An Investigation on the Relation of the Fetish Object with the Phallus

Abstract

Fetishism which is included in the perversion structure, is one of the ways of the subject’s defense mechanisms against castration anxiety. Here, as a result of the insufficiency of the paternal function, the subject disowavals the lack in the mother. When the subject encounters the mother's lack, which is not defined by the Name-of-the-Father, he is forced to choose whether to be or not to be the mother's phallus. The subject, who is experiencing intense anxiety, uses the fetish object as a temporary solution to compensate for the lack in the mother in order to cope with this situation. The fetish object functions as a signifier of the mother's desire, covering what is fundamentally lacking (not having in being) in the mother. In this way, the subject will save himself from sacrificing himself to the mother. The aim of this study is to examine the concept of fetish object in the context of the phallus, which Lacan describes as the signifier of desire and which he treats in three different ways such as imaginary, symbolic and real.