'I swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth' we say in a court of law. 'In a court of law, the truth is precisely what we will not say', says Lacan. 'If God is dead, everything is permitted', writes Dostoyevsky. 'If God is dead, everything is prohibited', responds Lacan. 'I think, therefore I am', reasons Descartes. 'I am where I do not think', concludes Lacan. What are we to make of Lacan's inversions of these mottos? And what are the implications for the legal system if we take them seriously? This book puts the legal subject on the couch and explores the incestuous relationship between law and desire, enjoyment and transgression, freedom and subjection, ethics and atheism. The process of analysis problematizes fundamental tenets of the legal system, leading the patient to rethink long-held beliefs: terms like 'guilt' and 'innocence', 'truth' and 'lies', 'reason' and 'reality', 'freedom' and 'responsibility', 'cause' and 'punishment', acquire new and surprising meanings. By the end of these sessions, the patient is left wondering, along with Freud her analyst, whether 'it is not psychology that deserves the mockery but the procedure of judicial enquiry'.

A unique study on the nexus of Law and Psychoanalysis, this book will interest students and scholars of both subjects, as well as general readers looking to explore this perverse and fascinating relationship.

About the Author

Maria Aristodemou is Senior Lecturer in Law at Birkbeck College, University of London

Reviews

'The interrelation of law and psychiatry lies at the very heart of our judicial edifice. The time has come to introduce some clarity in this obscure mixture, not only by bringing out the legalistic underpinnings of psychiatry and psychoanalysis, but also by denouncing the perverse libidinal underpinnings of legal practices. Aristodemou's book performs this task brilliantly. It not only hits the nail on its head, as they say - it also cracks this head open with its precise and forceful blows.'

Slavoj Zizek, senior researcher at the Institute of Sociology, University of Ljubljana, Slovenia, and international director of the Birkbeck Institute for the Humanities

'This systematic and accessible account of key concepts in psychoanalysis powerfully demonstrates the relevance of Lacan's thought for legal theory. It boldly posits the challenge of freedom in its vision of an atheist jurisprudence. The subject of law will not be the same again.'

Jodi Dean, Professor at Hobart and William Smith College, USA

'The interrelation of law and psychiatry lies at the very heart of our judicial edifice. The time has come to introduce some clarity in this obscure mixture, not only by bringing out the legalistic underpinnings of psychiatry and psychoanalysis, but also by denouncing the perverse libidinal underpinnings of legal practices. Aristodemou's book performs this task brilliantly. It not only hits the nail on its head, as they say - it also cracks this head open with its precise and forceful blows.'

Slavoj Zizek, senior researcher at the Institute of Sociology, University of Ljubljana, Slovenia, and international director of the Birkbeck Institute for the Humanities

'This systematic and accessible account of key concepts in psychoanalysis powerfully demonstrates the relevance of Lacan's thought for legal theory. It boldly posits the challenge of freedom in its vision of an atheist jurisprudence. The subject of law will not be the same again.'

Jodi Dean, Professor at Hobart and William Smith College, USA

Book Information
ISBN 9781138787261
Author Maria Aristodemou
Format Paperback
Page Count 180
Imprint Routledge
Publisher Taylor & Francis Ltd
Weight(grams) 272g