Two-Volume Outline: The Undecidable Unconscious
- Eric Anders
- Dec 24, 2024
- 4 min read
Revised Outline for the Two-Volume Approach
Volume I: The Undecidable Unconscious Volume I: Psychoanalysis, the Humanities, and the Ethics of Care
Volume I focuses on laying the foundation for the project, addressing how psychoanalysis and deconstruction can come together as practical, relational tools for ethical care. It critiques the fetishization of radical theory in the humanities, grounding "decon-psa" (deconstruction and psychoanalysis) in the practical ethics of the clinic and classroom. This volume introduces the need for a reimagined Health Humanities (HH) that does not deny the unconscious and that integrates psychoanalytic and relational care principles.
Introduction: The Contradictions of the University
Objective: Set the stage for the two-volume project, introducing the tension between humanism and anti-humanism in the humanities and the marginalization of psychoanalysis and deconstruction.
Key Themes:
The dominance of humanism in the humanities.
Anti-humanism’s relegation to theoretical silos.
American psychology’s denial of the unconscious and its effects on ethical care.
Frameworks Introduced:
Lacan’s “discourse of the University.”
The need for "decon-psa" to serve as a bridge between theory and practice.
Chapter 1: The Humanities’ Double Bind
Objective: Analyze the coexistence of humanist ideals and anti-humanist critiques in academic disciplines.
Key Themes:
Humanism’s emphasis on rationality and progress.
Anti-humanism’s deconstructive and psychoanalytic critiques.
The missed opportunity for “decon-psa” to integrate these approaches.
Case Studies: Examples from literary theory and philosophical debates.
Chapter 2: American Psychology and the Denial of the Unconscious
Objective: Examine the historical and institutional marginalization of psychoanalysis by American psychology.
Key Themes:
Behaviorism and neuroscience as dominant frameworks.
Lacan’s critique of technocratic, empirical models of the mind.
How denying the unconscious creates blind spots in care and ethics.
Case Studies: The displacement of psychoanalysis in clinical and educational settings.
Chapter 3: The University’s Foreclosure of the Unconscious
Objective: Explore how the institutional structures of the university suppress psychoanalytic and deconstructive insights.
Key Themes:
Foreclosure as a defense against undecidability.
The humanities’ prioritization of measurable outcomes over relational care.
The consequences for ethical and relational care.
Case Studies: Institutional resistance to interdisciplinary approaches integrating psychoanalysis.
Chapter 4: Lacan’s Discourse of the University and the Analyst
Objective: Revisit Lacan’s frameworks to critique the university’s contradictions and explore psychoanalysis’ transformative potential.
Key Themes:
The “discourse of the University” as a mechanism of knowledge foreclosure.
The “discourse of the Analyst” as a counterpoint, emphasizing relational and ethical engagement.
Challenges in operationalizing psychoanalytic insights within institutional contexts.
Case Studies: Psychoanalytic interventions in pedagogy and care practices.
Chapter 5: Toward a Psychoanalytic Health Humanities
Objective: Propose a reimagined Health Humanities (HH) that centers psychoanalysis and the unconscious.
Key Themes:
HH’s current reliance on technocratic care models.
The potential of psychoanalysis to ground HH in relational ethics and care.
Practical examples of how psychoanalytic insights can transform pedagogy and practice.
Case Studies: Curricular innovations and clinical applications informed by psychoanalysis.
Conclusion: Let Us Not Forget the Clinic
Objective: Reinforce the clinical grounding of “decon-psa” as a practical framework for care.
Key Themes:
Ethical praxis informed by relational care and the unconscious.
How the groundwork of Volume I sets the stage for Volume II’s exploration of Digital Humanities (DH) and cyborgian care.
Bridge to Volume II: Introduce the concept of the “fevered archive” as a site of intensified ethical challenges in the age of digital and cyborgian subjectivities.
Volume II: The Undecidable Unconscious Volume II: The Fevered Archive and the Ethics of Cyborgian Care
Volume II builds on the foundational arguments of Volume I, focusing on how the reintegration of the unconscious into Health Humanities creates a new, intensified form of archive fever. This volume extends Derrida’s concept of archive fever into the digital age, addressing how digital archives and cyborgian subjectivities transform ethical care. It critiques the limitations of human-centered ethics and proposes an ethics of cyborgian care that integrates psychoanalysis, deconstruction, and the relational complexities of hybrid subjectivities.
Introduction: The Fevered Archive
Objective: Summarize Volume I’s arguments and frame Volume II’s exploration of DH, archive fever, and cyborgian care.
Key Themes:
How the reintegration of the unconscious destabilizes HH and creates a fevered archive.
Ethical implications of digital archives and cyborgian subjectivity.
Chapter 1: From Archive Fever to the Fevered Archive
Objective: Revisit Derrida’s Archive Fever in light of psychoanalysis and the unconscious.
Key Themes:
The dynamics of memory, forgetting, and différance.
How psychoanalysis intensifies archive fever in HH.
Ethical dilemmas of preservation and exclusion.
Case Studies: Derridean interpretations of digital archives and psychoanalytic frameworks.
Chapter 2: Digital Humanities and the Fevered Archive
Objective: Explore how DH complicates Derrida’s archive fever through digital memory and différance.\n- Key Themes:
Vulnerabilities and paradoxes of digital preservation.
Surveillance, fragility, and exclusion in digital archives.
Psychoanalytic critiques of DH frameworks.
Case Studies: Google Books, proprietary AI models, and Project Gutenberg.
Chapter 3: Cyborgian Subjectivity and the Ethics of Care
Objective: Investigate how cyborgian subjectivity disrupts traditional ethical paradigms.
Key Themes:
Haraway’s cyborg ontology and networked identities.
Redistribution of vulnerability and relational care.
Ethical challenges of hybrid subjectivities in DH and HH.
Case Studies: AI-driven therapeutic models and networked care systems.
Chapter 4: Radical Atheism and Its Limits
Objective: Critique radical atheism’s focus on human finitude in light of cyborgian disruptions.
Key Themes:
Derridean temporality and spacing as ethical foundations.
How cyborgian hybridity destabilizes notions of mortality and finitude.
Case Studies: Ethical dilemmas posed by hybrid and augmented subjectivities.
Chapter 5: The Ethics of Cyborgian Care
Objective: Develop an ethics of cyborgian care that integrates psychoanalytic and deconstructive insights.\n- Key Themes:
Responsibility and relationality in hybridized contexts.
Iterative repair as a core ethical practice.
Practical applications in clinical and educational settings.
Case Studies: Examples of cyborgian care frameworks in therapy and pedagogy.
Chapter 6: Practical Applications of Cyborgian Care
Objective: Address how cyborgian care can be operationalized in the clinic and classroom.\n- Key Themes:
The clinic as a site for relational care in a digital age.
The classroom as a transformative space for ethical engagement.
Challenges of integrating cyborgian care into institutional structures.
Case Studies: Networked therapy models, DH-based pedagogy, and AI in education.
Conclusion: Toward a Fevered Praxis
Objective: Synthesize the arguments of both volumes, emphasizing the transformative potential of psychoanalysis, deconstruction, and cyborgian care.\n- Key Themes:
Ethical praxis for a hybridized, technologized world.
Bridging the clinic, classroom, and archive in the age of digital and cyborgian subjectivities.
This revised outline integrates the two-volume structure, ensuring that Volume I lays the theoretical and ethical groundwork, while Volume II expands the argument into the realms of Digital Humanities and cyborgian care. Let me know if further refinements are needed!
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