To Be Continued?...
Philosophy and Psychoanalysis Today

Atrij ZRC, Ljubljana

Part III
15–16 April 2025

Live Session (Zoom)

Boštjan Nedoh
Marisa Žele
Holden M. Rasmussen
Amanda Holmes
Aleš Bunta
Alenka Zupančič
Alejandro Cerda-Rueda
Arka Chattopadhyay
Lorenzo Chiesa
Mladen Dolar
Justin Clemens
Alexi Kukuljevic
Peter Klepec
Stephen Overy
Tadej Troha
Sigi Jöttkandt
Richard Boothby


Part II

16–18 April 2024

Holden M. Rasmussen
Marisa Žele
Aleš Mendiževec
Voranc Kumar
Alejandro Cerda-Rueda
Arka Chattopadhyay
Boštjan Nedoh
Tadej Troha
Adrian Johnston
Mladen Dolar
Henrik Jøker Bjerre
Aleš Bunta
Adam Potts
Alenka Zupančič
Lorenzo Chiesa
Joan Copjec
Emily Laurent-Monaghan
Moritz Herrmann
Arsalan Reihanzadeh
Paris Lavidis
Nadia Bou Ali
Peter Klepec
Mohamed Tal
Frank Ruda
Ray Brassier


Part I
15–17 November 2023

Holden M. Rasmussen
Emily Laurent-Monaghan
Moritz Herrmann
Paris Lavidis
Vesna Liponik
Arsalan Reihanzadeh
Adrian Johnston
Jelica Šumič Riha
Tadej Troha
Boštjan Nedoh
Marisa Žele
Aleš Bunta
Peter Klepec
Alenka Zupančič
Lorenzo Chiesa


To Be Continued? ... 
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  • We can certainly say that the dialogue between philosophy and psychoanalysis, however prolix, has so far proved very difficult, ever since the latter’s inception. Is there such thing as a philosophy-psychoanalysis relationship? Or has it always been only empty speech? In that case, should it be continued?
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Peter Klepec (ZRC SAZU)



On the Element of Surprise in Philosophy and Psychoanalysis


The question of surprise appears in philosophy in various ways but is primarily associated with the concept of contingency (origins of philosophy, event, predictability, mastery). Surprise is also inextricably linked to psychoanalysis in many respects. It concerns both its contingent historical emergence and the way in which its central concept—the unconscious—manifests itself. Surprise plays a crucial role in recognising the persistent social and scientific resistance to psychoanalysis that continues to this day. Indeed, it is remarkable and significant that psychoanalysis remains a force to be reckoned with, offering valuable insights that continue to resonate. This is only possible if psychoanalysis itself remains attuned to the importance of the category of surprise in both its theory and practice. This applies from the formations of the unconscious to Lacan's category of the real, the Lacanian subject, and the objet petit a. In essence, psychoanalysis is the ‘guardian of surprise’. This means that it must resist the temptation to understand something prematurely, whether through over-interpretation or premature recognition (as Freud noted in relation to déjà vu and fausse reconnaissance). This principle applies both to the application of psychoanalysis outside of itself and to its most fundamental activity in the form of therapeutic practice. It is important to remember that, for Lacan, interpretation must also be a surprise for the analyst himself.