The status of the perverted act: A case of scarifications

The notion of act is often associated with acting out. Here we are talking about the fact of acting out as the intensification of the signifier. According to this logic, what of the fact of acting out and its staging coordinates in the case of perversion? From the case of a young man presenting traits of perversion, we will examine how his scarifications represent an attempt to carry out a denial at the very place of the cut, or castration. Within the framework of the cure, another aspect of the act comes to light through his literary creation. Then, a subjective fluctuation occurs between the short circuit of perversion and the long path towards sublimation; these fates intertwine because in both cases the subject does not turn to repression. It brings us to consider how close both the ethical and esthetical dimensions are.

Key words: Act, perversion, ethics, sublimation