The nation, the people, the values. The fantasy of Polish neo-traditionalist discourse.

The harsh confrontation about civil rights that is currently dominating the Polish political debate is examined in this paper in terms of hegemony. Through the direct observation of the ‘(counter-)marches of equality’ and the analysis of the Polish neo-traditionalist discourse (understood as an aggregation of neo-traditionalist demands), the author discusses how a neo-traditionalist hegemonic project aims at (re)signifying the core values of society. Based on Poststructuralist Discourse Theory (PDT) and the Logics Approach (Glynos and Howarth, 2007), this paper examines the role of fantasies in sustaining the neo-traditionalist narrative. From the Cross brandished as a shield in front of the participants in the marches (beatific fantasy) to the ‘LGBT virus’ (horrific fantasy), the fantasmatic logic explains how neo-traditionalism offers a solid ideological ground for identity construction. While positive symbols function as metonymical objects of desire, enemies are pictured as ‘thieves of our way of life’. Finally, the author seeks to enrich the methodological framework of the Logics Approach by introducing the concept of nodal points of sublimation. The hegemonic project is constructed in an affective investment on those discursive elements that embody an impossible fullness. The nation, the people, the values are identified, in this light, as both the fundamental fantasies and the privileged points of reference of Polish neo-traditionalist discourse.