ABSTRACT
In this chapter a discourse analytic reading of an item of material culture is undertaken using psychoanalytic notions to elaborate ‘discursive complexes’. The position of the researcher as subject is a crucial element in psychoanalytic readings of texts, and so the chapter opens with theoretical reflections upon the role of method in the version of discourse analysis presented here. The empirical part of the paper is designed to illustrate how forms of psychodynamic subjectivity circulate through culture and are then re-presented to the reader. The discussion explores implications of the approach for qualitative research in psychology.
