Œuvre of the feminine: The work of melancholia between masochism and narcissism

Abstract

The present study arose from my clinical work with young women and aims to re-examine the issues at stake in female psychosexuality. In accordance with the deferred action, I will begin by presenting my conceptual development before attempting to apply it to the two clinical presentations. Masochism will be of central importance in our discussion because, although the notion of a normal masochism specific to women has rightly been criticised by many authors, the reference to a pathological masochism is a clinical reality that cannot be denied. It is an impediment to the flourishing of the feminine in women. The latter, a sort of reduplication of the primary feminine linked to psychic bisexuality, has given rise to important developments in contemporary theories. Reorganised in an oedipal register under cover of the phantasy of being beaten, it involves two registers of passivity: passivity-seduction (Freud/Laplanche) and passivity-distress (Rosenberg/Green). While, according to recent theories, the little girl has to experience passive reversal without any threat of intrusion, I will attempt to show that she also has to experience the loss of the object in a unique way. In the absence of a phallic obstacle, loss is thus at the heart of femininity, requiring an oeuvre of the feminine, that is, an endless work of melancholia.