Does it Appear to 'Resemble' Reality? on the Ethics of Psychoanalytic Writing.

This paper explores the intricate nexus of writing and psychoanalysis by addressing a key question: In what and how many directions should analytic writing be ethical? The author structures the argument across three axes. First, in an introduction, writing's role as a psychoanalytic invariant is emphasized. Then, an exploration ensues, delving into writing as praxis, navigating complex technical choices, from micro- to macro-perspectives in clinical vignettes, their autobiographical essence, their relevance as models for theory, self-revelation, etc. Lastly, a succinct epilogue considers the relationship between aesthetics and ethics in psychoanalytic writing.

The psychoanalytic setting: José Bleger's encuadre.

José Bleger's paper on the setting (encuadre) is integral to his 1967 book Symbiosis and Ambiguity. Relevant concepts from the book are summarised before examining his view of the setting as a "non-process" consisting of "constants", complementing the "variables" of the analytic process. Process and setting are related as figure and ground in Gestalt psychology. The ideally maintained setting is studied as a thought experiment, uniting the categories of institution, personality, body schema, and body. Deposited in the setting, the psychotic part of the personality, or "agglutinated nucleus", is a remnant of early symbiosis with the mother. Bleger distinguishes two settings: the analyst's and the patient's. The latter can only be analysed by strictly maintaining the former. Ritualisation of the setting denies temporal reality. De-symbiotisation is not always possible. A concept of "internal" setting is suggested, but Bleger nowhere mentions this and the concept is problematic, leaving open the question of how to listen to the silence of the setting. Bleger's concept of encuadre can be applied to constants (invariants) in the wider world, the psychotic part of the personality being deposited in everything that is familiar and felt to be constant, including technology, which creates a "platform" for human activity.

The aesthetic and affective matrix of pre-reflective sensemaking at the origins of the relationship between subject and world: A dialogue between Kant's Third Critique and psychoanalysis.

The authors discuss the relevance of aesthetic and affective experience at the heart of the human being's capability to relate to the world and to found relations of sense. Faced with anguish that the world can be meaningless and with fear of uncertainty/chaos, trust and hope are needed for the world to be a hospitable place for existence. Such experience is aesthetic, sensitive and affective before being rational, reflective and deliberative. Through a dialogue between Kant, Winnicott and Bion, it is shown how foundation of trust is based on two essential aspects: (1) The illusion that reality was created to allow us to live in it (namely, the fictionality is a prerequisite for each possible development of psyche) and (2) this illusion is not generated by a solipsistic activity of the human mind; rather, it is made possible starting from the primordial relationship with the other, by containing anguish, nourishing trust and hope, and supporting psychic development and elaboration of progressive forms of symbolisation. The authors discuss how these points have a profound aesthetic implication through deepening the reflection on the ontogenetic development of the psyche, the complex intertwining between primary and secondary processes, and clinical implications.

Gratitude, freedom and refusal.

This paper is an exploration of gratitude as a fundamental concept in psychoanalysis. Melanie Klein's classic article "Envy and Gratitude" (1957) named gratitude at one pole on an axis of human suffering and flourishing, but with a few notable exceptions, the article stimulated research into envy. This paper explores the historical and philosophical traditions that have, to some extent unconsciously, influenced our contemporary understandings of gratitude. The paper also works to explore the social and ethical meanings of gratitude as well as gratitude's psychoanalytic significance. The aim is to uncover the overall psychic significance of gratitude and its place in human flourishing.

On the question of the internal frame.

This paper attempts to expand José Bleger's classic, metapsychological descriptions of the psychoanalytic frame to formulate and emphasize the role of the analyst's internal frame in establishing a psychoanalytic observational perspective in the analytic situation. The rationale for doing so follows from clinical necessity, especially when working with patients and psychic organizations that are 'beyond neurosis' and in non-traditional settings such as distance and telemetric analyses. Clinically speaking, in its most effective state, the analyst's internal frame can inform the possibility of an observational vertex aimed at the intuitive grasp of psychic reality rather than a sense-based, empirical observation of parameters denoted by the elements of a consensually validatable social reality.

Frame, setting, process, and movement.

The author addresses the theme of frame and setting in psychoanalysis, suggesting that they are "functions" of the psychoanalytic process. Frame is defined as the external components of the context that enable the development of a process, and setting as the primarily psychoanalytic elements within the analyst's mind, necessary for establishing an analysing situation where a process should take place. The author emphasizes that the characteristics of both also define the outline of the process, while discussing attributes that would aid in its development. The author proposes the creation of an imaginary model regarding possible invariants in psychoanalytic theories and theories of technique with the intention of deepening the understanding of the relationship between frame, setting and process. The author concludes with a reflection on the effect of implicit theories on the construction of frame and setting.

Was It Just a Dream? Aging and Dreaming the Psychoanalytic Process.

By revisiting the last years of a long psychoanalytic treatment of a female patient, a psychoanalyst reflects on her own development as a clinician and on the changes in her experience of psychoanalytic generativity. An increasing ability to understand patient's shifts between creativity and destructiveness brings about a different understanding of the process of mourning, while the shared aging of the analytic dyad highlights the difficulty of ending an analysis that has become a way of life.

Must the Reality of Death Be Unspeakable?

Attention to the manifestations of death anxiety in the clinical context is often absent in the discourse of psychoanalytic training. This exchange addresses some of the causes of such an absence: a fraught relation between privacy and secrecy, primacy of psychic reality and interpretation, and cultural underpinnings of sanitization of death.

Trauma: open concept.

This paper presents and discusses two sets of theories concerning trauma. The first involves a contemporary social theory of "cultural trauma" and the second refers to psychoanalytic theories on psychic trauma. We argue that these two groups of theories have some relevant elements in common, despite social theorists' critique of psychoanalytic understanding on the matter. In our view, the most important meeting points between these groups of theories concern (a) the possibility to think that trauma is not welded to events but has a formation process, one of attribution of meaning, (b) that this process has a temporality of its own, and (c) that the environment (the objects, actors, and agents that compose it) has a fundamental and determinant role in trauma formation. Further, we suggest that trauma is still an open concept in psychoanalysis.

On Theoretical Edges and Exclusionary Borders: Towards a Genealogy of "Analyzability" in Jungian Psychoanalysis1.

An oft-repeated and largely unexamined assumption in Jungian psychoanalysis is the notion of "analyzability", that is, of an individual's ability or present capacity to think symbolically. It is often taught that if someone is unable to think symbolically, a depth analysis is not possible. Such an individual may be more aptly suited for supportive psychotherapy, the argument goes, an experience that may very well lead to the development of the ego's capacity for symbolic thought but is not, in and of itself, a Jungian analysis. While this sort of categorical thinking has, at times, crossed over into ontological claims about individuals and groups, the notion of analyzability encountered in psychoanalytic theory and praxis is often cloaked in facially neutral language. The impact, however, has been anything but neutral in effect. In this paper, I propose a softening of our theoretical edges through a genealogy of the category of analyzability within the broader history of psychoanalysis. Through this excavation, I explore the contingent nature of the category of analyzability, how it has constricted knowledge, perpetuated inequality, and, more broadly, obscured ways of knowing. In so doing, I recover the radically democratic potential that lies at the heart of Jungian psychoanalysis.

Notre tente jungienne est peut­être grande et ses contours théoriques indispensables, mais que se passe­t­il lorsque nos contours théoriques se durcissent, devenant des frontières inhospitalières, des frontières servant à exclure et des zones d'occlusion? Une hypothèse souvent mise en avant et peu remise en question dans la psychanalyse jungienne est la notion d'« analysabilité ¼, c'est­à­dire de l'aptitude d'une personne, ou de sa capacité actuelle, à penser symboliquement. On enseigne souvent que si quelqu'un est incapable de penser symboliquement, une analyse en profondeur n'est pas possible. A une telle personne on proposerait plutôt une psychothérapie de soutien, une expérience qui peut très bien conduire au développement de la capacité de pensée symbolique de l'ego, mais qui n'est pas, en soi, une analyse jungienne. Alors que ce type de pensée catégorique a, en certaines occasions, rejoint des revendications ontologiques sur les individus et les groupes, la notion d'analysabilité rencontrée dans la théorie et la pratique psychanalytiques est souvent enveloppée dans un langage apparemment neutre. L'impact, cependant, a été tout sauf neutre dans ses effets. Dans cet article, je propose un assouplissement de nos frontières théoriques à travers une généalogie du concept d'analysabilité au sein de l'histoire plus large de la psychanalyse. À travers cette plongée, j'ai pour but d'explorer la nature contingente de la notion d'analysabilité, de voir comment elle a limité la connaissance, perpétué des inégalités et, plus largement, obscurci les modes de connaissance. Par cette démarche, je crois que nous pourrions nous rendre compte du potentiel radicalement démocratique qui se trouve au cœur de la psychanalyse jungienne.

Nuestra tienda junguiana puede ser amplia y sus bordes teóricos vitales, pero ¿qué ocurre cuando nuestros bordes teóricos se endurecen, agudizándose en fronteras inhóspitas, límites de exclusión y zonas de oclusión? Un supuesto a menudo repetido y en gran medida no examinado en el psicoanálisis Junguiano es la noción de "analizabilidad", es decir, de la habilidad o capacidad actual de un individuo para pensar simbólicamente. A menudo se enseña que si alguien es incapaz de pensar simbólicamente, no es posible un análisis en profundidad. Tal individuo, se argumenta, puede ser más adecuado para una psicoterapia de apoyo, una experiencia que puede muy bien conducir al desarrollo de la capacidad del ego para el pensamiento simbólico, pero no es, en sí misma, un análisis Junguiano. Aunque este tipo de pensamiento categórico se ha extendido, en ocasiones, a afirmaciones ontológicas sobre individuos y grupos, la noción de analizabilidad encontrada en la teoría y práctica psicoanalíticas suele estar envuelta en un lenguaje aparentemente neutro. Sin embargo, su impacto no ha sido neutro en absoluto. En este artículo, propongo suavizar nuestros bordes teóricos a través de una genealogía de la categoría de analizabilidad dentro de la historia más amplia del psicoanálisis. A través de esta excavación, propongo explorar la naturaleza contingente de la categoría de analizabilidad, cómo ha restringido el conocimiento, perpetuado la desigualdad y, más ampliamente, oscurecido las formas de conocer. Al hacerlo, creo que podríamos darnos cuenta del potencial radicalmente democrático que yace en el corazón del psicoanálisis Junguiano.

Psychoanalytic Contributions to Psychodynamic Psychiatry and Psychotherapy: Erik Erikson's Psychosocial Developmental Theory.

Erik Erikson gives us a comprehensive psychosocial schema encompassing the life cycle from birth to death. In elucidating key issues at each life stage-the epigenetic crises-he defines important parameters of development that distinguish between the normative and the pathologic. Individuals at any developmental stage can be evaluated with respect to these fundamental milestones.

The outsider phenomenon and the need to belong.

The outsider phenomenon is an existential pathology interrelated with the need to belong. It is a group related experience that has developmental foundations. W. R. D. Fairbairn (1952), was one of the first psychoanalysts who systematically challenged Freudian theory, and located the human experience within social relationships. Fairbairn (1935) suggested that the family is the first social group, leading to affiliations with important groups external to the family. This paper extrapolates from Fairbairn's ideas about schizoid character, which is an interpersonal experience, to group experiences in a family and with identity groups. Fairbairn's notions about the unavoidable activation of schizoid processes may help us understand what makes the outsider experience so pervasive.

"Masked dissociation": the many faces of technology.

After briefly explaining the concepts of dissociation and repression and discussing the new interest that the concept of dissociation has acquired within the actual psychoanalytic panorama, the author explains the concept of a dissociative continuum and presents Peter Goldberg's theory on somatic dissociation. Starting from this model, she proposes an interpretation of the use of technology, and especially of the internet, as a dissociative modality that helps separate the mind from the body, one that allows the maintenance of personal security-a concept dear to Sullivan-through physical distance. The implications of this point of view are discussed.

Engaging with the unknown: How Judaism enabled Freud's psychological discoveries.

A large literature has formed around the question of how Freud's Jewishness and/or Judaism influenced his psychological discoveries and development of psychoanalytic theory and methods. The article organizes the literature into several core theses but brings new clarity and insight by applying two essential criteria to demonstrate an impact of Judaism on Freud's thinking: direct content and historical timing. First, there should be evidence that Freud incorporated actual content from Jewish sources, and second, this incorporation must have occurred during the most crucial period of Freud's early discovery, conceptualization, and development of psychoanalysis, roughly 1893-1910. Thus, for example, Bakan's well-known theory that Freud studied Kabbala is completely negated by the absence of any evidence in the required time period. Part I reviews the literature on the influence of Freud's ethnic/cultural Jewish identity. Part II introduces the Judaic sacred literature, explores Freud's education in Judaism and Hebrew, and presents evidence that Freud had the motive, means, and resources to discover and draw from the "Dream Segment" of the Talmud-along with the traditional Judaic methods and techniques of textual exegesis. Freud then applied these same Judaic word-centered interpretive methods-used for revealing an invisible God-to revealing an invisible Unconscious in four successive books in 1900, 1901, and 1905.

The correlation between sadomasochists' experience and their sadomasochistic behaviors and fantasies: A qualitative analysis of interviews.

Lacking a comprehensive understanding of sadomasochism makes difficulties in judicial dispositions, clinical interventions, and mental health services. This study explores the correlation between sadomasochists' growth experience and their sadomasochistic behaviors and fantasies. We interviewed 51 sadomasochists from a Chinese subcultural website, coded and analyzed the interview records, conducted correlation and cluster analyses on the reference points of the nodes of impressive experience and sadomasochistic behaviors and fantasies, and constructed the model of Experience-Behaviors and Fantasies. We found that sadomasochists' typical impressive experiences are family parenting and sexual experience; sadomasochistic behaviors and fantasies can be classified into five categories: spirit, punishment, sex, canine, and excretion; and sadomasochistic behaviors and fantasies are partially correlated with sadomasochists' impressive experiences, indicating psychoanalytic theory is the leading theory for the driving processes of sadomasochism, while behaviorist and Gestalt theories also contribute.

Hamlet e Macbeth nas teorias de Freud e Lacan / Hamlet and Macbeth by Freud and Lacan / Hamlet et Macbeth chez Freud et Lacan / Hamlet y Macbeth en las teorías de Freud y Lacan

A arte e a literatura estão presentes de maneira significativa, tanto em Freud quanto em Lacan, entretanto elas se inscrevem de diferentes formas nas duas teorias, isso pode ser melhor observado quando os autores se debruçam sobre uma mesma obra, como Hamlet de William Shakespeare. Além desta, Macbeth é outro drama shakespeariano que interessará a Freud por conta da personagem de Lady Macbeth. Diante disso, o artigo analisou as interpretações de Freud acerca dessas duas tragédias shakespearianas, assim como as de Lacan sobre Hamlet, investigando algumas particularidades acerca de relações com a arte e com a literatura. Embora impliquem em interpretações diversas, essas obras reúnem elementos importantes e por vezes com um valor de exemplo paradigmático para reflexões no campo da psicanálise

Both Freud and in Lacan make extensive, albeit different, use of art and literature in their theories. This can be better observed when they focus on the same work, such as Hamlet and, in Freud's case, Macbeth by William Shakespeare. Thus, this article analysed Freud's readings of these two Shakespearean tragedies, as well as Lacan's analysis of Hamlet, investigating some particularities about their relations with art and literature. Despite differences in interpretation, these works bring together important elements valuable as a paradigmatic example of psychoanalytic reflections

Freud et Lacan font tout deux un usage intensive, mais différent, de l'art et la littérature dans leurs théories. Cela peut être mieux lorsque les auteurs se concentrent sur la même œuvre, comme Hamlet et, dans le cas de Freud, Macbeth de William Shakespeare. Cet article donc analyse la lecture de Freud de ces deux tragédies shakespeariennes, ainsi que l'analyse de Lacan sur Hamlet, en étudiant certaines particularités de leurs relations avec l'art et la littérature. Bien qu'ils impliquent des interprétations différentes, ces travaux rassemblent des éléments importants et ont parfois valeur d'exemple paradigmatique pour les réflexions psychanalytiques

El arte y la literatura están presentes de manera significativa, tanto en Freud como en Lacan, sin embargo se inscriben de diferentes formas en ambas teorías, esto se puede observar mejor cuando los autores se enfocan en una misma obra, como Hamlet de William Shakespeare. Además de esto, Macbeth es otro drama de Shakespeare que a Freud le interesará por el personaje de Lady Macbeth. Por tanto, el artículo analizó las interpretaciones de Freud sobre estas dos tragedias de Shakespeare, así como las interpretaciones de Lacan sobre Hamlet, investigando algunas particularidades sobre sus relaciones con el arte y la literatura. Aunque implican diferentes interpretaciones, estas obras reúnen elementos importantes y, en ocasiones, con el valor de un ejemplo paradigmático para las reflexiones en el campo del psicoanálisis

To Feel in My Flesh: Receptivity, Resonance, Representation, and The Beta Screen.

When we are confronted with the challenge of trying to fully convey or describe something about human life and emotional experience, we find ourselves up against the very limitations of language. This problem becomes especially relevant as we attempt to expand psychoanalytic theory so as to enable us to "approach a mental life unmapped by the theories elaborated for the understanding of neurosis" (Bion1962, p. 37). This paper seeks to aid in that expansion by revisiting Bion's early writings about the beta screen, extending his conclusions about communication from the psychotic part of the mind to the broad area of the unrepresented (the unstructured unconscious), suggesting that there is often a potentially communicative meaning, a mute plea for intersubjective regulatory assistance (alpha function), embedded in the unconscious evocation of emotions in the object and that this cry for help may be encrypted in even the most seemingly destructive, resistant and oppositional patients.

On Identity and the Political in Psychoanalysis.

Weaving subjective musings with theoretical speculation, this paper explores various themes on the question of identity. I consider identity as identification with a social location, where that social location is a function of groups. As such, identity is inherently contingent, a relational affair, a soft assembly. Though not a particularly psychoanalytic concept, identity is currently being tasked with considerable work in psychoanalysis: functioning as a hinge between the dual registers of the personal and social unconscious. Like any symptom, the term identity both obscures and indexes, signaling the urgent need for a radical revision of theory. The more we use the contingency of identity-how we find ourselves identified (by others as much as by ourselves) in this place and time, whatever this might be-rather than its fixity, thought to transcend place and time, the more that the concept of identity can be used in a specifically psychoanalytic way to help us explore the terrain of the political, which I distinguish from the terrain of politics proper. These ideas are employed to consider the current moment in psychoanalytic organizational life, which takes place under the sign of a fundamental paradigm shift (that is to say: catastrophic change).