The Topology of the Subject

Abstract

"Resilience," "inflexibility," "opacity" apparently constitute a universal condition of the objectification of both the external world, the body, and consciousness. Usually it is easy and simple for me to identify my thoughts, my feelings, my desires, my will, and my speech. But to understand what serious theoretical difficulties lie behind the illusory simplicity of these intuitions, let me point out that psychopathology abounds in descriptions of special, unusual, unfamiliar, states of alienation of thoughts, feelings, recollections, desires, and wishes. For example, I may, to my surprise, experience a feeling of hate for something I had been used to loving; or strange desires, ideas, or recollections may enter my head. But true alienation of mental states, manifested in syndromes of depersonalization, derealization, mental automatism, obsessions, etc., is also possible. We encounter a number of contradictions as we ponder the phenomenon of alienation of consciousness.