Blog 3 Lacan

One of Lacan’s steps in the development of the subject is his idea of “The Real”. He describes “The Real” in relation to the imaginary and symbolic and in a way our sense of completeness gets lost once we enter into the world of language. The Real puts the individual in the state of need; we are always in a need to find a sense of reality. The imaginary is when a child realizes through the mirror-stage that they are separate from the rest of the world, giving them an image of completeness. In “The Real” we are lost in the symbolic constantly trying to bring back the imaginary.

Children’s relationships with their stuffed animals are imaginary. The computer chip that goes into the dolls shows that the body and the subject of the stuffed animal are separate. Eva knew that the ‘real’ Easter was in the chip, not the body. This also relates to the idea of the signifier and the signified. Eva is able to differentiate the actual stuffed animal to the concept that it exists.