Mirror of Desire: The Lacanian Study of Faiqa Munsab’s This House of Clay and Water

The study tends to explore Faiqa Munsab’s (2017)This House of Clay and Water through the lens of Lacanianpsychoanalysis to highlight the complexities of the minds ofPakistan’s minorities. This research further examines the themesof desire, alienation, and identity fragmentation as depictedthrough the characters of Bhanggi, Sasha, and Nida. Moreover,the study displays the social issues and internal psychologicalconflicts using Lacanian psychological development stages likethe Mirror, the Symbolic, and the Real. To analyze these stagescritically, this study adopts a qualitative approach to portrayhow the outcaste characters in Pakistan develop alternativeidentities to cope with psychological problems. Thus, through thepsychoanalysis of Nida and Bhanggi, it is quite clear that societyplays a pivotal role in forming the psychology of minoritiesand can result in identity fragmentation and alienation. It isrecommended that future scholarly research should explore theimpact that Pakistani society creates on an individual’s psyche.