LACK Book Series – serie

Combining Lacanian psychoanalytic theory, Iranian Shi'ite thought, and Islamicate sexualities, Iranian Cinema with Psychoanalysis: The Interpreter of Desires provides a groundbreaking analysis of the logic of desire and sexuality in key films of contemporary Iranian cinema, arguing that there is a profound, albeit surprising, correlation between post-revolutionary Iranian cinema and psychoanalysis that has remained unthought.Looking through the prism of psychoanalysis, Farshid Kazemi argues that censorship on the representation and expression of sexual desire in Iranian films has, contrary to the desired effect, produced a cinema of desire. This book is the first to provide an analysis of the unconscious structure of desire and sexuality operative in post-revolutionary Iranian cinema, demonstrating that psychoanalytic literature is uniquely positioned to shed light on this aspect of film. Kazemi uncovers the hidden libidinal economy of Iranian cinema by exposing the fact that despite the State censor’s desire to suppress desire, it has inadvertently inscribed desire in its formal structure. The book offers a compelling and innovative examination of Iranian cinema through a psychoanalytic lens, contributing significantly to the field of film studies.Iranian Cinema with Psychoanalysis will be of great interest to academics and scholars of film studies, psychoanalytic studies, Lacanian theory, film theory, Iranian cinema, global cinema, Iranian studies, and Middle Eastern studies.

Combining Lacanian psychoanalytic theory, Iranian Shi'ite thought, and Islamicate sexualities, Iranian Cinema with Psychoanalysis: The Interpreter of Desires provides a groundbreaking analysis of the logic of desire and sexuality in key films of contemporary Iranian cinema, arguing that there is a profound, albeit surprising, correlation between post-revolutionary Iranian cinema and psychoanalysis that has remained unthought.Looking through the prism of psychoanalysis, Farshid Kazemi argues that censorship on the representation and expression of sexual desire in Iranian films has, contrary to the desired effect, produced a cinema of desire. This book is the first to provide an analysis of the unconscious structure of desire and sexuality operative in post-revolutionary Iranian cinema, demonstrating that psychoanalytic literature is uniquely positioned to shed light on this aspect of film. Kazemi uncovers the hidden libidinal economy of Iranian cinema by exposing the fact that despite the State censor’s desire to suppress desire, it has inadvertently inscribed desire in its formal structure. The book offers a compelling and innovative examination of Iranian cinema through a psychoanalytic lens, contributing significantly to the field of film studies.Iranian Cinema with Psychoanalysis will be of great interest to academics and scholars of film studies, psychoanalytic studies, Lacanian theory, film theory, Iranian cinema, global cinema, Iranian studies, and Middle Eastern studies.

Television as Spectacular Commodity: A Psychoanalytic Inquiry uses Freudian and Lacanian psychoanalytic theory to demonstrate how, despite being themselves commodities, a small minority of television series undermines the libidinal foundations of capitalism itself.Unlike traditional television scholarship that prioritizes serial dramas, this groundbreaking work highlights the subversive nature of episodic television, which resists narrative closure and character development to channel what Freud called the death drive in viewers. Through detailed analyses of sitcoms like The Office (UK), Seinfeld, and Peep Show and Prestige programs like Succession, the book uncovers how these programs navigate themes of failure and repetition, and what kind of politicized enjoyment they drum up in viewers. Bridging psychoanalytic theory with television studies, it offers a fresh perspective on the cultural and psychological impact of contemporary media.Written with clarity and precision, this book is ideal for scholars and students of psychoanalysis, media studies, and cultural theory, as well as professionals and ambitious lay readers with an interest in the deeper libidinal implications of the media we consume.