Changes

[[Psychiatrist]]s also distinguish between generalised [[anxiety (angoisse) Anxiety has long been recognised in psychiatry as]] states, when "free-[[floating]] anxiety" is [[present]] most of the [[time]], and "[[panic]] attacks," which are "intermittent episodes of acute anxiety."<ref>Hughes, Jennifer. ''An [[Outline]] of Modern Psychiatry'', Chichester: Wiley, 1991. pp. 48-9</ref>

one of ==Sigmund Freud==The [[German]] term employed by [[Freud]] (''[[Angst]]'') can have the most [[psychiatric]] [[sense]] described above, but is by no means an exclusively technical term, [[being]] also in common symptoms of mental disorderuse in ordinary [[speech]]. Psychiatric descrip-

tions [[Freud]] developed two theories of [[anxiety generally refer to both mental phenomena (apprehension,]] during the course of his [[work]].

fatigueIn 1926, dizziness[[Freud]] argued that [[anxiety]] is a reaction to a "[[trauma]]tic [[situation]], sweating and tremor)" an [[experience]] of [[helplessness]] in the face of an accumulation of [[excitation]] that cannot be [[discharge]]d. Psychiatrists also distinguish

between generalised anxiety states[[Trauma]]tic situations are precipitated by "situations of [[danger]]" such as [[birth]], when [[loss]] of the [[mother]] as [[object]], [[loss]] of the [[object]]'free-floating anxiety' is presents [[love]] and, above all, [[castration]].

most [[Freud]] distinguishes between "[[anxiety|automatic anxiety]]," when the [[anxiety]] arises directly as a result of the timea [[trauma]]tic situation, and 'panic attacks'"[[anxiety|anxiety as signal]], which are 'intermittent episodes " when the [[anxiety]] is actively reproduced by the [[ego]] as a warning of an anticipated situation ofdanger.

acute ==Jacques Lacan==In his early work, [[Lacan]] relates [[anxiety' (Hughes, 1981: 48-9)]] to the [[threat]] of [[fragmentation]] which the [[subject]] confronts in the [[mirror stage]].

The German term employed by Freud (Angst) can have It is only long after the psychiatric sense[[mirror stage]], he argues, that these [[fantasy|fantasies]] of bodily dismemberment coalesce around the [[penis]], giving rise to [[castration]] [[anxiety]].<ref>{{1938}} p. 44</ref>

described above, but is He also [[links]] [[anxiety]] with the [[fear]] of being engulfed by no means an exclusively technical term, being alsothe devouring [[mother]].

in common use in ordinary speech. This theme (with its distinctly [[Klein]]ian tone) remains an important aspect of [[Lacan]]'s account of [[anxiety]] thereafter, and marks an [[apparent]] [[difference]] between [[Lacan]] and [[Freud]]: whereas [[Freud developed two theories ]] posits that one of the causes of [[anxiety]] is [[separation]] from the [[mother]], [[Lacan]] argues that it is precisely a [[lack]] of such [[separation]] which induces [[anxiety]].

during ==Real==After 1953, [[Lacan]] comes increasingly to articulate [[anxiety]] with his [[concept]] of the course of his work[[real]], a [[trauma]]tic element which remains [[external]] to [[symbolisation]], and hence which [[lacks]] any possible mediation. From 1884 to 1925 he argued that neurotic

anxiety This [[real]] is simply a transformation "the essential object which isn't an object any longer, but this something faced with which all [[words]] cease and all [[categories]] fail, the object of sexual libido that has not been adequatelyanxiety par excellence."<ref>{{S2}} p. 164</ref>

discharged==Imaginary==As well as linking [[anxiety]] with the [[real]], [[Lacan]] also locates it in the [[imaginary]] [[order]] and contrasts it with [[guilt]], which he situates in the [[symbolic]]. In 1926<ref>{{L}} "[[Works of Jacques Lacan|Fetishism: The Symbolic, howeverthe Imaginary and the Real]]" (with W. Granoff), he abandoned this theory 1956. M. [[Balint]] (ed.), ''Perversions: [[Psychodynamics]] and argued instead[[Therapy]]'', New York: Random House, [[London]]: Tavistock. pp. 272-3</ref>

that anxiety was <blockquote>"Anxiety, as we [[know]], is always connected with a loss . . . with a reaction two-sided relation on the point of [[fading]] away to a be superseded by something else, something which the [[patient]] cannot face without [[vertigo]]."<ref>{{L}} "[[Works of Jacques Lacan|Fetishism: The Symbolic, the Imaginary and the Real]]" (with W. Granoff), 1956. M. Balint (ed.), ''Perversions: Psychodynamics and Therapy'traumatic situation' - an experience of, New York: Random House, London: Tavistock. p. 273</ref></blockquote>

HELPLESSNEss ==Phobia==In the [[seminar]] of 1956-7 [[Lacan]] goes on to develop his [[theory]] of [[anxiety]] further, in the face context of an accumulation his [[discussion]] of excitation that cannot be[[phobia]].

discharged[[Lacan]] argues that [[anxiety]] is the radical danger which the [[subject]] attempts to avoid at all costs, and that the various [[subject]]ive [[formation]]s encountered in [[psychoanalysis]], from [[phobia]]s to [[fetishism]], are protections against [[anxiety]]. Traumatic situations are precipitated by 'situations of danger'<ref>{{S4}} p. 23</ref>

such as birth, loss of the mother as object, loss of the object'[[Anxiety]] is thus present in all [[neurotic]] [[structure]]s love and,but is especially evident in [[phobia]].<ref>{{E}} p. 321</ref>

above all, castrationEven a [[phobia]] is preferable to [[anxiety]];<ref>{{S4}} p. Freud distinguishes between 'automatic 345</ref> a [[phobia]] at least replaces [[anxiety', when]] with [[fear]] (which is focused on a [[particular]] [[object]] and thus may be [[symbolic|symbolically]] worked-through).<ref>{{S4}} p. 243-6</ref>

==Little Hans==In his [[analysis]] of the anxiety arises directly as [[case]] of [[Little Hans]],<ref>{{F}} "[[Work of Sigmund Freud|Analysis of a result of Phobia in a traumatic situationFive-Year-Old Boy]]", 1909b. [[SE]] X, 3.</ref> [[Lacan]] argues that [[anxiety]] arises at that [[moment]] when the [[subject]] is poised between the [[imaginary]] [[preoedipal phase|preoedipal triangle]] and 'anxiety asthe [[Oedipal]] [[quaternary]].

signalIt is at this junction that [[Little Hans|Hans]]', when s real [[penis]] makes itself felt in [[infantile]] [[masturbation]]; [[anxiety]] is produced because he can now measure the anxiety difference between that for which he is actively reproduced loved by the ego [[mother]] (his [[position]] as a warning of an[[imaginary phallus]]) and that which he really has to give (his insignificant real [[organ]]).<ref>{{S4}} p.243</ref>

anticipated situation of danger[[Anxiety]] is this point where the [[subject]] is suspended between a moment where he no longer [[knows]] where he is and a [[future]] where he will never again be able to refind himself.<ref>{{S4}} p.226</ref>

Lacan[[Hans]] would have been saved from this [[anxiety]] by the [[castrating]] [[intervention]] of the [[real]] [[father]], in his pre-war writings, relates anxiety primarily but this does not happen; the [[father]] fails to intervene to [[separate]] [[Hans]] from the threat of[[mother]], and thus [[Hans]] develops a [[phobia]] as a [[substitute]] for this intervention.

fragmentation with which the subject Once again, what emerges from [[Lacan]]'s account of [[Little Hans]] is that it is confronted in not [[separation]] from the mirror stage (see[[mother]] which gives rise to [[anxiety]], but failure to [[separation|separate]] from her.<ref>{{S4}} p. 319</ref>

FRAGMENTED BODY). It Consequently, [[castration]], far from being the principal source of [[anxiety]], is only long after actually what saves the mirror stage, he argues, that these[[subject]] from [[anxiety]].

fantasies ==Desire==In the [[seminar]] of bodily dismemberment coalesce around 1960-1, [[Lacan]] stresses the penis, giving rise [[relationship]] of [[anxiety]] to[[desire]].

castration anxiety (Lacan, 1938: 44)[[Anxiety]] is a way to sustain [[desire]] when the [[object]] is [[missing]]. He also links anxiety with the fear of

being engulfed by the devouring mother[[Desire]] is a remedy for [[anxiety]], easier to bear than [[anxiety]]. This theme (with its distinctly<ref>{{S8}} p. 430</ref>

Kleinian tone) remains an important aspect of Lacan's account He also argues that the source of [[anxiety]] is not always [[internal]] to the [[subject]], but can often come from [[another]], just as it is transmitted from one [[animal]] to another in a herd; "if anxietyis a [[signal]], it means it can come from another."<ref>{{S8}} p. 427</ref>

thereafterThis is why the [[analyst]] must not allow his own [[anxiety]] to interfere with the [[treatment]], and marks an apparent difference between Lacan and Freud:a requirement which he is only able to meet because he maintains a [[desire]] of his own, the [[desire]] of the [[analyst]].<ref>{{S8}} p. 430</ref>

whereas Freud posits that one of ==Truth==In the causes [[seminar]] of 1962-3, entitled simply "[[Anxiety]]", [[Lacan]] argues that [[anxiety ]] is an [[affect]], not an [[affect|emotion]], and furthermore that it is separation from theonly [[affect]] which is beyond all [[doubt]], which is not [[truth|deceptive]].<ref>{{S11}} p. 41</ref>

mother==''Objet (petit) a''==Whereas [[Freud]] distinguished between [[fear]] (which is focused on a specific object) and [[anxiety]] (which is not), [[Lacan ]] now argues that [[anxiety]] is not without an [[object]] (''n'est pas sans [[objet]]''); it is precisely simply involves a lack different kind of such separation [[object]], an [[object]] whichcannot be [[symbolise]]d in the same way as all other [[object]]s.

induces This [[object]] is ''[[objet petit a]]'', the [[object-cause of desire]], and [[anxiety]] appears when something appears in the [[place]] of this [[object]].

==Lack==It is also in this [[seminar]] that [[Lacan]] links [[anxiety]] to the concept of the real, a traumatic element which remains external to symbolisation, and[[lack]].

hence which lacks any possible mediation. This real All [[desire]] arises from [[lack]], and [[anxiety]] arises when this [[lack]] is itself [[lack]]ing; [[anxiety]] is 'the essential object[[lack]] of a [[lack]].

[[Anxiety]] is not the [[absence]] of the [[breast]], but its enveloping [[presence]]; it is the possibility of its [[absence]] which isn't an object any longeris, in fact, but this something faced with that which allsaves us from [[anxiety]].

words cease [[Acting out]] and all categories fail, [[passage to the object of act]] are last [[defence]]s against [[anxiety par excellence' (S2,]].

164)==Mirror Stage==[[Anxiety]] is also linked to the [[mirror stage]].

As well as linking anxiety with Even in the real, Lacan also locates it usually comforting experience of [[seeing]] one's [[reflection]] in the[[mirror]] there can occur a moment when the [[specular image]] is modified and suddenly seems strange to us.

imaginary order and contrasts it with guiltIn this way, which he situates in [[Lacan]] links [[anxiety]] to [[Freud]]'s concept of the symbolic''[[uncanny]]''.<ref>{{F}} "[[The Uncanny]]", 1919h. [[SE]] XIV, 161.</ref>

==''Jouissance''==Whereas the [[seminar]] of 1962-3 is largely concerned with [[Freud]]'s second theory of [[anxiety]] (Lacan[[anxiety]] as [[sign]]al)), 1956b: 272in the [[seminar]] of 1974-35 [[Lacan]] appears to [[return]] to the first [[Freud]]ian theory of [[anxiety]] ([[anxiety]] as transformed [[libido]]). 'Anxiety, as we know, is always connected with a loss

. . . with a two-sided relation on the point of fading away to be superseded by something else, something which the patient cannot face without vertigo'  (Lacan, 1956b: 273).  In the seminar of 1956-7 Lacan goes on to develop his theory of anxiety  further, in the context of his discussion of PHOBIA. Lacan argues Thus he comments that [[anxiety ]] is  the radical danger that which [[exists]] in the subject attempts to avoid at all costs, and that the  various subjective formations encountered in psychoanalysis, from phobias to  fetishism, are protections against anxiety (S4, 23). Anxiety is thus present in  all neurotic structures, but is especially evident in phobia (E, 321). Even a phobia is preferable to anxiety (S4, 345); a phobia at least replaces anxiety (which is terrible precisely because it is not focused on a particular object but  revolves around an absence) with fear (which is focused on a particular object  and thus may be symbolically worked-through) (S4, 243-6).  In his analysis interior of the case of Little Hans (Freud, 1909b), Lacan argues that  anxiety arises at that moment [[body]] when the subject [[body]] is poised between the imagin-  ary preoedipal triangle and the Oedipal quaternary. It is at this junction that  Hansovercome with [[phallus|phallic]] 's real penis makes itself felt in infantile masturbation; anxiety is produced because he can now measure the difference between that for which  he is loved by the mother (his position as imaginary phallus) and that which he  really has to give (his insignificant real organ) (S4, 243). Anxiety is this point  where the subject is suspended between a moment where he no longer knows  where he is and a future where he will never again be able to refind himself  (S4, 226). Hans would have been saved from this anxiety by the castrating  intervention of the real father, but this does not happen; the father fails to  intervene to separate Hans from the mother, and thus Hans develops a phobia  as a substitute for this intervention. Once again, what emerges from Lacan's  account of Little Hans is that it is not separation from the mother which gives  rise to anxiety, but failure to separate from her (S4, 319). Consequently,  castration, far from being the principal source of anxiety, is actually what  saves the subject from anxiety.  In the seminar of 1960-1 Lacan stresses the relationship of anxiety to desire;  anxiety is a way of sustaining desire when the object is missing and, con-  versely, desire is a remedy for anxiety, something easier to bear than anxiety  itself (S8, 430). He also argues that the source of anxiety is not always internal  to the subject, but can often come from another, just as it is transmitted from  one animal to another in a herd; [[jouissance]]'if anxiety is a signal, it means it can come  from another' (S8, 427). This is why the analyst must not allow his own  anxiety to interfere with the treatment, a requirement which he is only able  to meet because he maintains a desire of his own, the desire of the analyst (S8,  430).  In the seminar of 1962-3, entitled simply <ref>{{L}} 'Anxiety', Lacan argues that  anxiety is an affect, not an emotion, and furthermore that it is the only affect  which is beyond all doubt, which is not deceptive (see also Sl l, 41)[[Seminar XXII|Le Séminaire. Whereas  Freud distinguished between fear (which is focused on a specific object) and  anxiety (which is not), Lacan now argues that anxiety is not without an object (n'est pas sans objet); it simply involves a different kind of object, an object  which cannot be symbolised in the same way as all other objectsLivre XXII. This object is  objet petit aRSI, the object1974-cause of desire5]]'', and anxiety appears when something  appears published in the place of this object. Anxiety arises when the subject is  confronted by the desire of the Other and does not know what object he is  for that desire.  It is also in this seminar that Lacan links anxiety to the concept of lack. All  desire arises from lack, and anxiety arises when this lack is itself lacking;  anxiety is the lack of a lack. Anxiety is not the absence of the breast, but its  enveloping presence; it is the possibility of its absence which is, in fact, that  which saves us from anxiety. Acting out and passage to the act are last  defences against anxiety.  Anxiety is also linked to the mirror stage. Even in the usually comforting  experience of seeing one's reflection in the mirror there can occur a moment  when the specular image is modified and suddenly seems strange to us. In this  way, Lacan links anxiety to Freud's concept of the uncanny (Freud[[Ornicar?]]'', 1919h)nos.  Whereas the seminar of 19622-3 is largely concerned with Freud's second  theory of anxiety (anxiety as signal)5, in the seminar of 1974-5 Lacan appears  to return to the first Freudian theory of anxiety (anxiety as transformed libido)1975.  Thus he comments that anxiety is that which exists in the interior [[Seminar]] of the body  when the body is overcome with phallic jouissance (Lacan, 1974-5: seminar of  17 December 1974).</ref>