The
idea of the "Reality Principle" as it was formulated by Freud was
harshly objected in Lacan psychoanalytic theory. Freud described the initial
contradiction between the pleasure principle which seeks gratification from
previous experiences of pleasure but encounters the limitations imposed on such
a gratification by the reality principle. According to Freud, the reality
principle sublimates the pleasure principle by forcing it to seek indirect ways
of achieving pleasure.
Lacan
objected to this formulation of the reality principle. He thought the seeing
"reality" and objectively given was a simplistic notion that did not
correspond with the human experience. Lacan attributed reality, and the reality
principle, to the symbolic
order, where the subject cannot make such a clear cut distinction between
imagination and reality, as Freud would have it.
Some additional books to help you better your understanding of Lacan's theory and terminology:
