A Non-linguistic Discourse? Dancing with the Lacanian Real

This talk offers an overview of what Dr Sherritt has termed the sinthomic discourse; a discourse she suggests Lacan developed during his exploration of James Joyce and psychosis, and its (potential) relationship to dance. Dr Sherritt suggests that psychoanalysis, dance, and Joyce’s writings are all creative ways to open possibilities that might otherwise seem impossible. The presentation will address questions her proposal of this discourse initially raised but left open, focusing on the role of body and the Lacanian real in (pre)psychosis and the (non)relationship to the symbolic and imaginary. It will conclude with preliminary thoughts about future extensions of the arguments, including how this theoretical argument might be translated into clinical practice and whether the sinthome represents Lacan’s final break with linguistic models.

Dr Megan Sherritt is studying to be a psychoanalytic psychotherapist. Her research interests circle around the intersection of psychoanalytic theory (especially Lacanian) and various other disciplines, in order to learn more about psychopathology, identity, and humanity. She is the author of Dancing an Embodied Sinthome and will be teaching a course that brings together psychoanalytic theory and Indigenous critical theory at Western University (Canada) in 2026.