Lacan with No Theory

Tuesday, November 14, 2023

Juan Luis de la Mora will be facilitating a hands-on introduction to some Lacanian concepts.  

Topology studies the properties of shapes without worrying about distances or measurements. It describes how things are connected and related to each other and how they can be transformed without tearing or gluing. This means the appearance of a topological object is not as important as its connectedness and structural characteristics. Lacan thought the properties of certain topologies were good metaphors when dealing with subjectivity and its transformations.

As a hands-on introduction to some of the spaces Lacan was interested in, Juan Luis de la Mora proposes we play with the Möbius band, the torus, the Klein bottle, and the cross-cap. While we construct these objects (or, rather, their representations), we will discuss some of their fascinating properties. Lacan with no theory!

Please bring with you:

– Six long strips of paper (2.8 x 11 inches – that is three strips in a regular letter-sized sheet of paper).

– Six short strips of paper (8.5 x 1.8 inches – that is six strips in a regular letter-sized sheet of paper).

– Three letter-sized sheets of construction paper (optional: glue the long sides to form a cylinder).

– Scissors.

– Tape and a stick of glue.

– Felt markers (thin ones, we’re going to write with them).

– A couple of your favorite poems on different subjects.