Knot

Jacques Lacan used a topological structure of the knot to define the relationship of the symbolic, the real, and the imaginary.

In particular, he referred to the structure of rings on the coat of arms of the Borromei family. After introducing this notion on February 9, 1972, in his seminar ". . . ou pire" (. . . or worse), he made the knot a central focus of his theory.

In mathematical terms, a knot is a simple closed curve (Jordan's curve). Lacan mainly considered two nodal structures (Figure 1):

• The Borromean...