The Paternal Imago in Ruins

This book offers a Lacanian interpretation of Freud's Moses and Monotheism to explore the enigma of constitutional instability in Ecuadora country that has sanctioned twenty constitutions since independence. Drawing on historical archives and psychoanalytic theory, Ernesto Espindola argues that existing literature underestimates the affective investments of political elites in constitutional 'abolition-replacement events', often led by charismatic or authoritarian figures.

Through a Lacanian discourse analysis of Ecuador's 1869 and 20072008 Constituent Assemblies, and the 2015 reform abolishing presidential term limits, the book examines the ideological grip of messianic leadership and its relation to heroic identification, the paternal imago, and the fantasy of national redemption. Espindola shows how constitutional instability in Ecuador is not merely a legal or institutional phenomenon, but one deeply entwined with unconscious desires, symbolic attachments, and the repetition of political trauma.

Engaging with Lacan, Freud, and the Essex School of Discourse Analysis, this book offers a novel framework for understanding the psycho-political dynamics of constitutional change in postcolonial contexts. It will appeal to scholars in political theory, psychoanalysis, Latin American studies, and cultural studies.

Offers a novel understanding of constitutional instability, authoritarianism, and political identification Lacanian reading of Freud to examine Ecuador's cycles of legal rupture and political reinvention Presents a Lacanian qualitative methodology that draws on Laclau and Lacanian discourse analysis and political theory

Autorentext

Ernesto Espindola holds a PhD in Government from the University of Essex, UK, and teaches political science at Johnson County Community College and Florida International University, USA. His research explores the intersection of political theory, Lacanian psychoanalysis, and ideology in postcolonial contexts. He has studied and published internationally in English and Spanish.

Klappentext

This book offers a Lacanian interpretation of Freud's Moses and Monotheism to explore the enigma of constitutional instability in Ecuadora country that has sanctioned twenty constitutions since independence. Drawing on historical archives and psychoanalytic theory, Ernesto Espindola argues that existing literature underestimates the affective investments of political elites in constitutional 'abolition-replacement events', often led by charismatic or authoritarian figures.

Through a Lacanian discourse analysis of Ecuador's 1869 and 20072008 Constituent Assemblies, and the 2015 reform abolishing presidential term limits, the book examines the ideological grip of messianic leadership and its relation to heroic identification, the paternal imago, and the fantasy of national redemption. Espindola shows how constitutional instability in Ecuador is not merely a legal or institutional phenomenon, but one deeply entwined with unconscious desires, symbolic attachments, and the repetition of political trauma.

Engaging with Lacan, Freud, and the Essex School of Discourse Analysis, this book offers a novel framework for understanding the psycho-political dynamics of constitutional change in postcolonial contexts. It will appeal to scholars in political theory, psychoanalysis, Latin American studies, and cultural studies.

Ernesto Espindola holds a PhD in Government from the University of Essex, UK, and teaches political science at Johnson County Community College and Florida International University, USA. His research explores the intersection of political theory, Lacanian psychoanalysis, and ideology in postcolonial contexts. He has studied and published internationally in English and Spanish.

Inhalt

Chapter 1: Building an Argument: The Psychology of Constitutional Instability.- Chapter 2: The research strategy.- Chapter 3: On the Religious Spirit of the 1869 Constituent Assembly.- Chapter 4: The 2007-8 Constituent Assembly and the 2015 Abolitionist Reform.- Chapter 5: A Comparative Reflection on Constitutional Instability in Ecuador.