A Gleam in Eternal Night: Lacan and the Unending Revolution of Psychoanalysis

佛洛伊德留給這個時代最重要的遺產，是對於精神的提問方式能夠不斷翻新的知識力量。拉岡重新閱讀佛洛伊德的原因，在於他肯定精神分析是具有前瞻視野的理論，但這個應當對人類知識與實踐帶來革命的理論，本身卻建立在一個薄弱的基礎上。因此，拉岡的理論工作可喻為是對佛洛伊德這棟百年建築的二次施工。只是原本應是美化、修補的二次施工，卻變成了地基的全面翻新。本書的目的不僅是闡釋拉岡的理論觀點，更希望洞察拉岡如何重新賦予精神分析這棟百年建築新的生命。

本書為「拉岡學」研究的重要學術基礎，提取拉岡從1950年代起，橫跨二十多年系列講座（Séminaires）的核心概念，試圖以拉岡橫跨時代的講座論述，提出拉岡研究的主體性。作者以永夜微光的比喻，顯示拉岡的未竟革命大業，嘗試點出拉岡是在思考時代的暗影。閱讀拉岡，不是去追逐真理，而是如何在搜尋暗影中，生成人文思想和臨床實踐。只有透過此種策略，以一個綜觀式方法來閱讀拉岡，儘管可能只是微光，都可帶來深切的學術價值與影響力。

The most important legacy Freud leaves for us is the power of knowledge which renovates constantly the way in which the psyche is put into question. Lacan’s rereading of Freud’s works lies in his affirmation that psychoanalysis is a prospective theory; nonetheless, this theory, which should revolutionize human knowledge and practices, is based on an unstable foundation. Therefore, Lacan’s theoretical work could be described as a reconstruction of Freud’s centennial theory. However, such a reconstruction becomes a complete renovation of the Freudian foundation. This book not only aims to elucidate Lacan’s theoretical concepts, but it also observes how Lacan injects a new life into psychoanalysis.

This book makes a great contribution to a foundation of the Lacanian studies. It discusses the major concepts of Lacan’s seminars, which first begin in 1950s and continue to emerges more than twenty years, and it also attempts to explicate the Lacanian subjectivity in an aid of his cross-era discourses. The author uses “a gleam in eternal night” as a metaphor to suggest that Lacan’s unfinished project examines the shadows cast by our time. In a sense, reading Lacan is not to pursue the truth, but to generate thoughts on humanity and clinical practices in the search for shadows. Only if we read Lacan in a comprehensive way can we realize why a gleam brings about the profound academic influence.