The illusion of transparency is everywhere. Whether through the contractualisation1 of romantic relationships or the expansion of CCTV and social media.
"There is no sexual relation, but a narcissistic relation"2 in the jouissance associated with the mirror stage. With the contemporary rise of the See-all, "the world […] has become all-seeing."3 The increase in "dummy cameras", fake surveillance cameras, creates the sensation of always being seen. Believing oneself to be seen all the time is an imaginary attempt at a permanent relation with the Other. At its peak, the scopic drive becomes unlimited. We can grasp it well in social media, particularly with the rise of BeReal (the instant sharing of an experienced moment), in which "narcissism rises to the level of a popular art form,"4 as well as in CCTV, which leads the subject to believe that they are always being seen by the Other and are therefore never alone. There is, however, a paradox: narcissistic jouissance fails to reveal the subject's entire being, since a part of them does not recognise itself in it and remains hidden.
On a symbolic level, the relation "rests […] on a fundamental relation with the Other."5 The era and its ideal of transparency dream that everything could be understood without misunderstanding. Indeed, scientific discourse is driven by the belief that all real is visible. Jacques-Alain Miller specifies that "the Other of the signifier is not the Other of truth […] The Other of truth is merely virtual."6 Thus, the fervour to give existence to the symbolic relation through transparency entails the illusion of attaining a whole truth. It is thwarted by that which is impossible to say. CCTV has become widespread so as to anticipate and ensure nothing is missed. Absolute knowledge would dispense with speech and be reduced to pure communication. Truth would be intangible, the future predictable, and communication flawless. The unconscious, the real, jouissance and the intimate are sidelined. The illusion remains that a relation can exist, even though See all precludes Speak all.
At the level of the real, our era tends to seek a relation between the body and the subject. Knowledge about jouissance is thought to be possible through transparency. Science promotes the idea that the body is "the place of truth,"7 particularly through research into DNA and imaging techniques. But the quest to objectify the subject comes up against an irreducible opacity. Indeed, whether the body is X-rayed or autopsied, the secrets of desire and jouissance are not grasped.
The (imaginary) illusion of "it works" is bound to fail in the face of the real of "it does not work".
[1] Alberti C., Argument for the 15th Congress of the WAP 2026, 3 February 2025, available online: congresamp.com.
[2] Miller J.-A., "The Lacanian Orientation. La fuite du sens", teaching delivered at the Department of Psychoanalysis, University of Paris 8, 7th February 1996, unpublished.
[3] Wajcman G., L'œil absolu, Paris, Denoël, 2010, p. 76. Unpublished in English.
[4] Ibid., p. 261.
[5] Miller J.-A., "The Lacanian Orientation. La fuite du sens", op. cit.
[6] Miller J.-A., "The Lacanian Orientation. L'un tout seul", teaching delivered at the Department of Psychoanalysis, University of Paris 8, 18th May 2011, unpublished.
[7] Wajcman G., op. cit., p. 116.
