Discourse of the capitalist
The discourse of the capitalist (French: discours du capitaliste) is a concept in Lacanian psychoanalytic theory introduced by Jacques Lacan in the early 1970s as a modification of his theory of the four discourses: the Master, the University, the Hysteric, and the Analyst. First formulated in Seminar XVII: The Other Side of Psychoanalysis (1969–1970), Lacan’s discourse theory outlines how different social bonds are structured by language. The capitalist discourse appears as a fifth and distinct mode of social relation, responding to the emergence and dominance of capitalist modes of production, commodification, and subject formation.[1]
Background: Lacan’s Theory of Discourses
Lacan’s discourse theory formalizes four positions—Agent, Other, Truth, and Product—populated by four elements of his theory of subjectivity: the master signifier (S₁), knowledge (S₂), the divided subject ($), and the object cause of desire (objet petit a). Each of the original four discourses represents a distinct arrangement of these positions and describes how language mediates power, knowledge, desire, and subjectivity.[2]
Emergence of the Capitalist Discourse
The discourse of the capitalist emerges shortly after the initial formulation of the four discourses, in Lacan’s subsequent seminars, especially Seminar XVIII: On a Discourse That Would Not Be a Semblance and Seminar XIX: …or Worse. Although Lacan never fully formalized this fifth discourse with a definitive matheme, he described it as a "clever" inversion of the Master’s discourse designed to account for the new structures of social and subjective relations under capitalism.[1][3]
Lacan suggested that this discourse functions efficiently—drôlement astucieux—but warned that it is "made to blow up" (il est fait pour éclater) because it bypasses essential limitations and conflicts within the subject.[2]
Structure and Function
Structurally, the capitalist discourse resembles the Master’s discourse but with a "tiny inversion" that reconfigures the relation between the subject, the signifier, and the object of enjoyment. The subject ($) is placed in the position of Truth, covered over by the Master Signifier (S₁), which addresses knowledge (S₂) in the position of the Other. However, the object a (objet petit a) – the object-cause of desire – circulates as the Product, yet also loops back into the system, allowing for a circular flow of consumption.[4]
This modified arrangement eliminates the internal deadlock or impasse found in the traditional Master’s discourse, enabling a smoother function that promotes consumerist ideology and compelled enjoyment (jouissance).[1]
Features and Effects
The capitalist discourse marks a shift in the nature of the social bond:
- Disconnects subjects from one another
- Replaces intersubjective relationships with connections to commodities or objects of enjoyment.[3]
- Reorients desire
- Promotes consumption as pseudo-satisfaction, fostering the illusion that enjoyment is both possible and obligatory.[1]
- Mandates enjoyment
- Jouissance becomes not only permitted but demanded by the social structure, creating pressure to enjoy that paradoxically exacerbates dissatisfaction and alienation.[5]
- Cycles of insatiable demand
- The pursuit of objects of desire is endlessly renewed, resulting in a cycle of exhaustion and dissatisfaction.[6]
Clinical and Theoretical Implications
From a clinical perspective, the capitalist discourse is associated with new forms of symptomatology—such as compulsive behaviors, depression, and burnout—driven by the imperative to enjoy. The structure of capitalist discourse fosters disavowal of the unconscious and the subject’s division, replacing analytic exploration with therapeutic normalization or medication.[4]
Theoretically, the capitalist discourse provides a framework for understanding how language and symbolic structures are co-opted by capitalism to manage subjectivity. Rather than confronting the Real of desire and lack—as in the discourse of the analyst—capitalist discourse promotes a fantasy of wholeness via consumption, producing subjective alienation under the guise of freedom and choice.[1][5]
Relation to Neoliberalism and Ideology
Lacan’s analysis prefigures critiques of neoliberal capitalism in contemporary theory. Scholars argue that the capitalist discourse mirrors the metonymic movement of capital, where surplus value is endlessly reinvested and satisfaction is perpetually deferred.[6] The discourse also aligns with ideological mechanisms that frame enjoyment as a moral and social obligation, reinforcing the consumerist drive while masking the structural impossibility of fulfillment.[1][3]
Significance
The discourse of the capitalist is a critical extension of Lacanian theory, offering a way to conceptualize how capitalism functions not only economically but psychically—by structuring desire, enjoyment, and the formation of symptoms. It bridges psychoanalysis with political, social, and cultural critique, emphasizing the unconscious dimension of ideology.
See Also
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 Vanheule, Steven (2016). “Capitalist Discourse, Subjectivity and Lacanian Psychoanalysis.” Frontiers in Psychology; outlines Lacan’s notion of capitalist discourse in relation to his theory of discourse and subjectivity under capitalism.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Jacques Lacan, The Seminar of Jacques Lacan, Book XVII: The Other Side of Psychoanalysis, trans. Russell Grigg, Norton, 2007, p. 11–13.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Declercq, Frédéric (2006). “Lacan on the Capitalist Discourse: Its Consequences for Libidinal Enjoyment and Social Bonds.” Psychoanalysis, Culture & Society; examines the anti-social effects of capitalist discourse and how it connects subjects to objects of enjoyment rather than to each other.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Paul Verhaeghe, On Being Normal and Other Disorders: A Manual for Clinical Psychodiagnostics, Karnac Books, 2004, p. 95–97.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Alenka Zupančič, The Shortest Shadow: Nietzsche’s Philosophy of the Two, MIT Press, 2003, p. 136–138.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Pavón-Cuéllar, D. (2024). “Capitalist discourse: Marx, Lacan and the neoliberal…” ScienceDirect; analyzes Lacan’s capitalist discourse in relation to neoliberal capitalism and its structural features.