Difference between revisions of "Talk:End of analysis"

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{{Top}}fin d'analyse{{Bottom}}
  
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==Sigmund Freud==
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In ''[[Analysis Terminable and Interminable]]'', [[Freud]] asks:
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<blockquote>"Is there such a thing as a natural end to an analysis?"<ref>{{F}} ''[[Sigmund Freud:Bibliography|Analysis Terminable and Interminable]]'', 1937. [[SE]] XXIII p.219</ref></blockquote>
  
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In '''[[Analysis Terminable and Interminable]],''' [[Sigmund Freud]] reflects upon whether it is ever possible to
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==Jacques Lacan==
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[[Lacan]]'s answer is that [[psychoanalytic treatment]] is a [[progress|logical process]] with a beginning and an end-point, designated as the "[[end of analysis]]".
  
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discusses the question of whether it is ever possible to conclude an [[analysis]], or whether all analyses are necessarily incomplete (Freud, 1937c).  
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===Aim===
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The [[end of analysis|''end'' of analysis]] must be distinguished from the ''[[End of analysis|aim]]'' of [[psychoanalytic treatment]].
  
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The [[end of analysis|aim]] of [[treatment]] is to lead the [[analysand]] to articulate the '''[[truth]]''' about his or her [[desire]].
  
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[[Jacques Lacan]] asserts that it is indeed possible to speak of concluding an analysis.  
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While not all [[treatment|analyses]] are carried through to their [[progress|conclusion]], any [[treatment|analysis]] -- however incomplete -- may be regarded as successful when it achieves this [[end of analysis|aim]].  
  
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The term '[[end of analysis]]' (Fr. ''fin d'analyse'')
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The question of the [[end of analysis]] is therefore something more than whether a [[treatment|course]] of [[treatment|analytic treatment]] has or has not achieved its aim; it is a question of whether or not the [[treatment]] has reached its logical [[End of analysis|end-point]].
  
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===Definition===
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[[Lacan]] conceives of this [[End of analysis|end-point]] in various ways.
  
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analytic treatment is a logical [[process]] which has an end.
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:1. In the early 1950s, [[Lacan]] describes the [[end of analysis]] as "the advent of a true [[speech]] and the realization by the [[subject]] of his [[history]]" -- that is, as coming to terms with one's own [[death|mortality]].<ref>{{E}} p. 88</ref>
  
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it is necessary to distinguish between the end of analysis and the aim of psychoanalytic [[treatment]].  
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:<blockquote>"The [[subject]] ... begins the analysis by speaking about himself without speaking to you, or by speaking to you without speaking about himself. When he can speak to you about himself, the analysis will be over."<ref>{{Ec}} p. 373, n. 1</ref></blockquote>
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The aim of psychoanalytic treatment is to lead the analysand to articulate the [[truth]] about his [[desire]].  
 
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Any analysis, however incomplete, may be regarded as successful when it achieves this aim.  
 
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The question of the end of analysis is therefore something more than whether a course of analytic treatment has or has not achieved its aim; it is a question of whether or not the treatment has reached its logical end-point.
 
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Lacan conceives of this end-point in various ways.
 
  
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l. In the early 1950s, the end of analysis is described as "the advent of a true speech and the realisation by the subject of his history."<ref>E, 88</ref> (see [[speech]]).
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:2. In 1960, [[Lacan]] describes the [[end of analysis]] as a state of [[anxiety]] and [[anxiety|abandonment]] -- that is, as a state of [[helplessness]].
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"The [[subject]] ... begins the analysis by speaking about himself without speaking to you, or by speaking to you without speaking about himself. When he can speak to you about himself, the analysis will be over."<ref>Ec, 373, n. 1</ref>
 
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The end of analysis is also described as coming to terms with one's own [[mortality]].<ref>E, 104-5</ref>
 
  
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2. In 1960, Lacan describes the end of analysis as a state of [[anxiety]] and abandonment, and compares it to the [[helplessness]] of the human [[infant]].
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:3. In 1964, [[Lacan]] describes the [[end of analysis]] as the point when the [[analysand]] "traverses the radical [[fantasy]]."<ref>{{S11}} p. 273</ref>
  
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3. In 1964 he describes it as the point when the [[analysand]] has "[[traverse]]d the radical [[fantasy]]."<ref>Sll, 273</ref> (see [[fantasy]]).
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:4. In the final decade of his teaching, [[Lacan]] describes the [[end of analysis]] as an "[[identification]] with the ''[[sinthome]]''."
  
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4. In the last decade of his teaching, he describes the end of analysis as "[[identification]] with the ''[[sinthome]]''", and as "knowing what to do with the sinthome." (see ''[[sinthome]]'').
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====Position of Analysand and Analyst====
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In general, the [[end of analysis]] involves two fundamental changes in the respective [[discourse|subjective positions]] of
  
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Common to all these formulations is the idea that the end of analysis involves a change in the [[subjective position]] of the [[analysand]] (the analysand's '[[subjective destitution]]'), and a corresponding change in the position of the [[analyst]] (the loss of [[being]] [Fr. ''désêtre''] of the analyst, the fall of the analyst from the position of the [[subject-supposed-to-know]]).
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* the [[analysand]] -- the "[[subjective destitution]]" of the [[analysand]], and
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At the end of the analysis, the analyst is reduced to a mere [[surplus]], a pure [[objet petit a]], the [[cause of desire|cause of the analysand's desire]].
 
  
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Since Lacan argues that all psychoanalysts should have experienced the [[process]] of analytic [[treatment]] from beginning to end, the end of analysis is also the passage from [[analysand]] to [[analyst]].  
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* the [[analyst]] -- the "[[loss of being]]" ([[French]]: ''[[désêtre]]'') of the [[analyst]].
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"The true termination of an analysis" is therefore no more and no less than that which "prepares you to become an analyst."<ref>S7, 303</ref>
 
  
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In 1967, Lacan introduced the procedure of the [[pass]] as a means of testifying to the end of one's analysis.
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The [[analyst]] is reduced -- from the [[discourse|position]] of the [[subject-supposed-to-know]] -- to a mere [[surplus]], a [[objet petit a]], the [[cause]] of the [[analysand]]'s [[desire]].
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By means of this procedure, Lacan hoped to avoid the dangers of regarding the end of analysis as a quasi-mystical, ineffable experience.
 
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Such a view is antithetical to psychoanalysis, which is all about putting things into words.
 
  
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Lacan criticises those [[psychoanalyst]]s who have seen the end of analysis in terms of [[identification]] with the analyst.
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====Passage from Analysand to Analyst====
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In opposition to this view of psychoanalysis, Lacan states that the "crossing of the plane of identification is possible."<ref>Sll, 273</ref>
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For [[Lacan]], the [[end of analysis]] is also the passage from [[analysand]] to [[analyst]] -- for all [[psychoanalysts]] must undergo [[analytic treatment]] from beginning to end before being allowed to practice as [[analysts]].
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Not only is it possible to go beyond identification, but it is necessary, for otherwise it is not psychoanalysis but suggestion, which is the antithesis of psychoanalysis; "the fundamental mainspring of the analytic operation is the maintenance of the distance between the I - identification - and the a."<ref>S11, 273</ref>
 
  
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Lacan also rejects the idea that the end of analysis involves the 'liquidation' of the [[transference]].<ref>see S11, 267</ref>
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Since [[Lacan]] argues that all [[psychoanalysts]] should have experienced the process of [[analytic treatment]] from beginning to end, the [[end of analysis]] is also the passage from [[analysand]] to [[analyst]].  
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The idea that the transference can be 'liquidated' is based on a misunderstanding of the nature of the transference, according to which the transference is viewed as a kind of [[illusion]] which can be transcended.
 
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Such a view is erroneous because it entirely overlooks the [[symbolic]] nature of the transference; transference is part of the essential [[structure]] of [[speech]].
 
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Although analytic treatment involves the resolution of the particular transference relationship established with the analyst, transference itself still subsists after the end of analysis.
 
  
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Other misconceptions of the end of analysis which Lacan rejects are: "strengthening the ego", "adaptation to reality" and "happiness".
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<blockquote>"The true termination of an analysis" is therefore no more and no less than that which "prepares you to become an analyst."<ref>{{S7}} p. 303</ref></blockquote>
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The end of analysis is not the disappearance of the [[symptom]], nor the [[cure]] of an underlying disease (e.g. [[neurosis]]), since analysis is not essentially a therapeutic process but a search for [[truth]], and the truth is not always beneficial.<ref>Sl7, 122</ref>
 
  
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<ref>54</ref>
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===Misconceptions===
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====Identification with the Analyst====
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[[Lacan]] criticizes those [[psychoanalysts]] who describe the [[end of analysis]] in terms of [[identification]] with the [[analyst]].
  
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==References==
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For [[Lacan]], it is not only possible, but necessary to go beyond [[identification]], for otherwise it is not [[psychoanalysis]] but [[suggestion]] -- which is the antithesis of [[psychoanalysis]].
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<references/>
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====Transference====
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[[Lacan]] also criticizes those [[psychoanalysts]] who describe the [[end of analysis]] in terms of "liquidation" of the [[transference]].
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For [[Lacan]], this erroneous view is based on a misunderstanding of [[transference]] -- as a kind of illusion which can be transcended -- which overlooks the [[symbolic]] nature of [[transference]] -- as an essential [[structure]] of [[speech]].
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Although [[analytic treatment]] does involve the resolution of the particular ''[[transference|transference relationship]]'' established with the [[analyst]], [[transference]] itself still subsists after the [[end of analysis]].
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====Other Misconceptions====
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The [[end of analysis]] does not involve:
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* the strengthening the [[ego]]
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* the [[adaptation]] to [[reality]]
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* the [[disappearance]] of the [[symptom]]
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* the [[cure]] of an underlying disease (e.g.''[[neurosis]]'')
  
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For [[Lacan]], [[analysis]] is not essentially a [[treatment|therapeutic process]] but rather a search for [[truth]] -- and the [[truth]] is not always beneficial.<ref>{{S17}} p. 122</ref>
  
 
==See Also==
 
==See Also==
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{{See}}
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* [[Analysand]]
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* [[Analyst]]
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||
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* [[Fantasy]]
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* [[Sinthome]]
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||
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* [[Speech]]
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* [[Subject]]
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||
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* [[Symptom]]
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* [[Transference]]
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{{Also}}
  
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==References==
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<references/>
  
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[[Category:Terms]]
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__NOTOC__
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[[Category:Concepts]]
 
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[[Category:Treatment]]
 
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[[Category:Psychoanalysis]]
 
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[[Category:Jacques Lacan]]
 

Latest revision as of 02:10, 5 September 2006

French: fin d'analyse

Sigmund Freud

In Analysis Terminable and Interminable, Freud asks:

"Is there such a thing as a natural end to an analysis?"[1]

Jacques Lacan

Lacan's answer is that psychoanalytic treatment is a logical process with a beginning and an end-point, designated as the "end of analysis".

Aim

The end of analysis must be distinguished from the aim of psychoanalytic treatment.

The aim of treatment is to lead the analysand to articulate the truth about his or her desire.

While not all analyses are carried through to their conclusion, any analysis -- however incomplete -- may be regarded as successful when it achieves this aim.

The question of the end of analysis is therefore something more than whether a course of analytic treatment has or has not achieved its aim; it is a question of whether or not the treatment has reached its logical end-point.

Definition

Lacan conceives of this end-point in various ways.

1. In the early 1950s, Lacan describes the end of analysis as "the advent of a true speech and the realization by the subject of his history" -- that is, as coming to terms with one's own mortality.[2]

"The subject ... begins the analysis by speaking about himself without speaking to you, or by speaking to you without speaking about himself. When he can speak to you about himself, the analysis will be over."[3]

2. In 1960, Lacan describes the end of analysis as a state of anxiety and abandonment -- that is, as a state of helplessness.
3. In 1964, Lacan describes the end of analysis as the point when the analysand "traverses the radical fantasy."[4]
4. In the final decade of his teaching, Lacan describes the end of analysis as an "identification with the sinthome."

Position of Analysand and Analyst

In general, the end of analysis involves two fundamental changes in the respective subjective positions of

The analyst is reduced -- from the position of the subject-supposed-to-know -- to a mere surplus, a objet petit a, the cause of the analysand's desire.

Passage from Analysand to Analyst

For Lacan, the end of analysis is also the passage from analysand to analyst -- for all psychoanalysts must undergo analytic treatment from beginning to end before being allowed to practice as analysts.

Since Lacan argues that all psychoanalysts should have experienced the process of analytic treatment from beginning to end, the end of analysis is also the passage from analysand to analyst.

"The true termination of an analysis" is therefore no more and no less than that which "prepares you to become an analyst."[5]

Misconceptions

Identification with the Analyst

Lacan criticizes those psychoanalysts who describe the end of analysis in terms of identification with the analyst.

For Lacan, it is not only possible, but necessary to go beyond identification, for otherwise it is not psychoanalysis but suggestion -- which is the antithesis of psychoanalysis.

Transference

Lacan also criticizes those psychoanalysts who describe the end of analysis in terms of "liquidation" of the transference.

For Lacan, this erroneous view is based on a misunderstanding of transference -- as a kind of illusion which can be transcended -- which overlooks the symbolic nature of transference -- as an essential structure of speech.

Although analytic treatment does involve the resolution of the particular transference relationship established with the analyst, transference itself still subsists after the end of analysis.

Other Misconceptions

The end of analysis does not involve:

For Lacan, analysis is not essentially a therapeutic process but rather a search for truth -- and the truth is not always beneficial.[6]

See Also

References

  1. ↑ Freud, Sigmund. Analysis Terminable and Interminable, 1937. SE XXIII p.219
  2. ↑ Lacan, Jacques. Écrits: A Selection. Trans. Alan Sheridan. London: Tavistock Publications, 1977. p. 88
  3. ↑ Lacan, Jacques. Écrits. Paris: Seuil, 1966. p. 373, n. 1
  4. ↑ Lacan, Jacques. The Seminar. Book XI. The Four Fundamental Concepts of Psychoanalysis, 1964. Trans. Alan Sheridan. London: Hogarth Press and Institute of Psycho-Analysis, 1977. p. 273
  5. ↑ Lacan, Jacques. The Seminar. Book VII. The Ethics of Psychoanalysis, 1959-60. Trans. Dennis Porter. London: Routledge, 1992. p. 303
  6. ↑ Lacan, Jacques. Le Séminaire. Livre XVII. L'envers de la psychanalyse, 19669-70. Ed. Jacques-Alain Miller. Paris: Seuil, 1991. p. 122


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