ABSTRACT
In this chapter, we will examine Lacan’s reformulation of the castration complex by focusing on two lectures from Seminar IV: “The structure of myths in the observation of the phobia of Little Hans – on the Oedipus complex” (1957, pp. 226–245) and “On the castration complex” (1957, pp. 246–265). The aim is to highlight Lacan’s perspectives on the Freudian theories of castration and link them to the findings of the previous chapters. It is the case of Little Hans (Freud, 1909b) that embodies Freud’s first discussion on the concept of the castration complex. Hence, these two lectures by Lacan, where he uses the same case to reformulate and revise Freud’s theories of the castration complex, would be an excellent starting point.
