Transitivism
Revision as of 09:33, 26 April 2006 by 64.252.129.62 (talk)
transitivism (transitivisme) Transitivism, a phenomenon first discov-
ered by Charlotte B¸hler (see E, 5), refers to a special kind of IDENTIFICATION
often observed in the behaviour of small children. For example a child can hit
another child of the same age on the left side of his face, and then touch the
right side of his own face and cry in imagined pain. For Lacan, transitivisin
illustrates the confusion of ego and other which is inherent in imaginary
identification. The INVERSION (right to left) is further evidence of the function
of the mirror.
Transitivism is also evident in paranoia, in which attack and counter-attack
are bound together 'in an absolute equivalence' (Lacan, 1951b: 16).