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Bersani's Freudian Body

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 October 2020

Jane Gallop
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Extract

In 1986 Leo Bersani published a book entitled The Freudian Body. I love that title. From the first time I heard it, over two decades ago, up through this very moment, I have continued to love that title. To be honest, I wish it were mine—which is why I borrowed it for my essay here. I'm not exactly sure what I take this title to mean—probably something like a definitive delineation of a Freudian theory of the body. I'm not exactly sure what I take it to promise—probably something like a reconceptualization of the body beyond positivism, beyond Christian views of nature, beyond biologistic ideology. It sounds like something I really want. One thing is for sure: the title made me want to read the book.

And so the first time I read this book, I was disappointed, frustrated, and even a little angry. I did not find “the Freudian body” promised by the title. “Bait and switch,” I thought bitterly. “You fucking tease!”

Type
Theories and Methodologies
Information
PMLA , Volume 125 , Issue 2 , March 2010 , pp. 393 - 397
Copyright
Copyright © Modern Language Association of America, 2010

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References

Works Cited

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