setofexperiences
time
and
through
space.So whenwe focus
on thosewho aresplitand blockedin theirhistorical
situations
as wellas
intheirpsyches,
thepsychoanalytic
narrative
becomesespeciallyproblematic.Eventhoughtherelationship
betweenstructural
andhistorical
trauma
- personal,psychoanalytic,
is difficult
and perplexing,
most narratives
- attempt
insome
todealwiththerelationship
prosefictional
mythological,
These
like
the
tend
to
take
two
one
of
different
narratives,
way.
analyst,
positions:oneattempts
tocajole,re-educate,
teachthelistener
howtoregulate
hisorherproblemsin accordwithsocialdemandsand to acceptthe(usuofsociety;theotherallowsor encourages
allyhierarchical)
arrangements
onetofollowone'sownrelatively
one'sdiffercourse,tocherish
disruptive
one's
to
remain
true
to
oneselfand one'sdesire.
ence,
alienation,
WhileLacaninitially
believedthatonecouldachievementalhealthby
thelatter
heeventually
realizedthatdesirecannotkeepone
route,
following
from
orderbecausedesireis dependent
beingco-optedbythesociopolitical
on thelaw: whatthelaw denies,desirepursues.The law and desireare
intheirobsessionwithjouissance?1
boundtogether
Lacan
By1964,however,
comesto see thedrive,in conjunction
withobjeta, as themorepotentially
force.32
DriveretainsitsFreudianovertones
ofdeathand repetiliberating
tionandbecomesalliedwithjouissance:
ittendstosubvertoedipallaw and
in itscircularpatharoundtheobject.Bruce
findsmostofitssatisfaction
Finkoffers
thishelpfuldistinction
betweendriveanddesire:"desireprefers
thepleasureoffantasy
tothesatisfaction
ofthedrives.Desireinhibits
such
inthedrives,sincethedrivespursuea kindofsatisfacsatisfaction,
reining
tionthatis experienced
as overwhelming
or excessiveand thusabhorred
killsdesire,smothers
todefense.
(satisfaction
it).Desirehereis tantamount
... a defenseagainstjouissance."33
Desireis equatedwithinsatiateness
while
driveis excess,at leastin theeyesofthosegovernedby desire.Analysis,
then,leads thepatientto discoverthathe is trappedby desireand bythe

76
BernardSelinger
stabilizehis defundamental
fantasythathe employsto simultaneously
sireandkeepitgoing.Freedomliesinthedirection
oftheobjeta and ofthe
drive,ifthedesiringsubjectcan acceptthefactthathis truesatisfaction
Withtheemphasison driveand theobjet
distasteful.
maybe something
a theprocessoftransference,
whichtendedtowardidentification,
moves
towardsabsolutedifference.34
to maneuvertheanalysand,throughthe
The analyst,then,attempts
s
s thathave programmed
him,construct(the
analysand' speech
signifier
to thefundamental
ed hishistory)and throughtherepetition,
fantasyto
ofhimself,
butwhichconwhichtheanalysandclingstoavoidrecognition
tainsinsighthe requires.The morealienatedthesubjectfeels,themore
thesubjectwillfocuson theobjeta in his fantasy.
Bybecominga kindof
bothas a promisethatthe
embodiment
oftheobjeta, theanalystfunctions
foran actionthat
hisorherpainand as an instigator
patientcaneliminate
in
what
this
"lost"
is
the
cause
of
hisorherdiviobject
maydecipher
way
sion.Becausetheanalysandhas todiscoverhowhisorhercentralfantasy
in thestructural
orhistorical
realm,the
respondsto something
enigmatic
that
needs
is
the
unconscious,
"knowledge is caught
knowledge analysand
in
and
has
to
be
Wherethatknowlthe
chain
subjectified.
yet
up
signifying
The
when
must
come
to
be."35
the
analysisis successful
subject
edgewas,
thwart
it
the
the
and
encounter
real,
repetition causes,
analyst
analysand
Thetransformation
ofthefundamental
thefantasy.
and rearrange
fantasy,
of thesubject"),
thefantasy"(and as "destitution
knownas "traversing
is a processwherebytheanalysandcomesto acceptan essentiallack.It
has twosides:"on theone hand,the
is important
to notethatthefantasy
side of thesubject,whichis theside of speechand desire;on theother
The
hand,thesideoftheobject,as a, whichis also thesideofjouissance."36
in
the
to
be
thustriestoallow analysand
simultaneously language
fantasy
beforebeing
statewherehe experienced
and in thatprimordial
jouissance
the
fundamental
as
a
installedintolanguage
desiringsubject.Although
and thetrick
fantasyappearsto be an ideal solution,it is onlya fantasy,
wherein
the
a
ofanalysisis tobringabout transformation
subjectcanattain
of
the
fundamental
where
"the
realsatisfaction,
phantasybeexperience
37
the
drive."
comes
formental
betweenthetreatment
The mostconspicuoussimilarity
themediis
that
of
and
the
illnessemployedbypsychoanalysis by Navajo
cineman and theanalyst,bothsubjects"supposedto know."Although
the patientmay come to regardhis or her analystwithdeep ambivalence,themedicinemanis a morecomplexand radicallyequivocalfigure
thananyanalystcouldbe. Still,a patientcomesto a medicinemanor an
Bothmedicineman
analystforthesame reason:thepatientis suffering.
to be able to
some
to
the
to
lead
and analysttry
understanding,
patient
from.
The
is
what
the
of
analyst's
patient suffering
give some account

Lacan,and Derrida
77
procedurecan take many years:it involvescreatinga new neurosis

and thenbecomingtheelusive
and thetransference
identification
through
his
or
herfundamental
the
can
traverse
a
so
that
fantasyand
patient
objet
it throughand to thedriveand theobjeta in thedomainof
reconstitute
thereal- outofthechain(s)ofdesire.Themedicinemanfollowsa similar
process,butitis moredaringand inclusive.He embodiestheHolyPeople
and allows
whatthepatientis now suffering,
andthehero,who suffered
en
to expeand
route
withthesefigures,
thepatientto identify
bad,
good
then
the
and
trauma,
working
original
riencing physically emotionally
itin a procedurethatlastsseveraldaysand nightsand thattakes
through
state.Whenit is finishedthe
thepatientto an "egoless"semi-psychotic
of
Lacanian"pass") takethe
an
version
the
can
(in
early
patient ideally
the
has
and
knowledge patient acquiredand teachit to others.38
power
comes
thata largecomponent
oftherecovery
demonstrates
Theceremony
the
and
authoritative
the
(in
present)of
repetition
through compulsive
whichis the
theoriginalsituation(fromthepast).Thisoriginalsituation,
dilemmaof a Red Antpersonin the CoyoteTransformation
story,is, I
"holds
thekeyto
to
the
fundamental
which
contend,equivalent
fantasy,
theplacethattheanalystoccupiesforthesubject,whichis theplaceofthe
oftheLacanianreal
Ifwe acceptFredricJameson'sinterpretation
real."39
thenwe cansee thattheNavajoceremony
as history,
alignsbothstructural
withthe
in an attemptto returnto theinitialencounter(s)
and historical
real:lostmother,
lostbody,loss ofblissfulstateofprehumanflux,loss of
withanimalsand land,
huntingway oflife,loss ofintimaterelationship
in
loss ofindividualism favorofa more"responsible,"
corporateway of
withtherealis notsituatedat thelevelof
being.Finksaysthe"encounter
that
butat thelevelat which'oracularspeech'yieldsnon-sense,
thought,
ThisoracularspeechrecallsTopper'sdescripwhichcannotbe thought."40
tionofthemagicalformulas
composedofunintelligible
syllablesdesigned
to solicittheaid oftheHolyPeople.And theexperienceofthereal,I will
is equivalenttotheexperience
ofpsychosis.
laterdemonstrate,
is an attempt
Itis important
tonoteherethatthefundamental
fantasy
to reconcileoppositions,
oppositionsthatare perhapsparadoxesor perelse.Someof
ofsomething
partofsomething
hapsindications
inescapably
arePuebloagriculturalist/
thesedichotomies
Athapaskanhunter,
Apollo/
Dionysius,ceremonial
priest/shaman(bothunitedin medicineman),re/rebellion,
member/repeat,
adaptation
subject(speech,desire)/object(as
division/unity(bothechoed
a), pain/pleasure(bothsituatedinjouissance),
All ofthese
inobjeta),horror
(bothintherealand inpsychosis).
/plenitude
intheextremely
economicalCoyoteTransandmore,interact
dichotomies,
towhichI nowturn.41
formation
story,
The CoyoteTransformation
as narratedby Son ofthelateTall
story,
Deschini,begins:

78
BernardSelinger
Andso itseemsthatall RedAntPeoplewereoccupiedwiththechase.

And it happenedthata girl,who was husbandless,marrieda man
whowas likewise(single).ButtheCoyotefromsomewhere
cherished
a desireforthiswoman,and manywerethewaysin whichhe began
his schemes.All sortsofthingshe triedon theyoungman in order
to deceivehim,but always failed.Now thisman was exclusively
occupiedwiththechase.He was an expertat it and neverreturned
empty-handed.42
Whentheyoungmanreturned
homeeach eveninghe would puthis arrowsovertheentrance
so he couldtakethemonhiswayoutthenextdayat
dawn.Food wouldbe broughttohim,buthe alwaysatelittle.One morning,as usual,he cameupondeertracksand followedthem.He caughtup
to thedeer,woundedit withan arrow,and thengave chase.As he was
thedeer,Coyote"waylaidhimand without
beingawareofit,he
following
with
it
was running
Thus
that
he (Coyote)blew
parallel
Coyote.
happened
his breath,and his entireexterior,
exhis own voice,his entireinterior,
in
was
the
man.
This
caused
a
as
he
change
appearanceupon young
actly
to come overhim,he began to staggerand in timefellover" ("MRA,"
intheyoungman's"appearance"and
130).Coyotethen"clothedhimself"
clothedtheyoungmaninhis "ownlooks,"leavinghimto lie therein the
formofa coyotewhilehe walkedawayin theformofa man.
totheman'shomeatsundownwithout
venison,
placed
Coyotereturned
his arrowsabovetheentryway,
and sat downto eat. "He ate it all,while
all" ("MRA,"130).
theyoungmanhad notbeenin thehabitofconsuming
had
been
"backward
and
reserved
withhis
while
the
man
Similarly,
young
all nightlong"("MRA,"131).This
wife"Coyote"bothered
herconstantly
home
routinecontinuedforthreemoredaysand nights:Coyotereturned
with
the
woman
all
dined
and
night.On
empty-handed, greedily, copulated
the
mother-in-law
discovered
the
scentof
the"morning
ofthefourth
night"
woman
and
realized
that
had
been
schemurine
on
the
young
Coyote
coyote
man
to
the
where
he
encountered
tracked
the
young
spot
ingagain.They
human
thedeerand had thenbeen waylaid.Theynoticedcoyotetracks,
tracksthatled offsomewhere,
andtracksthatindicateda personmusthave
belowa wildrosebush."Talkaway.Theyfoundthehunter
draggedhimself
four
'Are
the
who
left
God
asks,
daysago,mygrandchild?'
you person
ing
. . . Perhapshe wouldhave replied,buta coyotesoundalonewas heard,
theperson'stailonlytwirled,
digginga holein theground"("MRA,"132).
this
was theyounghunter,
so theysentforthe
decided
that
Theyeventually
fourelderswhobelongedto theBearpeople.Theseeldershad theknowlthemindtimeand again"
with"powertorestore
edgeand theinstruments
- the
the
and
elaborate
Under
their
("MRA,"133).
procedure
guidance long
the
hunter.
was
to
restore
performed
Evilwayceremony
prototype

Lacan,and Derrida
79
WhiletheBearpeopleknowthecauseofand cureforpsychosis,
psyin generalarenotas sure.MostLacanians
and psychiatrists
chotherapists
one who has notsuccessfully
believe,as Lacan did,thatpsychosisafflicts
his aliennot
his castration,
has
the
accepted
Oedipus
complex,
navigated
theimaginary
thatremoves
thechildfrom
ationinlanguage.Themechanism
and
is "foreclosed"
orderis theName-of-the-Father,
which,in psychosis,
Thus
to
the
therefore
cannotbe "calledintosymbolic
subject/'43
opposition
and the
theunconscious
is notrepressed,
a holeopensup in thesymbolic,
the
of
in
the
The
chief
is
imaginary.
way investigating origins
subject trapped
is through
the
its"environmental
ofpsychosis,
and trigger
co-ordinates,"
to "paternalinadequacy"
themothercan bothcontribute
triadicstructure:
in thepromulgation
ofthe
and reservea placefor"theName-of-the-Father
- "theravagingeffects
of
roleis moreparadoxical
law,"whilethefather's
the
canbe seenwherehe takeson theroleoflegislator,
thepaternalfigure"
one who actuallymakesthelaws,and also wherehe poses as a "paragon
inupand is therefore
and devotion,"
ofintegrity
inadequateorfraudulent
Russell
the
Name-of-the-Father
(E, 218-19).
Griggemphasizesthat
holding
fromoutsidethesubject,as
fromthesymbolicreturns
whatis foreclosed
withtheother
fromthereal,and pointsoutthatthe"relations
emanating
and aggressiverivalrycharacteristic
are markedby theeroticattachment
of the
of theimaginary."44
WillyApollonregardspsychosisas an "effect
the
inthebody";thepsychotic
is "[c]aptured
Other'spuissance
by puissance
Finkagreesthatpuissanceinvades
oftheOther,possessedby itsvoices."45
tobecomea dividedsubjectin
butcontends
thatby refusing
thepsychotic
overtheother.46
achievesa "formofvictory"
or oflanguage,thepsychotic
is psychotic
no
since
one
who
Muller
also
finds
John
something
positive:
in
lives
the
in
a
world
mediated
that
real,in
bylanguage, person
longerlives
the
real
is "a
a placedevoidofthegapsorlacksoflanguage;
"immediacy,"
relations.
kindofstaticwholeas wellas a kindofblackholevoidofinternal
notjust'lossofselfbutan unTo'liveinthereal'meansthentoexperience
theterm'puissance'catchestheecstatic
bearableplenitude;
qualityofitbut
Whatis mostnotableabouttheseaccountsis thata battleis
notthehorror."47
masterfrom
todetermine
victorfromvictim,
butitis difficult
beingfought,
is lostin thebattle.And thewarseems
slave,orto discoverwhatprecisely
andbetween
betweenchildand father-symbolic
tobe wagedon twofronts:
comesfrom
Itisalsonotclearwhether
childandmother-imaginary.
puissance
come
within
Do thepersecutory
orwithout.
imagesthatinvadethepsychotic
intent
thechildfrom
themother,
orfrom
thefather
onseparating
from
figure,
whether
a
mother
orboth?Is itactually
theall-powerful
herself,
puissance,
ora combination,
thatrenorfather's,
person'sown,theperson'smother's,
andthen
Therealappearstocomefrom
without
dersthatpersonpsychotic?
thedualrelationship
wherethechildis imprisoned.
residessomehowwithin
ifpsychosisis in facta regression
to
All thisconfusion
is understandable

80
BernardSelinger
What
whereinsideand outsidearealmostindistinguishable.
theimaginary
is yetanother
as
seemsclearthoughis thatpsychosis
paradoxicalsituation,
inbetween,or
fora kindofhorrible
wellas a metaphor
giddysuspension:
real(as whole)andreal
(slave)andfree(master),
imprisoned
simultaneously,
(as hole),puissance(as pleasure)andpuissance(as pain).
is a
Ifthehunter'sillness,whichwillundergoceremonial
treatment,
formofpsychosis,
thenthehunterin somewayhas severedthesocialtie
to theother.Althoughon thesurfacethehunteris a valuablememberof
has rejectedcommunalvalues in favorof
he essentially
thecommunity,
economicones.He worksfromdawnto dusk,"exclusiveindividualistic,
ly occupiedwiththechase"("MRA,"130).Thisallowshimto producea
eventhoughtheir
profit:
surplusfromwhichCoyoteand thecommunity
becauseoftheexcesshe
hunteris gone,theycan stilleatwithouthunting
subsistence
has supplied.However,in hunter-gatherer
economies,hunttoo greedy,can endangeran animalspecies
ers who becometoo skilful,
thestory
thosewho relyon it.On one level,therefore,
and consequently
sanction
as
a
againstcreatinga
againstover-hunting,
employspsychosis
to excess,
to
one
who
leaves
oneself
comes
susceptible
surplus.Psychosis
orboth.What,though,
is thepreeitherone'sown,another's,
tojouissance,
thesurplusis thehunter'sobsessionwith
cisenatureofthissurplus?First,
thechase:he doesn'tneedto workas hardas he does; his need to go beand it undermines
yondneed takeshimaway fromhis wifeand family,
and
his
work
food
exclusiveaccess
from
he
anyenjoyment mightglean
the
hunter's
to hiswife.Secondly,
surplusis theenjoyment
concomitantly,
women.
deerlikeCoyotegoesafter
he receivesfromthehunt.He goesafter
in thattheyrepThe deerare theobject/causeofhis desire,particularly
resentMotherNatureor a piece ofherbody;theyprovidehisjouissance
thepain/pleasureofeatingbut
(thepain/pleasureofobsessivehunting,
him
from
and theykeep
notenjoying);
becomingmorethanan economic
he receivesfromthe
The
to
his
contributor community. surplusojouissance
it
and
leaveshimvulnerof
he
the
chasecauses
surplus goods produces,
he
is
almost
of
the
fact
that
if
because
to
able Coyote, only
alwaysalone.
as wellas punishment,
Butpsychosiscanbe liberation
especiallyifthe
oftheillness.
who
is
emblematic
to
as
hunteris seen acquiescing Coyote,
inand
of
his
alienation
of
the
is
thus
a
His acquiescence
symbolic,
rejection
has
severed
all
ties
that
he
The
observation
to
the
slave
except
community.
when Coyotearrived
theeconomicsuggeststhathe was pre-psychotic
on thescene.Beingenvelopedin a coyote'shide,no longerable to work
or speak,giveshima kindof victoryoverand freedomfromthecommunityand placeshimat one withMotherNature,in theskinofa beast.
but
oftheother,
He is trappedintheimaginary,
capturedbythejouissance
effects
the
is
also
in
He
real
experiencing "ravaging
immediacy.
living
of a
of thepaternalfigure. . . wherethe fatherreallyhas the function

Lacan,and Derrida
81
legislator/r(,218).InNavajomythologyCoyoteisalsoalegislator;inthisstory
whenhe is reallythelaw.Because
Coyotecomesinlookinglikedestruction
ofCoyote'sact,thehunter
mustundergotheforcedchoiceofa ritualwhose
ifthe
butwhoseultimate
effect
is adaptation:
primary
purposeis exorcism,
is
successful
the
hunter
will
the
be
reinserted
into
Yet
ceremony
symbolic. in
thestorytheillnessis perceivedas comingfromtheoutside,as something
notchosen.Coyoteis up tohisold tricks
again.Psychoanalysis,
though,(in
the
an imaginary
distinction
between
insideand
gesture)problematizes
fromthesymbolic
in
outside,so whatis foreclosed
mayreappear, different
fromoutsidethesubject,as emanating
fromthereal.Buttheeffects
form,
ofthisreturn
aresituatedatboththeimaginary
and symbolic
levels;there
is a topographical
ratherthanchronological
to
the
regression
imaginary.
IfCoyoteis a manifestation
ofthereal,he is something
thatcomesfrom
theoutside,leavesitseffects
insidethepersonand movesoutsideagain,
in a different
The
trauma
is bothstructural
and historical.
guisei
Coyoteis
from
without
that
not
its
on
the
hunter
something
onlyimposes jouissance
butalso stealsthehunter's
this
dilemma
installs
and
reflects
the
jouissance;
dimension
of
the
politico-allegorical
story.
I am hereattempting
to viewthedeceptively
simpleTransformation
as
the
both
of
story simultaneously symptom
personaland social(historimalaise
and
the
fundamental
cal,political)
fantasy(in a broadLacanian
that
the
have
and
witheveryEvilconstructed, reconstruct
sense)
Navajo
to
reflect
how
a
and
a
nation
way ceremony,
person
respondto primary
andtraumatic
and
loss.
For
most
Lacanians
and formostNavaseparation
I
and
are
allied.The
jo intellectuals,suggest,symptom fantasy intimately
is
the
return
the
of
the
symptom
repressed: pattern(s)we findourselves
The symptomcan revealitselfin thingswe thinkor say or in
repeating.
thebodyinscribed
bylanguage:thesimplebodilypleasuresprohibited
by
- something
intothejouissance
parentsand societybecametransformed
- thatreturnsand will notever "stop
evil,and erotically
dirty,
charged
fromimposingitself"on us.48Becauseoursymptoms
providepleasureas
wellas pain,we hangon tothem.Fantasyattempts
todeal withthesymptom,to extractthepleasureand dissipatethepain,and therebyat least
in a sense,is a message(fromthereal,
opposesit:thesymptom,
partially
outsideofmeaning)ofpainfulpleasurethatneeds interpretation,
while
thefantasy
relishesand deniesresponsibility
forthatjouissance
atthesame
the
time,largelybecause whatthesymptommightrevealis something
subjectdoesnotwanttofeel,partlybecauseitinvadesall areasofthebody
(itcan,infact,takeoverthebody,as Coyotedoes) and notjustthoseprivileged or programmed
erogenouszones to whichhe is accustomed.The
fantasy
stagesthepositionone adoptswithregardto an earlyexperience
thatwas feltto be traumatic.
SlavojZizek describesfantasyas thenarrativeofprimordial
loss,as thatwhichseparatesdrivefromdesire:

82
BernardSelinger
It tellsthe storythatallows the subjectto (mis)perceivethe void

loss constitutive
of
aroundwhichdrivecirculatesas theprimordial
desire.... It constructs
thescenein whichthejouissance
we are dein theOther,who stoleitfromus. . . . [T]he
privedofis concentrated
notionoffantasy
is ambiguous:beatific
(thevisionofthestate
fantasy
of things"beforetheFall") is supportedby a disturbing
paranoiac
which
tells
us
went
we
did
notget
things
why
wrong
(why
fantasy
thegirl,whysocietyis antagonistic).
Traversing,
goingthroughthe
meansthatwe accepttheviciouscircleofrevolvingaround
fantasy,
in it,renouncing
themyth
thevoid oftheobjectand findjouissance
else.49
thatjouissance
is amassedsomewhere
In ordertoheal,thepatientmustrecognizethathisorhertruesatisfaction
thatusuallyentailsa Eureka!or
is on theside ofthedrive,a recognition
it
that'sme,I reallywantedthis,"50
Zizek
states
as
God,
"yes,my
epiphany.
whileFinkputsitthisway:"Wherethereis jouissance
(whereit- theidTraversing
getsoff),I mustcomeintobeingas thesubjectofenjoyment."51
thefantasyis ultimateacceptance:one mustcome to termswith,make
viewed
one's own,thatwhichwas formerly
regardedas evil,something
as comingfromtheoutside.
it is transparent
thatCoyoterepresents
In theTransformation
story,
is
thealienthepatientmustaccommodate.
Coyote theotherwho stolethe
- jouissance
located
aroundthehunter'swife,his
hunter'sjouissance
being
with
the
land and animalsin that
his
to
hunt
game, relationship
ability
- and thushe symbolizesnearlyanykind
beatificstateofprehumanflux
ordeprivation
ofoutsidehistorical
experienced
bytheNavajo:
disruption
and
its
later
theadventofa Puebloanagricultural
accompanyeconomy
of
theinvasionof theSpanish;thebrutality
ing ideologyof modernity;
Kit Carson;thestockreductionprogram;thecontinuousencroachment
ofAmericanson Navajo land and on theirway of life;theeverpresent
are forever
and historical
Thiseasy analogy- wherestructural
witches.52
me!"
the
that's
becomes
"Yes,
epiphany.Since
complicatedby
aligned
is such a complicatedand always at least partiallyunidentification
consciousprocess,we have to questionwho thepatient(and theothers
in theceremony)
actuallyrecognizesas himself.Identificaparticipating
thatthereis no single,unified
the
tionis further
complicated
by contention
will
most
occasionally
jokeaboutCoyote,he is
Navajo
subject.Although
ofevil.Wecouldalsosayhepersonifies
stillregardedas thepersonification
all socialnormsinhischoiceofobjects,orifices,
theid inthathe disregards
he does
he almostalwayspaysforhistransgressions,
andmates.Although
havea greatdeal offunand mostanyone,at an unconsciouslevelat least,
withthat.Forthose,however,who makethemetaphoriwould identify
cal leap to KitCarsonand so on,Coyote'sevil is unassailable.Buteven

Lacan,and Derrida
83
thehunterwiththepatientas
purportsto identify
thoughtheceremony
as possible,physically
and spiritually,
Coyoteremainsa flyin
completely
theointment.
comreliesis further
Theidentification
processonwhichtheceremony
was
plicatedwhenwe recallthatCoyotein theNavajo huntertradition
One RedAntwaysingerpresentsCoyotein a
creatoras wellas destroyer.
is corrected
thatthe"witchcraft
by Coyotewho
positivelight,remarking
in
into
there
are
factthreestowho
trouble/'53
transforms
Also,
people
get
riesorepisodesattachedtotheEvilwayritual(theCoyoteTransformation
is thesecondand mostcommonly
used). In thefirstepisode,"Father-inknownas HolyMan,discoversthatCoyotewants
law Trials/'thehunter,
was a witchwho livedin an incesbothHolyMan's wife- whosefather
withher- and hisname,HolyMan (Coyotedislikedhis
tualrelationship
whenHolyManhearsofCoyote'sdesires,he mocks
ownname,"roamer");
him.AfterHoly
who
laterovertakesand transforms
and belittles
Coyote,
Man is curedby theHoop rite,he getshis revengein thefinalepisode,
"Bewitchedby Coyote,"by shootingarrowsintoCoyote'sanus.54While
orperhapsone shouldsayfroman outsider'sview,theceron thesurface,
the
is
thepatientwiththegood- thevictimized
hunter,
emony identifying
its
when
one
attends
to
the
narrative
and
contextual
the
Man
hero, Holy
withtheotherepisodes,one sees thattheputativebinaryberelationship
the"That'sme!"is notnecessarily
a
tweengoodand evilis problematized:
Man
is
not
and
of
entirely
Holy
Coyote(a Holy
recognition goodness.Holy
Andthe
Manwannabe)is notallthatbad:he is almostan objectofempathy.
difficult
to
locate.
that
is
lost
or
stolen
becomes
Which,precisely,
jouissance
is thepuissanceofCoyote,and whichis thehunter's?TheTransformation
distinction
and tries
thefundamental
blursthesubject-object
fantasy,
story,
tohave itscakeand eat ittoo:itallowsthesubjectto have theprimordial
oflanguageand tocontinueas a speaking,
puissancebeforetheinstallation
The
desiringsubject. psychoanalytic
processwouldhelpthepatientsee the
ofCoyote,as hisown,tocometotheplacewhere
drives,themachinations
thepatientwithHolyMan (overtly)
it,theid, resided.Butby identifying
theNavajo ceremony
andwithCoyote(covertly),
presentsitselfas a more
and
form
of
treatment.
complex integrated
eventhoughthepaButwhathappenswhena patient'sillnesspersists,
was the
tienthas traversed
thefantasy?
Lacan's response,
lateinhiscareer,
Homme
of
the
sinthome
a
of
and
Saint
concept
yoking symptme
(symptom)
which
the
Name-of-the-Father
as
the
element
that
replaces
(HolyMan)
and
orders
and
to
linksthereal,symbolic, imaginary
givesconsistency the
with
The
unlike
the
is perforated
Name-of-the-Father,
subject.55 sinthome,
It
the
is
a
of
created
pleasure.
specialorganization jouissance
by
subjectin
Sincethe
therealand therefore
resistant
to theworkingsofthesymbolic.
to
the
as
is
the
forfeiture
of
alternative
sinthome
only
symptom
psychosis,

84
BernardSelinger
theend ofanalysistrulyarriveswhenthepatientis able to

thesymbolic,
who
Lacan's primary
withthesinthome.
exampleis JamesJoyce,
identify
text"entailed
ForLacan,theJoycean
avoidedpsychosiswithhiswriting.
ofitas sinthome,
a specialrelationtolanguage;a 'destructive'
refashioning
theinvasionof thesymbolicorderby thesubject'sprivatejouissance."56
in a creativeway such as Joyce's,
If one is to identify
withthesinthome
statesas ways of
thenLacan is implicitly
acknowledging
psychotic-like
Miller
observesthat
the
within
and
Jacques-Alain
against symbolic.
living
"evenintheend,Lacanverymuchenjoyedsayingthatpsychotic
subjects
normal.Whichmeantthatthesymbolicorderis whatis
are completely
This is
abnormaland thathumannatureis fundamentally
paranoid."57
is
a
from
that
all
of
Lacan'
s
work
a
revelation,
flight
virtually
quite
given
Milleradds thatLacandefinespsychosis
anddenigration
oftheimaginary.
to
in termsoftheimaginary,
equatingthetwo,and he alwaysattempts
WhilefortheNavajo a successelevatethesymbolicovertheimaginary.
fulanalysisis a returnto thepsychotic
core,Lacan couldnotgo thisfar,
is not
understoodas thedominanceoftheimaginary,
becausepsychosis,
diawith
the
a
inertia
when
"has
dialectical:
compared
specific
psychosis
we findno truespeech,that
lecticalpotentialofneurosis.... In psychosis,
Thatis whyforeclosure
is a
is,no creativespeechwhichimpliesa dialectic.
Millerparaphrases
Forthepsychotic,
modeofnegation."58
non-dialectical
hallucinaLacan,"thewholeofthesymbolicorderis real . . . Psychotic
tionsaretakenbythesubjecttobe whataremostrealinhisexperience."59
The psychotic'
s modeofnegation,itseems,as well as his hallucinations,
ofthereal- whichkeepscomingbacktohaunt
thepsychotic's
experience
with its patternsalways the same- implythatthe psychoticmechaa certainfixity
or sameness.Finknoteshow thepsychoti
nismfurnishes
the
and
"reiterates
replacesexplanaagain samephrases;repetition
again
is acting
Itis as ifthepsychotic
hasnoplace."60
of
desire'
tion.The'dialectic
in accordancewiththereal,alongwiththedriveoutoftherealmofdesire
chain.In thisregardthepsychotic
and themtonymie
enjoysa greatdeal
an
also is notencumbered
Thepsychotic
offreedom.
by ego,"thehuman
RachelCorday,who
illness
of
man."61
the
mental
parexcellence,
symptom
absenceofany"I"
describes
the
on
detailsherpsychotic
experiences film,
the
of
The
boundaries
of
or center intentionality.
ego dissipateor disinfact
that
and
the
Given
all
this,
psychosisis so oftenconnected
tegrate.62
or
withcreativity
and genius,we shouldbe abletoregarditas ultimately,
a positiveforce.
at leastpotentially,
of neurosisand dialecticsoverpsyMillerand Lacan's privileging
betweenthe rationaland the
chosisand negationsetsup a dichotomy
and reconcilitheneuroticis open to discussion,engagement,
irrational:
In thissense,
ationwhilethepsychoticresistsanykindof compromise.
whomLacanregardedas embodying
is similartoAntigone,
thepsychotic

Lacan,and Derrida
85
of
stance.Indeed,theachievement
thespiritofan ethicalpsychoanalytic
a functional
psychoticstatedoes appear to be in accordwiththe goals
in psychosistheego is virtually
treatment:
ofpsychoanalytic
eliminated;
thereis
in
of
the
and
areas
is
no
located
body;
privileged
longer
jouissance
withthereal.Butin psychosisliesmadness- the
involvement
immediate
of theoethetransgression
collapseofthesymbolicintotheimaginary,
with
indifferentiation
to
a
state
of
(incestual)
leading
prohibition
dipal
other.Psychosisis thuspositiveand negative,cureand
the(primordial)
poison,and occupiesa similarpositionin thediscourseofLacan and the
does in Plato's.
Navajo as thepharmakon
a poisonthatbecomesmarginis a pharmakon,
In thePhaedrus,
writing
with
the
others
on
thewrongsideofthebinaries
alizedorrepressed
along
meanscureas
setup by Plato'stext.Butas Derridapointsout,pharmakon
outsidethe
andpharmakon
wellas poison,so eventhoughPlatoputwriting
relations
reversethisorder;therefore
orderofreason,thesignifying
pharmaofpoison
butis opentoall possibilities
has no fixedcharacter
kon,writing,
itis becauseit"constitutes
is "ambivalent,"
andcure.Thus,ifthepharmakon
. . . thatlinks
themediumin whichoppositesareopposed,themovement
reversesthemor makesone side crossoverinto
themamongthemselves,
the other(soul/body,good/evil,inside/outside,memory
/forgetfulness,
is themovement,
thelocus,and
etc.).. . . The pharmakon
speech/writing,
It
of
difference.
is
the
theplay:(theproduction
of)
diffrancedifference."63
with
is highlighted
thatinstallsdiffrance
The pharmakon
by itsconnection
like
Pueblo
comIn
much
Greek
communal
society,
scapegoat.
pharmakos,
and actions.As a
forhisthoughts
theindividualwas responsible
munities,
did
did
think
deviants
who
not
those
result,
aliens,criminals,
properly,
treated
as
toward
the
of
were
themselves
notdirect
debased,
scapegood all,
The
helpeddefineand regulatethecommunity.
goatswho,paradoxically,
fromitsterritory
itsintegrity
Greekcitymaintained
excluding
by"violently
Thatrepresentative
ofan extendedthreator aggression.
therepresentative
orinfect
theinsideby
oftheevilthatcomestoaffect
theotherness
represents
theAthenians
intoit"(D, 133).Consequently,
kept
breaking
unpredictably
withinthecitycertaindegradedbeingsthatwereled outsidethecityand
killedin a yearlyritualofexpulsion.Derridacontendsthatthescapegoat,
withinspeechand poisonwithincure,mustalreadyhavebeen
likewriting
it."Theceremony
ofthePharmakos
is thus
withinthecityinordertopurify
linebetweeninsideandoutside,whichithasas
playedoutontheboundary
. . .Theoriginofdifference
and
totraceand retrace.
itsfunction
ceaselessly
evilbothintrojected
andprojected The
thepharmakos
division,
represents
(D, 133).Pharmakon
sophrosune"
expulsionoftheevilor madnessrestores
"thatwhichpertainsto an attackofdemonicpossessionoris
also signifies
is defined
usedas a curative
againstsuchan attack"(D, 132).Andpharmakos
as "magician,"
"wizard,""poisoner,"
"rascal,""magicman,""the
variously

86
BernardSelinger
of
inexpiationforthesinsofthecity"(D, 132).Thefunction
one sacrificed
- and the
in Greeksocietyand thewitchin Navajo society
thepharmakos
buttheequationmustbe stretched
Coyoteinthetale- is almostidentical,
to includetherespectedand fearedmedicineman.Derridadescribesthe
"Beneficial
insofaras he cures- and forthat,veneratedand
pharmakos:
thepowersofevil- and for
caredfor harmfulinsofaras he incarnates
that,fearedand treatedwithcaution"(D, 133).The medicinemanenacts
theexpulsionofCoyote- who
hiscurein theEvilwayceremony
through
temand thereby,
eviland madness fromthehunter
/patient
represents
as
well.
But
an
element
from
the
essential
at
least,
community
porarily
of themedicineman blursintothatof Coyote,theoriginalmagicman,
sacredand accurseduntilhis sacredside was repressedand his accursed
reduces
In thestoryCoyote"attacks"thehunter,
side made prominent.
the
themedicineman identifies
himto madness,whilein theceremony
with
and
acts
as
a
with
the
hunter,
covertly Coyote, thereby
patientovertly
the
The
must
take
the
that
attack.
"curative
patient
poison
agent"against
- in ordertobe cured.
ofpsychosis
datura,theexperience
and identityby
a nation,maintainsits integrity
So a community,
of
the
the
debased
and dewithin
itself
an
element
alien,
accommodating
a
at
its
that
what
Zizek
claims
conjoins community deepestlevel
graded.
withlaws thatmaintaineverydayorderbut rather
is notidentification
witha specific
of theLaw, of theLaw's
formof transgression
"identification
terms,witha specificformofenjoyment)."
(in psychoanalytic
suspension
ofthesuperegohere,the"obscene'nightly7
Zizek is speakingprimarily
as itsshadow,the'public7
law thatnecessarily
redoublesand accompanies,
thesuperego,is
termofpsychoanalysis,
Ifan important
structural
Law."64
which
is
and
kind
of
another
cure,
comparableto Coypharmakon,
poison
link
to thehistorical
does
it
itself
how
ote,thelaw and its destruction,
a
between
hunter
traditionand
the
dimension,specifically relationship
the
If
the
an agricultural
pharmakon
(Coyote, superego)installs
ideology?
allbinaries,
and
undermines
which
then,tofollowthe
diffrance, produces
in
to
the
is
no
there
of
the
storyatleast,what
way decide,
pharmakon,
logic
The
is good or whatis evil,whichis thelaw and whichitsdestruction.
butbyhuntingobsessivelyhe
hunterobeysthelaw byhuntingdutifully,
eitherthe
worksagainstit.WhenCoyoteentersthescene,he can signify
an
older
of
tradition,
represented
bythe
supplanting
ideology agriculture
hunter
to
become
more
the
individualistic
or
a
method
of
hunter,
forcing
wish
of
an
or
the
agriculturalist
responsible,
communally,
agriculturally,
tobe a hunteragain.
- where the Name-of-the-Father
My attemptto equate psychosis
- withpharmakon
is further
has notbeenrepressed
/writing
supportedby
Derridaclaimsthattheoriginof
Derrida'saligningoflogos withfather.
ofhisspeech.Thus,
thatthespeakingsubjectis thefather
logosis itsfather,

Lacan,and Derrida
87
inhisverypresence
without
logosis a son,"a sonthatwouldbe destroyed
thepresentattendance
ofhis father.
. . . Withouthis father,
he would be
. . . The specificity
ofwriting
would thusbe
nothingbut,in fact,writing.
bound
to
the
absence
of
the
father"
becomes
(D,
77).
ultimately
Writing
thedesirefororphanhoodand patricidalsubversion,
and thedichotomy
betweenprohibition
and patricide,
liketherelationship
betweenspeech
and writing,
allowsDerridatoshowthatoneofthefounding
structures
of
Plato'stextis between"a patricide
and
a
prohibited
patricideproclaimed"
"
(D, 77).WhenDerridadisclosesthat writing
belongstotheorderand exofthesymptom"
thesituation
(D, 110),we areagainapproaching
teriority
ofa Joycewho createda successfulpsychotic
his writing
systemthrough
and thusbecamehis own symptomor sinthome.
the
Through pharmakon,
and son,masterand slave,speechand writing,
cure
psychosislinksfather
andpoisoninan endlessexchangethatwouldalwaysbe coloredand drivenbya formo jouissance:
thepharmakon
is forever
caughtinthemix,such
as that"violent,unboundedexcessofpleasurethatmakestheprofligate
cryoutlikea madman. . . Thistypeofpainfulpleasure,linkedas muchto
in itself.It partakesofboth
themaladyas to itstreatment,
is a pharmakon
ill"
and
(D, 99).
good
Severaldichotomiesare beingset up here:speech/writing,
neurocure
/patricideproclaimed, /poison,
sis/psychosis,
patricideprohibited
healer/poisoner,desire/jouissance,father
/son, sanity/insanity,law/
subversionoflaw.Accordingto theprincipleofdiffrance,
thesebinaries
undermineeach otherbecause each harborswithinitself,and is comhas suchsymbolic
plicitwith,theother.Becausethe(non)termdiffrance
- symbolicoftheendlessplayand production
force
ofdifferences,
ofthe
- itis easyto overlookthefactthatthe
ofall binaries
perpetualflattening
termwouldnotexistinthefirst
the"a" indiffrance
placewithoutwriting;
cannotbe distinguished
butonlyin script.Whatstillmakes
phonetically
"Plato'sPharmacy"compellingreadingis Derrida'sskilfuldemonstrationthatthereis an active,covert,sophisticated
at workin
dismantling
Plato'stextand,by extrapolation,
insideeveryconceptof Westernphias well as the
losophy.And the delightDerridatakesin the discovery,
toneofhiswriting,
side,
suggestthathe favorstheinitially
marginalized
thedangeroussupplement.
But,drivenby thelogicofhis (non) system,
his discovery,
he comesup withdiffrance,
thatwhichis installedby and
is virtually
allowshimto have things
equivalentto pharmakon.
Diffrance
bothways:it accommodates
thelaw and itssubversion;
it allows one to
be father
and son;itis cureand poison.Ifone ofthefoundingstructures
ofPlatoand Lacan's textis betweena patricideprohibited
and a patricide
thenthesame can be said ofDerrida,butwitha difference:
proclaimed,
Platoand Lacanpitonesideofa binaryagainsttheother,
putatively
privioverthelatter,
whileDerridaclaimsto privilegeboth
legingtheformer

88
BernardSelinger
forthelatter.
while(notso) secretly
andneither,
Derrida,trickster
cheering
and sorcerer,
slipsoutofthebinaryand dancesaroundit,yetis dependent
on itnonetheless.
I will push this
In thespiritof achievinginsightthroughaffinities,
and alignitwitha coupleofLacan's terms.If
further
notionofdiffrance
theprocessofdiffrance,
membersofthebinary,
themarginalized
through
revealthelack,thedivisionat theheartoftheprivilegedterm,thenthese
a kindof symptomthatprovidesan
dangeroussupplementsrepresent
toconcealthislack.Writthat
indexintothefundamental
fantasy attempts
it
exists
is
that
which
within;
keepsrepeating,
keepspointingto the
ing
of
the
other.
But
as
there
is
no
other
lack
gradually
symptom
originary
in Lacan's work,it dovetailswithDerrida'sdiffrance.
becomessinthome
is thatthrough
One wayto viewthesinthome
JoyceLacan is able toelimithemastersignifier
theName-of-the-Father,
nate,as does thepsychotic,
ofsigns.In psychosis,as in death,there
thatstopstheendlessmovement
And thereis
is "neither
presencenorabsenceand no speakingsubject."65
there
is
no
because
no genuinesignifier-signified
repression,
relationship
so wordsoperateintherealas objects,ina wayanalogoustotheemphasis
diffrance
placeson thenotionthatthereis no finalmeaningnoranygenuand thesignified.
betweenthesignifier
ine correspondence
Perhapsthe
and
be
between
that
can
made
connection
diffrance psychosis
strongest
Lacan does
therealas a kindofwritingitself,
is by regarding
something
in
the
the
form
of
Borromean
whenhe saysthattypology,
knot,
specifically
be
a
real.
So
can
the
real
'This writing
is a writing:
supportedby
supports
a writing?
Yes,indeed. . . thereis no othersensibleidea oftherealthanthe
one offered
bywriting,
bythetraitofwriting"(E, 332).As LukeThurston
wherethesubjectfallsawaybeforethe
pointsout,"[r]adicalforeclosure,
the
of
real,is ... invokedby Lacan as an explameaningless
particularly
thesinthome,
The real of thesymptom,
nationof thewritingprocess."66
and accessto a
relationtojouissance,
coincideswitha patient'sparticular
can onlybe afforded
forLacan
to anyimageorsignifier,
real,"irreducible
with
the
incommensurable
which
is
a
symbolicorultimately
by writing
which
is
both
The
of
der,beyondmetaphor."67 goal analysis,
implicitand
the
fundamentraverse
is
to
have
the
in
the
later
Lacan,
analysand
explicit
outsidetheclutchesof the
to cometo subjectivedestitution
tal fantasy,
deandthesymbolic.In thisregard,Paul Verhaeghe
theimaginary
other,
oftheotherand
scribeshowtheanalysandmustdiscoverthenonexistence
"Fromthatpointonwards,thesubject
ofhimselforherself.
consequently
theOther'.. . anymore;on
cannotbe considereda mere'answerto/from
thereal'.. . Appliedto
thesubjectis now an 'answerto/from
thecontrary,
theend ofanalysis,thismeansthatthesubjecthas createditsown sympwithit."68
Thisis whatJoyce
tomin therealand proceedsby identifying
does on a grandscale,visibleto all.

Lacan,and Derrida
89
Thesinthome,
oflanguage,an attempt
tomake
again,is a refashioning
itrealandnotsymbolic.
Eventhoughtheimpossiblerealis virtually
equated withthepsychotic
neither
nor
Thurston
process,
Verhaeghe
pointsto
thepatientcompletesanalysisbyrecognizthis,yetitis loudlyintimated:
in
himself
inghisorhernonexistence,
movingto thereal,and re-creating
E
vil
themannerofa (psychotic)
The
the
and
Joyce.
wayceremony
Coyote
Transformation
storyindicatethatmentalhealthis arrivedat by a movementintopsychosis,by identifying
withthesinthome,
SaintHomme,
the
who
is
both
evil.69
and
The
word
transformation
is
Man,
vital;
Holy
good
withsinthome
itlinksdiffrance
and withone ofLacan'scentraltopological
theMoebiusstrip,a rectangular
sheetofpaperthatbecomesa threeterms,
dimensional
one
end
180degreesand thenjoiningboth
figure
bytwisting
it appearsto have two sideswhenithas onlyone.At any
endstogether:
pointalongitssurfacetwosidescan be seen,butwhenone entireside is
itis clearthatthetwosidesarecontinuous.
traversed
TheMoebiusstripis
- justas onecanmovefrom
a primeexampleofa ceaselesstransformation
one side to theotherbytracinga finger
roundthestrip,so theanalysand
cantraverse
herfantasy
without
jumpingfrominsidetooutsideandback.
TheMoebiusstripalso showshow"psychoanalysis
various
problematizes
such
as
inside
love
/outside, /hate,signifier
binaryoppositions,
/signified,
Whilethetwotermsin suchoppositionsareoftenpretruth
/appearance.
sentedas radicallydistinct/'
the figuredemonstrates
thatthe opposed
termsare"notdiscretebutcontinuous
witheachother."70
The similarities
ofthisfigureto Derrida's diffrance
are striking,
and I proposethatwhen
a patientis successfully
hisorherfantasy,
thepatientis followtraversing
the
of
where
each
memberofa binaryis
ing peculiar(non)logic diffrance,
indynamicinterrelationship
withtheother,
itself
persistently
transposing
intotheotherandback:"Theceremony
ofthepharmakos
is thusplayedout
ontheboundarylinebetweeninsideand outside,whichhas as itsfunction
ceaselesslytotraceand retrace"(D, 133).
I setup an antinomy
betweensymptom
Earlier,
(an endlesslyrepeated
loss and division)
impulsefromtherealregarding
personaland historical
and fundamental
fantasy(whichattemptsto coveroverlack and loss).
However,if thesetermsare continuouswithone another,thenmental
- theputativeend ofanalysis,oftheEvilway
healthand socialwell-being
and pharmakos
ceremonies involvesmovementforwardthroughreverand recurrence:
one has to regularlygo througha kindof
sal, deferral,
insanity(a controlled
psychosis)to get to somethingresembling
sanity
morethannormalneurotic
and acquiescence),and
(something
repression
vice versa.This is theintricate
logicthatcreatestheMoebiusstripand
drivesand givesrisetodiffrance.
AlthoughDerridastressesthatdiffrance
is unstable,thatit is the"commonrootofall oppositionalconceptsthat
markourlanguage"and also the"production
... ofthesedifferences,"71

90
BernardSelinger
whenwe observetheoperationofdiffrance,
especiallyin thecase ofthe
we see thattheseoppositionalconcepts,such as masterand
pharmakon,
- we cannotfinallygetto
slave,Apolloand Dionysus,are alwaysin flux
oneexceptthrough
theother,
eventhoughincertaintimesand spacesone
is privilegedovertheother.Ifeach containstheotherwithinitselfthere
canbe no stasisbutonlythefreeplayoftransformation.
Insideeveryneuroticwho fleestherealthroughsomestructurally
relatedfantasythereis
a potential
whowoulddefyreality,
thentransform
it,transform
psychotic
thelaw oflanguage,thesymbolic,
intosomething
new and real:where
wordscanbecomeobjects.Likewise,withineverypsychotic
is a neurotic
who findsimmediacyunbearable(partlybecauseecstasyis inhabitedby
The same kindofreversalsapplyin othpain,anguish,and confusion).
er areas of psychoanalysis
insidethelaw,theson within
(transgression
in Western
thefather),
insidespeech,absenceinside
philosophy(writing
in
and
culture
withintheagriculturalist,
hunter
the
(the
presence),
Navajo
shaman/witch
within
the
medicine
man).
/coyote
Ifwe traverseourown fundamental
thepoliticalcan follow.
fantasy,
is
the
discourse,
Acceptance
key.72
Anyenlightened
includingradicaldewould
involve
"the
of
in otherwords,
mocracy,
acceptance antagonism,
therecognition
ofthefactthatthesocialwillalwaysbe structured
around
a real impossibility
whichcannotbe sutured."73
The mostprogressive
is thatifwe acceptour innerdivision,our own
thingaboutdestitution
we
do
not
an
evil,
require evil-doeron whomto projectit.Perhapswhat
makesthethinking
ofthelaterLacan,muchofDerrida,and mostNavajo
intellectuals
and reformational
is itsnon-dualistic
A
therapeutic
tendency.
driven
an
Old
Testament
that
in
is
search
society
by
ideology
constantly
oftheplaceswhereevilresidesin orderto punishitcannoteasilyaccommodatethosewho believethatgood and evil,freedomand constraint,
co-existand devolveintothe other.Non-dualistic
thinking,
though,by
itsverynature,mustaccommodatedualisticthinking,
forto rejectit,to
attemptto subvertit,would simplyinstigateanotherset ofbinaries.To
has begun(again).Unforacceptmeansthattheprocessoftransformation
if
few
modern
societies
have
what
the
tunately,
any
Navajohave:effective
ritualsfortraversing,
the
workingthrough, consequencesof structural
and historical
traumaand loss.Thisdestitution
involvestheimplicitembracement
ofthepsychotic
coreas a positivepossibility
ofbeing,ofinsight
and guidance,thatcan counterbalance
Westernsociety'sobsessionwith
and science,and itsperpetualcreation
ofApollonianresponses
rationality
totheperceivedterrors
ofDionysus.Theprivileging
ofthepsychotic
(the
shamanictrance,thestateofprehumanflux)is,as theEvilwayceremony,
theCoyoteTransformation
story,and theHoop ritedramatize,a recognitionoftheessentialcollisionand collaboration
ofcultureson theway
to a transformation
thatfinallyallowstheinterdependence
ofopposites.

Lacan,and Derrida
91
Thistherapeutic
at least,eliminates
or dissolves
processalso,temporarily
- of a personand,by
it to theecstasyofthetrance)
theego (surrenders
- and itsneed to createconflict
ofa (parochial)nation
and enextension,
and tojudge,rationalize,
and defend.
emies,to acquireand accumulate,
NOTES
MelonieOld,Ronald(Sam)LittleOwl,
goestoHelenWeinzweig,
Mygratitude
and WillieErminefortheirfriendship
and forenlightening
conversations
during
theprewriting
forhiseditorialsuggestions.
stageoftheessayand toKenProbert
1.JacquesDerrida,Positions,
trans.AlanBass (1972;Chicago:University
ofChicago Press,1981); Michel Foucault,TheOrderofThings:An Archaeology
oftheHuman
Sciences
(1966;New York:Vintage,1994).Thereis no single,universaldefinition
I tendto adheretothepsychoanalytic
ofpsychosis.
ofpsydefinition(s)
Although
intosomething
more
chosis,I expandit,or,rather,
suggestthatitexpandsitself,
In
and
than
clinical.
I
Romantic
overlook
the
more
fashion,
philosophical political
of
the
condition
a
one
could
to
are,
extent,
(which
aspects
debilitating
argue
large
becauseI wishtoregarditas a fieldofpossibiliculturally
imposedorexacerbated)
tiesforthemindand,especially,
thebody.AttheveryleastI considerita metaphor
- thatis suppressedand opfora wayofbeing- whichis oftenerotically
charged
and
that
dwells
within
pressed
subsequently
everypersonand system.
2. LelandC. Wyman,
TheRedAntway
oftheNavajo(SantaFe: MuseumofNavajo
Ceremonial
Art,1965),25. FatherBerardHaile,who,theNavajo claimed,spoke
theirlanguagelikethemselves,
recordedthetextoftheRed AntwayEvilwayin
latefallof1933andspringof1934as itwas dictated
bySonoftheLateTallDeschini
ofRoughRock,Arizona.The textis reprinted
in Wyman{RedAntway,
1965).On
thevariousdis-eases,see BertKaplanand Dale Johnson,
'The SocialMeaningof
and Psychotherapy/7
inMagic,Faith,
andHealing:Studies
NavajoPsychopathology
inPrimitive
ed.
Ari
Kiev
York:
Free
Psychiatry
Today,
(New
Press,1964),212.
3. TheNavajotermforCoyote,Ma?ii,translates
as "roamer."
Likemost
roughly
trickster
whohavebothhumanand animalqualities,he is a transformer,
figures,
and offender,
a liarwhois drivenbygluttony,
entertainer,
creator,
greed,and lust.
A.
to
A StudyofSymbolism
(1950;
According Gladys Reichard,NavahoReligion:
New York:Pantheon,
1963),Coyote's"lasciviousness
beganin thelowerworlds,
wheredesire,incest,and sorcerywereuncontrolled"
(424).He is also notedfor
his smell,particularly
ofurine,so evenwhenCoyoteis notmentioned
by name
bad smellshavebecomeeuphemisms
formentaldisorders.
See Jerrold
E. Levy,In
theBeginning:
TheNavajoGenesis(Berkeley,
Los Angeles,and London:University
ofCalifornia
Press,1998),94-96,Sam D. Gilland IreneE Sullivan,A Dictionary
of
NativeAmerican
(NewYorkandOxford:OxfordUniversity
Press,1992),
Mythology
422-26.
177-78,and Reichard,
NavajoReligion,
4. Reichard,
NavahoReligion,
113.
5. Ibid.,112.
6. Ibid.,6.
7. Topper,'The Traditional
Counselor,and
Navajo MedicineMan: Therapist,
10:3
232.
Leader,"
(1987):
Community
Psychoanalytic
Anthropology
8. ClydeKluckhohn,
NavahoWitchcraft
(Boston:BeaconPress,1944),226.

BernardSelinger
92
'The SocialMeaningofNavajo Psychopathology

and
9. Kaplanand Johnson,
222.
Psychotherapy/7
the Role of Diagnosisin Navajo ReligiousHealing/7
10. In his "Rethinking
14:4(2000),DerekMilnedescribesHolyPeoplesucMedicalAnthropology
Quarterly
as "manifestations
ofnaturalelementssuchas wind,water,or lightning,
cinctly
as wellas certainpowerfulanimals(bear,eagle,or snake,forexample)and other
andentifromtheNavajooriginstorycycle.Seenas sacred,theseelements
figures
tieshavethepowerto causeillnessinhumans"(546).
11.Reichard,
476.
NavahoReligion,
12. Levy,In theBeginning,
58.
and Historyto 1850,"in Handbook

13.David M. Brugge,"NavajoPrehistory
of
Smithsonian
InstituNorth
American
IndiansVol.10,ed.AlfonsoOrtiz(Washington:
tion,1983),489.
14.RuthUnderhill
fortheshaman:"Thequintesprovidesa standarddefinition
sentialNorthAmericanshamanwas someonewho receivedsupernatural
power
andwhoeffected
cures
fromoneormorespirithelpersduringa visionexperience
in
while
a
trance.
It
was
the
trance
with
these
supernaturais
by communicating
or priest"(quotedin Levy,
thatdistinguished
theshamanfromtheceremonialist
In theBeginning,
112).KarlW. Luckertdescribestheshamanas the"intellectual
Tradition
TheNavajoHunter
leaderofa groupofarchaichunters"
(Luckert,
[Tucson:
148.
of
Arizona
Press,
1975]),
University
and Ethnohistory
Arizona:
15. David M. Brugge,NavajoPottery
(Windowrock,
1963),21-22.
NavajolandPublications,
186.See also 146-48.
16.Luckert,
TheNavajoHunterTradition,
17.Levy,In theBeginning,
33-34.
HandTrembling,
E. Levy,RaymondNeutra,andDennisParker,
18.Jerrold
Frenzy
ofArizonaPress,1987),27.
andMothMadness(Tucson:University
Witchcraft,
19.Ibid.,29.
and
"TheSocialMeaningofNavajo Psychopathology
20. Kaplanand Johnson,
204-05.
Psychotherapy,"
21. The trancestateis practicedtodayas a meansof diagnosis,primarily
by
women.Thetranceis also aliveintheNativeAmericanChurch,oneofthreehealon theNavajoreservation;
(theotherbeingPentecostal
Christianity)
ingtraditions
it centerson all-nighthealingritualswhereparticipants
ingestsacredpeyote
state.Moreand moreNavajo
whichinducesa trance-like,
medicine,
hallucinatory
ofwhich,knownas "road
theconductors
attendtheseceremonies,
Traditionalists
who
are
now
as
Traditional
men,"began
integrating
majorcompopractitioners
nentsof Traditional
ceremonies,
includingBlessingwayand Evilway.See John
E Garrity,
"Jesus,Peyote,and the Holy People:AlcoholAbuse and the Ethos
14:4(2000):521-542;
ofPowerin NavajoHealing,"MedicalAnthropology
Quarterly
and Healingin ThreeNavajo ReligiousTradiand ElizabethLewton,"Identity
14:4 (2000):
tions:Sa7ah NaaghaiBik7ehHozho,"MedicalAnthropology
Quarterly
476-97.
NW.Althoughmost
abbreviated
22.Kluckhohn,
NavahoWitchcraft,
25;hereafter
America
were
averse
to
North
societies
of
incest,
theydid notconindigenous
as
to
siderita majorcauseofillness.Forconvincing
speculations whytheNavajo
sanctionsagainstincest,see Levy,In theBeginning,
neededsupernatural
139-44,

Lacan,and Derrida
93
andMothMadness,
and Levy,Neutra,and Parker,Hand Trembling,
FrenzyWitchcraft,
5 to9.
chapters
is one oftheprincipalpsyalso knownas jimsonweed,
23.Daturastramonium,
was oncea manwho
America.
North
and
Central
choactive
of
"Jimsonweed
plants
toldpeoplethatwhenhe diedhe wouldbe changedintoa plant,fromwhoseroots
AmongthePlainstribesofNorthAmericathe
theycouldobtainhealthandvisions.
are
used
toinducea trancefordiagnosingillness.
effects
of
jimsonweed
visionary
TheCherokeebelievetherootofthejimsonweedhas powerto improvememory
forsetTheLuisenouse daturaas an anesthetic
and promotea stablepersonality.
rites"(Gilland Sullivan,Dictionary
as wellas in initiation
tingbonesand surgery,
64).
ofNativeMythology,
and MothMad24. Levy,Neutra,and Parker,Hand Trembling,
FrenzyWitchcraft,
ness,1.
189-90.Based on twohuntingstories
TheNavajoHunterTradition,
25. Luckert,
ofHaile and on extensiveinterviews
containedin theunpublishedmanuscripts
Luckertuses theterm"prehuLuckertconductedwithtwo old Navajo hunters,
hunter
torefer
totheprimevalkinship
manflux,"whichrepresents
early
ideology,
ofthelivingworldand to theessentialconofhumanbeings"withall creatures
timesall livingbeingsexistedin
tinuity
amongthemall. In prehumanmythical
- theirexternalformswereinterchangeable"
TheNavajo
a stateofflux
(Luckert,
and theideologyofmoHunterTradition,
133).Withtheadoptionof agriculture
thatrejected
beliefin a commonessenceand languageamongall formsof
dernity
and replacedbythemyth
life,theprehumanfluxwas pushedto theunderworld
- between
Therepression
oftheprehumanfluxsetup a dichotomy
ofemergence.
naturalandsupernatural,
order
insideandoutside,goodandevil,bodyand spirit,
exist.The conceptofprehumanfluxhas afand chaos- thatdid notpreviously
finities
to theDionysianimpulseas describedbyFriedrich
who,in the
Nietzsche,
BirthofTragedy(in Basic WritingsofNietzsche,trans.WalterKaufmann [1871; New
York:TheModernLibrary,
2001],37),writes:"UnderthecharmoftheDionysian
but naturewhichhas
notonlyis theunionbetweenman and man reaffirmed,
oncemoreherreconciliation
becomealienated,hostile,or subjugated,celebrates
and peacefully
thebeastsof
earthproffers
hergifts,
withherlostson,man.Freely,
preyoftherocksand desertapproach.. . . [Eachonefeelsfusedwithhisneighbor]
in tatas iftheveil ofmayahad beentornaside and werenow merelyfluttering
tersbeforethemysterious
primordial
unity."EventhoughNietzschedoes finally
- oratleasta bala synthesis
oftheDionysianandApolloniantendencies
promote
- his
in
the
of
act
where
holds
Apollo
abeyance primitive
energy Dionysius
ancing
the
when
about
and
his
attraction
to
is
most
evocative
writing
Dionysius,
prose
as
he revelsin itbutfearsit,regarding
Dionysianis strong:
Dionysianimmediacy
And theboundary-dissolving,
irrational
exuberance
oftheDionysian
intolerable.
containsa conjunction
ofpoisonand cure,pain and pleasure.Nietzschewrites,
"Thehorrible'witchesbrew'of sensuality
and cruelty
becomesineffective;
only
remind
thecuriousblendingand dualityintheemotionsoftheDionysianrevelers
thatpainbeus- as medicinesremindus ofdeadlypoisons- ofthephenomenon
getsjoy,thatecstasymaywringsoundsofagonyfromus.Attheveryclimaxofjoy
theresoundsa cryofhorror
or a yearning
lamentation
foran irretrievable
loss.In
theseGreekfestivals,
natureseemstoreveala sentimental
trait;itis as ifshewere

94
BernardSelinger
intoindividuals"(TheBirth
40).
heavinga sighatherdismemberment
ofTragedy,
26. Levy,Neutra,and Parker,
HandTrembling,
andMothMadFrenzy
Witchcraft,
ness,47-48.
27. ClydeKluckhohnand DorotheaLeighton,TheNavaho(1946;Londonand
HarvardUniversity
Press,1998),247.
Cambridge:
28. SigmundFreud,"BeyondthePleasurePrinciple"in TheStandard
Edition
the
Works
Vol.
XVIII
trans.
Freud,
(1920-1922)
of Complete
Psychological ofSigmund
JamesStrachey
(London:Hogarth,1962),18.
29.Ibid.,19.
30.Lacan,TheSeminar
BookI. Freud's
ed. Jacques1953-1954,
PapersonTechnique
AlainMiller,trans.JohnForrester
(1975;Londonand New York:W. W. Norton,
1991),16.
31. See Lacan,TheSeminar.
BookVII. TheEthicsofPsychoanalysis
ed.
1959-1960,
Miller,trans.DennisPorter(1986;New Yorkand London:W. W.
Jacques-Alain
AnExploraNorton,
1997),177.Inhis"FromKantianEthicstoMystical
Experience:
tionofpuissance"inKeyConcepts
ed.
Nobus
(New
ofLacanian
Psychoanalysis,Dany
York:OtherPress,1999),1-28,DylanEvanspointsoutthat,ingeneral,
whenLacan
refers
itis alliedwithpleasureandpain,butwhenhe
tothepuissanceofthesubject,
he meanspleasurewithout
speaksofthepuissanceoftheother,
suffering.
a was perhapshisgreatest
32.Lacanbelievedobpt(petit)
contribution
topsychothe
best
that
there
is
fundamental
some
"truth"
analysis.Likely
proof
psychological
in theconceptis thefactthatLacancouldneither
findnorletgo ofthisobject.He
- theanomaly,
obsessively
pursueditanditsmanyavatars
agalma,thecauseofdethe
the
lost
the
the
Freudian
sire, analyst'sdesire,
object, other,
Thing,thereal,and
hiscareerbutcouldnevergraspit,labelitsecurely,
so on- throughout
orcompletely
he approached
andavoidedtheobject/causeofhisdesire
defineit.Likehispatients
inall itssurrogate
andhe didthis,mostpublicly,
inhisseminars.
forms,
toLacanianPsychoanalysis:
andTechnique
33. Fink,A ClinicalIntroduction
Theory
241.
and
London:
Harvard
Press,
1997),
(Cambridge
University
ed. JacquesAlain
34. Lacan, TheFourFundamental
Concepts
ofPsychoanalysis,
Miller,trans.AlanSheridan(1973;New York:W.W.Norton,1981),289.
35. Fink,TheLacanianSubject:
Between
andJouissance
(1995;Princeton:
Language
136.
Princeton
Press,
1997),
University
in A Compendium
eds.
36. KatrienLibbrecht,
"Treatment,"
ofLacanianTerms,
ZitaMarks,and Sara Murphy(Londonand New York:Free
HuguetteGlowinski,
Association
Books,2001),215.
37.Lacan,TheFourFundamental
273.
Concepts,
thepatient
38.Lacanintroduced
thecontroversial
of"thepass,"wherein
practice
totheend ofheranalysis,in 1967as a waytoformalize
thepassagefrom
testifies
Dictionary
analysandtoanalyst.Formoreonthis,see DylanEvans,AnIntroductory
(Londonand New York:Routledge,
1997),135-36.
ofLacanian
Psychoanalysis
in
39.Lacan,quotedbyRussellGrigg,"Signifier,
Objectand theTransference,"
and MarkBracher
Lacanand theSubjectofLanguage,
eds. Ellie Ragland-Sullivan
(New Yorkand London:Routledge,
1991),112.
in ReadingSeminar
40. Fink,"The Real Cause ofRepetition,"
XI, eds. Richard
of New York
BruceFink,and MaireJaanus(Albany:StateUniversity
Feldstein,
Press,1995),225.

Lacan,and Derrida
95
41.NativeAmericans
andpotency
oftheirmostvital
typically
explainthebrevity
suchas "ourstoriesareshortbecausewe knowso much/'
storieswithstatements
trans.Haile,inWyman,
42.Deschini,'The MythofRedAntway,
MaleEvilway,"
abbreviated
"MRA."Likeall narratives,
TheRedAntway,
129-30;hereafter
Navajo
so thereis notalwaysagreement
on whatthey
storiesareopento interpretation,
takethe
mean.Also,notall Navajo are fundamentalists;
theydo notnecessarily
in
R.
their
stories
Farella
demonstrates
this
incidents
John
literally.
"supernatural"
In
it
is
but
a
correct
withan important
"monster,"
concept:
Naay.
English
Navajo
thatgetsinthewayofone'slife."Thisincludes
glosswouldbe closerto"anything
ora bad maritalrelationphysicalillness,worry,
thingslike"depression,
poverty,
native
are
of
The
'monsters7
for
some
practitioners merelytheobjectifcation
ship.
entities
as
make
them
or
exorcisable
so
to
theserelatively
manageable
intangible
.... [T]he'metaphysical'
oftheterm... is perfectly
interpretation
appropriate
in theNavajo context"(Farella,TheMain Stalk:A Synthesis
ofNavajoPhilosophy
ofArizonaPress,1984],8).
[Tucson:University
A Selection,
trans.AlanSheridan(1966;New York:W.W.Nor43. Lacan,Ecrits:
abbreviated
E. See also Lacan,TheSeminar.
BookIII. The
ton,1977),217;hereafter
ed.Jacques-Alain
trans.RussellGrigg(1981;NewYork
1955-1956,
Miller,
Psychoses
and London:W.W.Norton,1997),198.
44. Grigg,"FromtheMechanism
ofPsychosis
to theUniversalConditionofthe
in
57.
on
Foreclosure,"
Nobus,
ed.,
KeyConcepts
ofLacanian
Psychoanalysis,
Symptom:
Treatment
ofPsycho45. Apollon,"Theoryand Practicein thePsychoanalytic
LacanandtheSubject
126.
and Bracher,
sis,"inRagland-Sullivan
ofLanguage,
49.
46.Fink,TheLacanianSubject,
47. Mller,"Language,Psychosis,and the Subjectin Lacan," in Interpreting
Lacan,eds.JosephH. Smithand WilliamKerrigan(New Havenand London:Yale
Press,1983),28.
University
in Ragland-Sullivan
as Symptom,"
and Bracher,
48. ColetteSoler,"Literature
214.
LacanandtheSubject
ofLanguage,
in Nobus,KeyConcepts
49.Zizek,"TheSevenVeilsofFantasy,"
ofLacanian
Psy209-10.
choanalysis,
50.Ibid.,210.
toLacanianPsychoanalysis,
215.
51.Fink,A ClinicalIntroduction
in thefieldoftheU.S. war
52. From1863to 1864KitCarson,thecommander
theirmeansofsuragainsttheNavajo,drovethemfromtheirlandsbydestroying
thousandsof sheep,poisoningwells,decimating
homesand
vival,slaughtering
and burningcropsand orchards.Eventually,
livestockshelters,
morethan8,000
350 milesofspringblizzardsto Bosque Redondo
Navajo weremarchedthrough
nearFortSumnerandheldcaptiveuntil1868,afterwhicha treaty
was signedand
theNavajo wereallowedto returnto theirhomeland.The new reservation
was
aboutone-tenth
thesize oftheland theypreviously
held.Bytheearly1930sthe
Navajopopulationhad expandedtonearly40,000so,despiteadditionstotheresbecamea seriousproblemaccording
togovernment
ervation,
overgrazing
agents.
theBureauof IndianAffairs
a stockreductionpolicy;
instituted
Consequently,
1935to 1945morethan250,000goatsand sheepwerekilled.
fromapproximately
in
ThiscausedmanyNavajo to live at barelya subsistence
leveland eventually,
itendedthepastoralway oflifewithoutprovidingan adequatetransition
effect,

96
BernardSelinger
towarda wage and laboreconomy.

to deToday,theNavajocontinuethestruggle
as
individuals
and
families
velopadequatewage-work
opportunities
increasingly
"Jesus,Peyote,and the
competeforwater,land,education,and jobs.See Garrity,
33-34and 159-60;WilliamA. Young,
HolyPeople,"522-24;Levy,In theBeginning,
NativeAmerican
Traditions
(New York:SevenBridges
QuestforHarmony:
Spiritual
Press,2002),228^40;and Judith
Nies,NativeAmerican
(New York:BallanHistory
tineBooks,1996),264-70and 332.
53.Wyman,TheRedAntway,
74.
54. KatherineSpencer,Mythology
and Values:An AnalysisofNavajoChantway
AmericanFolkloreSociety,
1957),208-11.
Myths(Philadelphia:
55.As a neologismsinthome
containsa seriesofassociations:
synthetic-artificial
betweensymptom
andfantasy,
SaintThomas.Solersaysthatwhen
man,synthesis
Lacan "gave a year-long
seminaron 'JoycetheSymptom'in 1975-1976he wrote
- 'sinthome'
- introducing
thewordsymptomas it used to be writtenin French
the
of
a
in
We
hear
it theEnglish
thereby enigma
translinguistic
equivocation.
words'sin7and'home/as wellas theFrenchwordsSaint(saint)andhomme
(man)"
as Symptom,"
(Soler,"Literature
213).
56.LukeThurston,
in Evans,AnIntroductory
189-90.
Dictionary,
57. Miller,"An Introduction
in Reading
to Lacan's ClinicalPerspectives,"
SeminarsI andII: Lacan'sReturn
toFreud,
eds. RichardFeldstein,
BruceFink,and Maire
ofNew YorkPress,1996),245.
Jaanus(Albany:StateUniversity
58.Miller,"AnIntroduction
toLacan'sClinicalPerspectives,"
245.
59.Ibid.,246.Although
Lacanrejected
thepossibility
ofa psychotic
centeratthe
heartofthesubject,
MillernotesthatMelanieKleinbelievedthatallpeoplecontain
a psychotic
core,whichis whyLacan's mirror
stageis partofstandardKleinian
Lacan,itseems,did notsee howfundamental
training.
psychosiswas tohiswork.
One couldsurmise,
thatLacanhimself
was never
partlyfromcomments
byothers,
ableentirely
toexittheimaginary:
PaulJulienclaimsthat"theteachingofJacques
Lacan is, fromstartto finish,a debatewiththeimaginary"(quotedin Richard
Deathand Desire:Psychoanalytic
in Lacan'sReturntoFreud[New
Boothby,
Theory
Yorkand London:Routledge,
Clmentsaysthat"Lacanmay
1991]),21.Catherine
havenothad anyotheridea thanthatofthemirror
we
stage.... In thisdiscovery
findallhisfuture
workinembryonic
form"{LivesandLegends
trans.
Lacan,
ofJacques
Arthur
Goldhammer
Press,1983]),100-01.Jane
[NewYork:ColumbiaUniversity
theimaginary.
GallopobservesthatLacanfavorsthesymbolicoveritsadversary,
"Inasmuchas anyonewouldbe 'for'thesymbolicand 'against'theimaginary,
he
intheimaginary.
wouldbe operating
the
ethical
to
accede
to
Ironically,
imperative
thesymbolic
andvigilantly
toresisttheimaginary
is itself
miredintheimaginary"
Press,1985]),60.
(Gallop,ReadingLacan[Ithacaand London:CornellUniversity
Evans,inhisAnIntroductory
Dictionary,
saysthatithasbeen"commontocompare
Lacan'stortured
and attimesalmostincomprehensible
andspeakstyleofwriting
ingtothediscourseofpsychotic
patients"(154).
60.Fink,A Clinical
Introduction
toLacanian
101.
Psychoanalysis,
61.Lacan,TheSeminar.
Book1,16.
62.In Fink,A ClinicalIntroduction
toLacanianPsychoanalysis,
89-90.
63.JacquesDerrida,Dissmination,
trans.BarbaraJohnson
(1972;Chicago:UniofChicagoPress,1981),127;hereafter
D.
abbreviated
versity

Lacan,and Derrida
97
64. Zizek, TheMtastasesofEnjoyment:

Six Essayson Womenand Causality(Lon-
don:Verso,1994),54-55.
and theSubjectin Lacan/'31.
65.Mller,"Language,Psychosis,
"TheBorromean
in Nobus,KeyConcepts
66. Thurston,
Knot/7
ofLacanianPsy157.
choanalysis,
67.Ibid.,158.
68.Verhaeghe,
"Causationand Destitution
ofa Pre-Ontological
On
Non-Entity:
the Lacanian Subject/7in Nobus, KeyConceptsofLacanianPsychoanalysis,

183.
69.StudieshavetendedtoplaceNavajoceremonies
between
alonga continuum
hzh(good) and hchx
twoclashingconcepts,
(evil).Farellashowsthatthisdualisticview is inaccurate.
Althoughgoodnessand harmonyare basic to Navajo
can
exist
thought,
they only
alongwiththeircounterparts.
Any"whole"is therefore"composedoftwopartswhicharein a sensecomplementary
and in another
senseopposed"(Farella,TheMainStalk,176).Birthand death,goodandevil,order
in an equilibrium
and chaos,lightand darkness,
areinextricably
intertwined
that
becomes
unbalanced.
Maureen
Trudelle
Schwarz
backs
Farella7
s
claims
regularly
throughher interviewswith two Navajo philosophers:Hanson Ashleysays,
How would you say,Tt is "a"
"Really,how would you say Tt is 'a7 harmony?7
balance?7You have to have thosetwo oppositions77
(hzhand hchx);
Harry
Walters
concurs:"Thehzh,
all
of
that.
Whatitactuallymeansis
peace,
harmony,
thatthereis a balance,thereis a balanceforthegeneralgood.77
Schwarznotesthat
a thorough
reviewofthedifferent
accountsofNavajo originrevealthatalthough
"itis truethatat theinstantofitscompletion
theNavajo worldwas in a stateof
'naturalorder/thenegative,
elementsthatwouldultimately
evil,and malevolent
this
state
were
latent
within
it77
(Schwarz,
[Norman:Unidisrupt
NavajoLifeways
ofOklahomaPress,2001]),175-78.FormostNavajophilosophers,
then,the
versity
extremes
ofa binarystandincontrast
toeachother,
buttheydependon eachother
as well,eachplayingoffagainstand existing
withintheother.
70.Evans,AnIntroductory
116.
Dictionary,
71.Derrida,Positions,
9.
72. MartinHeidegger,
Zen Buddhists,
Derrida,and theNavajo can all be regardedas employinga kindof personaland publicacceptanceand a working
divisionand lackthatis akinto Lacan7
s notionoftraversing
thefantasy.
through
thatanxietyis themostbasichumanmood and thatthe
Heideggermaintained
ofour activities
to distract
us fromit.
majority
(includingwork)are constructed
MichaelE. Zimmerman
paraphrasesHeidegger'sclaimthat"ifwe submitresolutelyto whatthemood of anxietywantsto revealto us, we becomeauthentic
... in thesenseof'owning7our mortalexistence.77
to
Conversely,
by continuing
runfromanxiety
we "concealthetruth
aboutourownmortalnothingness
and are
thusincapableofallowingthingsto manifest
themselves
primordially.77
Similarly,
of
awareness
and
comesZenenlightenment,
persistent
through
practice
acceptance
orsatori,
or which"involvesdirectinsightintoone's radicalgroundlessness
satori
andnothingness77
and deepecology"inThe
(Zimmerman,
Buddhism,
"Heidegger,
toHeidegger,
ed. CharlesB. Guignon[Cambridge:
Cambridge
Companion
Cambridge
as is wellknown,critiques
Press,
Derrida,
244-45.)
1993],
University
Heidegger's
wishtomovetoa recognition
ofa deepersenseofbeing:he suggeststhatwe need
to deal witha morefundamental
divisionthathas been repressedor evaded.In

BernardSelinger
98
In 'Trauma,Absence,Loss/7
is a call fordestitution.
manywaysthissuggestion
La
25
Dominick
Critical
Caprawritesthatseen"ina certain
Inquiry (Summer1999),
a
and playing(at timesactis
itself
of
deconstruction
way workingthrough
light
relations
tononfull
presence.
mutually
implicated
ing)outabsencein itscomplex,
(Inthisrespectitmaybe similartoBuddhism.)"(714).(InhisMadnessandModernand
andThought
intheLight
ism:Insanity
Art,Literature,
[1992;Cambridge
ofModern
London:HarvardUniversity
Press,1998],LouisA. Sass allbutstatesthatDerridais
s approachtophilosophical
Sass drawsparallelsbetweenDerrida7
texts,
psychotic.
and theautonomization
oflanguagein
his conceptofarche-writing,
particularly
attention
tothegraphforexample,"payinordinate
Schizophrenics,
schizophrenia.
to puns. . .
ic appearanceor soundofwords. . . and theytooarehighlysensitive
.
.
.
awareness
of
have
a
are
also
inclined
to
[andtend]
ambiguities
heightened
They
tocederesponsibility
towords- allowingtheirdiscoursetobe ledbytraceswithin
s
words(schizophrenic
glossomania)"(201).In generalSass believesthatDerrida7
In
an
often
rhetoric"
a
are
"beclouded"
(349).
Dionysian
by "misleading
writings
s conceptof
ofDerrida7
whichincludes,I believe,a misreading
scathingcritique,
takesontheroleofApollo,opposedtoonehe considers
Sass inadvertently
writing,
ofDionysus.Theissuesofchangeand lossarevitaltoNavajo
tobe an incarnation
is- howdoesonefind
an
questionforNavajointellectuals
epistemology: important
writesFarel"The
that
is
valued?
in
the
loss
of
answer,"
something
highly
meaning
la in TheMainStalk,"is thattheworldview restson theacceptanceofprocess;it
a process
andacceptslossand change77
(21).Through
knowledge,
through
predicts
and accepts
theego,distinctiveness,
thatis inevitable
one graduallyrelinquishes
"Whenone finally
dissolution.
acceptsthathe is all,he acceptsthathe is nothing.
totherealization
itis tantamount
Whenonerealizesthat. . . theuniverseis within,
ofnon-existence"
(151).
LacanandthePolitical
73.YannisStavrakakis,
(NewYorkandLondon:Routledge,
120.
1999),
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in Lacan'sReturnto
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The Navajo, Psychosis, Lacan, and Derrida

Author(s): Bernard Selinger

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The Navajo, Psychosis,Lacan,

- Michel Foucault, TheOrderofThings1

Manyoldercultureshad no specificwordforthekindof statetheterm

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no mathe believed,all mustexitin ordertobecomefunctioning

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notfititssystemofbelief,so too Westernsocietydemonizesthatwhich

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symbolicand how thisordermoldsit and liveson throughitpreventsit

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procedurecan take many years:it involvescreatinga new neurosis

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Andso itseemsthatall RedAntPeoplewereoccupiedwiththechase.

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It tellsthe storythatallows the subjectto (mis)perceivethe void

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theend ofanalysistrulyarriveswhenthepatientis able to

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'The SocialMeaningofNavajo Psychopathology

and Historyto 1850,"in Handbook

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towarda wage and laboreconomy.

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64. Zizek, TheMtastasesofEnjoyment:

the Lacanian Subject/7in Nobus, KeyConceptsofLacanianPsychoanalysis,

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and Healingin ThreeNavajo ReligiousTraditions:

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