Trump, Lacan, and the Logic of Enjoyment: Reading ‘Covfefe’ as a Sinthom
This essay uses Jacques Lacan’s concepts of sinthom, jouissance, and surplus-enjoyment to interpret Trump’s language and political style. It argues that seemingly meaningless or repetitive phrases can function as forms of enjoyment that create social links, rather than as symbols waiting to be decoded. Trump’s ‘covfefe’ tweet is presented as a modern example of this kind of empty but sticky signifier, while his repeated calls to ‘enjoy’ and to keep ‘winning’ are read as expressions of the superego’s contradictory command to take pleasure in pressure, loss, and excess. The piece extends the argument into politics and war, contrasting fantasies of total victory and peace with a more modest refusal of heroic posturing, illustrated through a Serbian folk song about two warriors choosing not to fight.
Lacan’s Sinthom and Meme-Like Meaninglessness
The article introduces Lacan’s difficult language around jouis-sense and the sinthom, describing sinthoms as minimal units where language and enjoyment are fused. It compares them to fleeting meme phrases that mean little beyond their own repetition, using ‘six-seven’ as a recent example.
‘Covfefe’ as a Political Sinthom
Trump’s viral ‘covfefe’ tweet is treated as a perfect case of a sinthom: not a typo to be explained away, but a meaningless form that condenses enjoyment. The essay argues that Trump’s refusal to resolve the term gives it its force as a signifier of identity and social attachment.
Enjoyment, Superego, and Surplus-Enjoyment
The text explains Lacan’s idea that enjoyment is tied to a cruel superegoic demand. It links this to surplus-enjoyment, the paradoxical pleasure gained through renunciation, frustration, or repetitive effort, and connects that structure to capitalist logic and the counting of profit.
Trump’s ‘Winning’ as Sadistic Pressure
Trump’s rhetoric about America ‘winning too much’ is read as a direct popular expression of surplus-enjoyment and superego pressure. The article suggests that the appeal is not simple positivity, but a command to endure more, enjoy more, and never settle into ordinary comfort.
Peace Through War and the Refusal of Heroic Posture
The essay then turns to Trump’s and Netanyahu’s claims about peace, framing them as violent forms of domination disguised as liberation. It ends by contrasting this with a Serbian folk song in which two warriors avoid a duel, a gesture the author treats as wiser than grand fantasies of eternal peace that lead to total war.
Key takeaways
- The essay reads Trump’s ‘covfefe’ as a Lacanian sinthom, not a hidden message.
- It argues that enjoyment can function as a superego command rather than a free pleasure.
- Trump’s ‘winning’ rhetoric is interpreted as a popular form of surplus-enjoyment.
- The piece connects Lacan’s surplus-enjoyment to Marx’s surplus-value and capitalist logic.
- It closes by favoring disengagement from heroic conflict over total-war fantasies.
Source: Slavoj Substack, “TRUMP AS A READER OF LACAN” (published 2026-03-25). Read the original at https://slavoj.substack.com/p/trump-as-a-reader-of-lacan-7b2 Read the original post on Substack.