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Welcome to NoSubject

NoSubject is an open, scholarly encyclopedia of psychoanalysis, with a particular emphasis on Freudian and Lacanian theory.

If you are new here, this page is designed to help you orient yourself quickly — without assuming prior knowledge, clinical training, or familiarity with psychoanalytic jargon.

You do not need to read everything. You only need to choose a starting path.

Choose your path

🧭 I am new to psychoanalysis

If you are encountering psychoanalysis for the first time — or if your exposure has been indirect (through literature, philosophy, cultural theory, or art):

Start with a narrative orientation before concepts
Focus on *why* psychoanalysis matters, not technical mastery
Learn how ideas connect before learning definitions

- Recommended starting points:**

Lacan in 90 Minutes — a guided, non-technical introduction to Lacan’s project
What Is Psychoanalysis?
Freud
Why Lacan Is Difficult
Introduction to Key Lacanian Concepts (read selectively, not all at once)

🎓 I am a student or researcher

If you are studying psychoanalysis in the humanities, social sciences, or theory-driven disciplines:

Use concept pages as reference tools, not textbooks
Trace ideas across seminars, texts, and debates
Move laterally between concepts, figures, and historical moments

- Core portals:**

- High-utility resources:**

ConceptNavbox (used at the bottom of major concept pages)
A–Z Index
Bibliographies
Chronology of Jacques Lacan

🩺 I am a clinician or clinician-in-training

If you are interested in psychoanalysis as a clinical practice:

Concepts are inseparable from technique, ethics, and structure
Avoid treating terms as fixed definitions
Read with the clinic in mind, even when reading theory

- Clinical orientation pages:**

- Related portals:**

How to use NoSubject

This is not a textbook

NoSubject is designed for **non-linear reading**.

You are encouraged to:

Follow links rather than read pages top-to-bottom
Return to the same page multiple times
Let unfamiliar terms remain partially unclear at first

Confusion is not a failure — it is structurally appropriate.

Concepts here are relational

Psychoanalytic concepts do not stand alone. They take meaning from their position relative to other concepts.

If a term feels opaque:

Scroll to the bottom of the page
Use the navigation boxes
Follow one or two adjacent concepts — not ten

Frequently asked questions

Do I need to read Freud first? No — but Freud is unavoidable. Lacan is best understood as a *return to Freud*, not a replacement for him.

Why are definitions sometimes slippery? Because psychoanalytic concepts are tools, not objects. Their meaning shifts with context, structure, and use.

Is this site neutral? NoSubject aims for scholarly rigor, not neutrality in the sense of flattening differences. Lacanian, Freudian, and post-Freudian positions are distinguished where relevant.