How to Read Lacan

Imagine for a moment that beneath the surface of every social interaction, there exists an invisible puppet master pulling the strings—this is the Big Other. The Big Other is not a person but a symbolic order, a vast network of language, laws, and social norms that shape our reality and our very identities. When we speak, act, or even think about ourselves, we do so within this symbolic space that governs what is possible and meaningful. It is the silent law that tells us how to behave, what to say, and how to interpret the words of others. This order is virtual, sustained not by a single entity but by the collective belief and participation of all individuals.

Consider the paradox of empty gestures—those social acts performed only to be rejected yet essential to maintaining social harmony. When a friend offers to withdraw from a competition only to have the other refuse, a pact of solidarity is silently reaffirmed. These gestures are not about the content but about the symbolic pact they create, the social link that sustains us. This phenomenon extends to everyday politeness, where phrases like 'Good to see you! How are you?' are not always sincere inquiries but rituals that renew social ties.

In this symbolic realm, our freedom is both real and illusory. We feel autonomous, yet our choices are framed by the Big Other’s rules. The Big Other watches us, not as a physical presence but as the embodiment of the law and language that we internalize. It is the 'God' that commands and judges, the 'Cause' for which we are ready to sacrifice. We are puppets dancing to its tune, yet we also sustain it through our acts.

Imagine a letter never sent but carefully preserved. This unsent letter is a metaphor for how we communicate with the Big Other—our symptoms, our secrets, our unconscious desires are messages addressed not to another person but to this symbolic Other. It is the Big Other that reads and interprets these messages, giving them meaning and structure.

Yet the Big Other is fragile. Its existence depends on our belief and participation. If the symbolic order collapses, so does the social fabric. Sociopaths fail to grasp this performative dimension of language; they treat communication instrumentally, missing the subtle symbolic pacts that bind us. Their morality is a calculated strategy, not a felt identification.

Thus, the Big Other is both the foundation of social order and the source of our alienation. We are caught in a dance of symbolic gestures, bound by invisible laws that shape our desires and identities. This understanding opens the door to deeper insights into human subjectivity and the nature of desire, which we will explore further.

Let us now move from the invisible puppet master to the strange phenomenon where the object itself seems to act in our place, relieving us of our own emotional burden.