Revival Mnemic Psychology 1923

It is the reproduction of the old book published long back (1923)

It is the reproduction of the old book published long back (1923)

This Book owes its origin to the indefinable sense of uneasiness and discontent into which I was thrown by the perusal of some of the best treatises on Logic. These treatises had failed to explain the nature of the logical or reasoning faculty, though purporting to indicate the laws which govern its proper functioning. Even the work of John Stuart Mill, which still remains in my opinion the best, was no more convincing than the rest. And the more I read of such books the less satisfied I became and the stonger became my desire to understand clearly what constituted reasoning. As for the psychologists I found to my surprise that they either omitted reasoning altogether, or alluded to it in a most superficial manner.

Originally published in 1970 and in contrast to the previous three volumes, which each dealt with a single subject, this volume is a miscellaneous one. Seventeen subjects were selected on the basis of their relevance for the understanding both of psychoanalytic theory and of human behaviour in general. In this volume the reader can follow the development of Freud’s theories regarding important subjects such as Fixation, Regression, Cathexis, Conflicts, Anxiety, Ambivalence, Reality Testing, Transference and Counter- Transference. Some of these subjects were chosen because of the many misconceptions and misunderstandings that surrounded them. As in previous volumes, the development of each concept is described from its conception to Freud’s final formulation and detailed references are given for the guidance of the student, the psychoanalyst, the psychiatrist, the social worker, the psychologist and the general reader.

When the late Heinz Kohut defined psychoanalysis as the science of empathy and introspection, he sparked a debate that has animated psychoanalytic discourse ever since. What is the relationship of empathy to psychoanalysis? Is it a constituent of analytical technique, an integral aspect of the therapeutic action of analysis, or simply a metaphor for a mode of observation better understood via ‘classical’ theory and terminology? The dialogue about empathy, which is really a dialogue about the nature of the analytic process, continues in this two-volume set, originally published in 1984. In Volume I, several illuminating attempts to define empathy are followed by Kohut’s essay, ‘Introspection, Empathy, and the Semicircle of Mental Health.’ Kohut’s paper, in turn, ushers in a series of original contributions on ‘Empathy as a Perspective in Psychoanalysis.’ The volume ends with five papers which strive to demarcate an empathic approach to various areas of artistic endeavour, including the appreciation of visual art. Volume II continues the dialogue with a series of developmental studies which explore the role of empathy in early child care at the same time as they chart the emergence of the young child’s capacity to empathize. In the concluding section, ‘Empathy in Psychoanalytic Work,’ contributors and discussants return to the arena of technique. They not only theorize about empathy in relation to analytic understanding and communication, but address issues of nosology, considering how the empathic vantage point may be utilized in the treatment of patients with borderline and schizophrenic pathology. In their critical attention to the many dimensions of empathy – philosophical, developmental, therapeutic, artistic – the contributors collectively bear witness to the fact that Kohut has helped to shape new questions, but not set limits to the search for answers. The product of their efforts is an anatomical exploration of a topic whose relevance for psychoanalysis and psychotherapy is only beginning to be understood.

Looks at European ideas about race and the alleged superiority of certain peoples, especially in Germany.

This 4-volume set, originally published between 1969 and 1970, traces the basic psychoanalytic concepts evolved by Freud. Each volume takes a single theme in Freud’s thought and gives a concise but exhaustive account of the historical development of the concepts relating to it. Whenever there is any change in formulation or amplification, the change and Freud’s reasons for it are clearly noted. Out of print for some time, it is now available again both as a set and individual volumes. In order to present his thought most clearly and graphically, Freud’s own words have been used, and references are always given to the appropriate volumes of the standard edition of the Complete Psychological Works of Sigmund Freud, and to Freud’s letters and other writings. This enables the reader to pursue any subject of special interest in a minimum of time – a possibility that will prove of enormous help to students, teachers, lecturers, research workers and seminar leaders alike. The preparation of these volumes involved the active collaboration of fifteen psychoanalysts and child psychotherapists from the Hampstead Child Therapy Clinic (now the Anna Freud Centre). Organized in the form of a study group under the chairmanship of Dr Humberto Nagera , they worked intensively on the project for six years before completing these four volumes. Usually it will take a student several years of intense reading to become conversant with these basic concepts let alone to master and integrate them fully. Dr Nagera and his colleagues aimed at making this task lighter.