Clinical exploration in the territory of Anti-Oedipus: paranoia, delirium and beyond

In this article the author bears in mind a pivotal concept in Paul-Claude Racamier’s thought: that of Anti-Oedipus in both its well-tempered and its catastrophized forms, a furious Anti- Oedipus that is dominated by an auto-generational demon. According to Racamier, Anti- Oedipus and Oedipus are two primary registers in which every kind of psychic organization finds its place: the processual figures of a well-tempered Anti-Oedipus and an Oedipus with a good outcome are countered with their failures and a consequent exposure to pathology. Among the most severe pathological demonstrations of the negative aspect of Anti-Oedipus are paranoia and delirium, on which the author lingers with clinical examples, as well. These are severe pathologies in which internal, external and intermediate space overlap and intersect to the point that boundaries and limits are lost. This makes it necessary to build settings with an "interspatial geometry", settings that are situated where the therapeutic action takes place. This is to be seen as a way to foster and safeguard the individual’s ability to feel and think.

Keywords: Psychoanalysis, Racamier, Anti-Oedipus, psychosis, paranoia, delirium

Simona Taccani, Esplorazione clinica nei territori di Antedipo: paranoia, deliri e oltre in "GRUPPI" 2/2012, pp 35-53, DOI: 10.3280/GRU2012-002004