Schizostructuralism draws together insights from psychoanalytic, structuralist, and Marxist theory, and the divisions and antagonisms that both underpin and distinguish them, to form a new psychoanalytic system.

Working through the key concepts and methods in these fields, Daniel Bristow describes the processes of unification and separation inherent in structure; extends concepts within the field of psychoanalytic topology and its study of surface; and interrogates types and phasings of time that operate psychosocially, testing workings of these against analyses of class division and struggle. Returning to and working through key concepts and methods in the fields of structuralism, topology, temporality, and Marxist political theory, Schizostructuralism looks again at such major figures as Freud, Reich, Lacan, Laing, and Deleuze and Guattari-invoking their socially oriented theories and practices-and sets out possibilities for recalibrating critical and clinical approaches to be more politically radical and inclusive. Bristow draws on an array of schematic diagrams, depicting and formulating the clinical categories of neurosis, perversion, and psychosis.

Schizostructuralism will be of interest to academics and students of psychoanalytic studies, Lacanian studies, and philosophy. It will also inform psychoanalysts in practice and in training.

About the Author

Daniel Bristow is a psychoanalytic theorist and practitioner completing his formation with the Philadelphia Association. He is the author of Joyce and Lacan: Reading, Writing, and Psychoanalysis (Routledge).

Reviews

"In our era of mass migration and segregation, when new categories of otherness are invented to dehumanize and control, Daniel Bristow tackles the divisions and antagonisms that structure our unconscious, showing how our split subjectivities are ripe for revolutionary futures. Creatively appropriating Hegel's Aufhebung by way of Lacan, this concise and cogent book brings together psychoanalysis, structuralism, and Marxism. Opening the possibility of reading Freud, Reich, and Laing together, Bristow performs a surgically precise topological cut that transforms what it unites and separates. An important and timely book for anyone interested in the political unconscious."

Patricia Gherovici, Psychoanalyst and Author; Recipient of the 2020 Sigourney Award

"There is no sharper analyst of Lacanian topologies than Daniel Bristow. In this elegant, concise and original book, following his outstanding work on Joyce and Lacan, he performs a Marxism of schizo-analysis, and a schizo-analysis of Marxism. He thus rescues the term 'schizo-' from its normative encrustations, and restores its power as a dialectical principle."

Richard Seymour, Author of The Twittering Machine (Verso, 2020)

"Despite its brevity, this book offers a rich and intricate exploration of the question of dis/continuity and change, in spatial, temporal and social terms, building with originality upon key contributions in understanding the nature of the mind, as elaborated over the last century in psychoanalysis, from Freud to Lacan, and beyond. This exploration raises important questions about the nature and emergence of psychic structures, not just in theory, but in the reality of a less than perfect world."

A. Carrington, Analyst

"Bristow has crafted a creative tool for Lacanian studies which others can mold to their academic and clinical experiences. A medium serving multiple creative environments is indispensable-and its creation is testament to Bristow's confluential sensibilities."

S. Alfonso Williams, Independent Researcher and Interlocutor

Book Information
ISBN 9781032058726
Author Daniel Bristow
Format Paperback
Page Count 108
Imprint Routledge
Publisher Taylor & Francis Ltd
Weight(grams) 200g