Berlin Psychoanalytic

Each chapter examines the correspondence of a particular psycho-analyst with a particular author.

Laura Sokolowsky’s survey of psychoanalysis under Weimar and Nazism explores how the paradigm of a ‘psychoanalysis for all’ became untenable as the Nazis rose to power. Mainly discussing the evolution of the Berlin Institute during the period between Freud’s creation of free psychoanalytic centres after the founding of the Weimar Republic and the Nazi seizure of power in 1933, the book explores the ideal of making psychoanalysis available to the population of a shattered country after World War I, and charts how the Institute later came under Nazi control following the segregation and dismissal of Jewish colleagues in the late 1930s. The book shows how Freudian standards resisted the medicalisation of psychoanalysis for purposes of adaptation and normalisation, but also follows Freud’s distinction between sacrifice (where you know what you have given up) and concession (an abandonment of position through compromise) to demonstrate how German psychoanalysts put themselves at the service of the fascist master, in the hope of obtaining official recognition and material rewards. Discussing the relations of psychoanalysis with politics and ethics, as well as the origin of the Lacanian movement as a response to the institutionalisation of psychoanalysis during the Nazi occupation, this book is fascinating reading for scholars and practitioners of psychoanalysis working today.

The culture of psychoanalysis has many traditions and multiple schools of theory and thought. This work presents informative and original investigations into three overlapping areas of psychoanalytic tradition: the history of psychoanalysis; psychoanalytic culture criticism; and the application of psychoanalytic methods to the study of history. In this carefully crafted evaluation of various authors and subjects, Fisher's perceptions are informed by a deep and comprehensive knowledge of the psychoanalytic movement, its interaction with the wider context of European cultural and political history, and its philosophical and clinical origins. In examining the history of the movement, Fisher attempts to discover the fundamental inspiration of psychoanalysis by returning to the origins of the discipline. Freud is the central figure here, but Fisher also looks to the second generation of European analysts, including such maverick figures as Lacan and Spielrein, and mainstream figures as Fenichel to gain insight into the multidimensional and creative personalities who were drawn to Freud and his ideas. In his discussion of psychoanalytic culture criticism, Fisher analyzes symbolic meanings and psychological themes from a variety of written works. In an analysis of Freud's Civilization audits Discontents, the author argues that the figure of Romain Rolland is pervasive throughout the text as symbol, muse, stimulus, and adversary. Reading analytic theory and applying it to personalities and situations from the past allowed historians to address issues of their own inner world and to develop breathtaking possibilities for understanding the past. Brilliantly written and historical and critical in method, Cultural Theory and Psychoanalytic Tradition offers valuable insights into significant themes and ambiguities in the diverse areas of psychoanalysis. Intellectual historians and psychoanalysts will find reliable introductions and springboards f

A Psychoanalytic Exploration of the Body in Today's World: On the Body examines the importance of the body in everyday psychoanalytic practice and beyond. Written by world leading clinicians and international scholars, this important book aims to relocate the psychoanalytic body in the modern, more challenging world. Bringing together perspectives from across the range of psychoanalytic schools of thought, it covers essential analytic topics such as family and parenting, sex and gender, illness and psychosomatics, and concepts of the body in infancy. Though in Freud’s writing the intertwining of body and psyche is fundamental, psychoanalytic thought has sometimes downplayed or ignored this idea. This book returns the body to its rightful place in psychoanalysis, and brings the body into the contemporary world of technology and change, offering fresh insight into the sick body, the sexual body, the speaking body, the body of the changing family in which the traditional gendered labels no longer fit seamlessly, gender dynamics and much more. A Psychoanalytic Exploration of the Body in Today's World gives renewed and increased emphasis to an essential tenant of psychoanalysis. With contributions from some of the most important modern psychoanalysts, this book will prove an essential work for both psychotherapists and academics.

This book presents a theory of autistic subjectivity from a Lacanian psychoanalytic perspective. Dr. Brenner describes autism as a singular mode of being that is fundamentally linked to one’s identity and basic practices of existence, offering a rigorous alternative to treating autism as a mental or physical disorder. Drawing on Freud and Lacan’s psychoanalytic understanding of the subject, Brenner outlines the unique features of the autistic subjective structure and provides a comprehensive synthesis of contemporary work on the psychoanalysis of autism. The book examines research by theorists including Jean-Claude Maleval, Éric Laurent, Rosine and Robert Lefort that has been largely unavailable to Anglophone audiences until now. In this book autism is posited to be a singular subjective structure not reducible to neurosis or psychosis. In accordance with the Lacanian approach, autism is examined with detailed attention to the subject’s use of language, culminating in Brenner’s “autistic linguistic spectrum.” A compelling read for students and scholars of psychoanalysis and autism researchers and clinicians.

This Encyclopedia of theory and practice in psychotherapy and counseling provides a full overview of the field, traditional and current humanistic practices, and the fundamental analytical theories needed to get a foothold in the field.

This book, a record of the Clark Conference sponsored by the APA, consists of a series of papers on psychoanalytic education. The book is dedicated to the memory of Helen Block Lewis, who realized the necessity for detailed re-examination and further development of all ideas in psychoanalysis.

As the foundational theory of modern psychological practice, psychoanalysis and its attendant assumptions predominated well through most of the twentieth century. The influence of psychoanalytic theories of development was profound and still resonates in the thinking and practice of today’s mental health professionals. Guide to Psychoanalytic Developmental Theories provides a succinct and reliable overview of what these theories are and where they came from. Ably combining theory, history, and biography it summarizes the theories of Freud and his successors against the broader evolution of analytic developmental theory itself, giving readers a deeper understanding of this history, and of their own theoretical stance and choices of interventions. Along the way, the authors discuss criteria for evaluating developmental theories, trace persistent methodological concerns, and shed intriguing light on what was considered normative child and adolescent behavior in earlier eras. Each major paradigm is represented by its most prominent figures such as Freud’s drive theory, Erikson’s life cycle theory, Bowlby’s attachment theory, and Fonagy’s neuropsychological attachment theory. For each, the Guide provides: biographical information a conceptual framework contributions to theory a clinical illustration or salient excerpt from their work. The Guide to Psychoanalytic Developmental Theories offers a foundational perspective for the graduate student in clinical or school psychology, counseling, or social work. Seasoned psychiatrists, analysts, and other clinical practitioners also may find it valuable to revisit these formative moments in the history of the field.