“No Such Thing as a Baby”: Searching in Winnicott for an Early Structure of “Us-Ness”

This paper examines the backdrop of safety from which one’s sense of “I-ness” emerges, building on Winnicott’s assertion that “there’s no such thing as a baby” to explore the implications of the unconscious structure termed “us-ness.” Interpreting Winnicott’s emphasis on the environment as suggesting that the pre-subject (the infant) forms an “us” with the (m)other, I propose that inadequately held dependence at this foundational level is semiotically impressed upon the other—manifesting through action. This interpretation extends to suggest a deeply embedded understanding of the psyche-social dynamic. Within this framework of evolving subjectivity, I argue that the pre-subject requires a subjectivizing other: someone who embraces their role within the relational asymmetry of early dependence, thereby enabling the formation of “us.” This emphasis is further developed to connect with principles of restorative justice, as illustrated in a second vignette that highlights what the concept of justice overlooks by failing to account for the continual processes of subjectivation achieved through profound relational engagement. The paper explores this potential space of becoming, emphasizing that it first necessitates the somatic experience of another, as demonstrated through two vignettes. These vignettes underscore a fundamental human need: to feel acknowledged and taken seriously by another. This need for interoceptive recognition shapes one’s relationship with oneself and with the external world. The transition from an initial silent vulnerability, inherent at birth, into subjecthood depends on the stabilizing presence of another, providing ontological grounding. This grounding imbues the vulnerable dimensions of the subject with a lasting psychic tissue, fostering a sense of security. I argue that this dynamic has profound implications for the subject’s relationship with the social world, as experiences of “us-ness” evolve into an identification with a shared “we.”