Arguing with the Phallus: Feminist, Queer and Postcolonial Theory - A Psychoanalytic Contribution

What can psychoanalysis offer contemporary arguments in the fields of feminism, queer theory and post-colonialism? Jan Campbell introduces and analyzes the way that psychoanalysis has developed models of subjectivity linked to issues of sexuality, ethnicity, gender and history. Via discussions of such influential and diverse figures as Lacan, Irigaray, Kristeva, Dollimore, Bhabha, Toni Morrison and Alice Walker, Campbell uses psychoanalysis as a tool in a range of debates across the human sciences. She also argues for a transformation of psychoanalytic theory itself. Alert to the issues at stake in either a wholesale acceptance or refection of psychoanalysis, Campbell offer interpretation of the symbolic system as a necessary and valuable intervention in cultural theory. Her book should be of interest to undergraduates and postgraduates across a range of disciplines including cultural studies, gender studies, literature, film and media, psychology and sociology.