Obra completa. Del psicoanálisis a la psicología social.

Reseña de la obra completa de Enrique Pichon-Rivière. Del psicoanálisis a la psicología social, 1967-1977. Establecimiento, Introducción y Notas: Fernando Fabris, con la colaboración de Joaquín Pichon-Rivière. Paidós, 2023.

On the Belatedness of Psychoanalytic Clinical Writing.

The belatedness of analytic writing and its effects on analytic processes are explored through the concepts of nachträglichkeit and thirdness. The temporal gap between being with and writing about functions as a meaningful pause filled with opportunities for investigating unconscious pathways to the analyst's countertransference. The significance of analytic narration in affecting specific psychoanalytic developments is explored. The theoretical framework utilizes the concept of après coup, which brings to light new meanings in an afterwardness of time. Aspects of analytical writing dynamics are discussed as equivalent to those of nachträglichkeit. Analysts also deploy thirdness in constructing presentations of clinical material. This could be an intrapsychic third or an external figure representing an internal introjected third. A clinical vignette demonstrates the enhanced understanding achieved by writing. It specifically assisted in exploring the analyst's enactment relating to change in the setting, the background for which was a move to online analysis. This evoked infantile anxieties and painful confusions about loss. Historically, the patient had to navigate a path through miasmic ambiguities between reality and phantasy, truths and lies. A conclusion is reached, arguing that analytic processes extend beyond the duration of sessions, and that the processes of clinical writing can provide a significant contribution.

To Reveal or Not to Reveal, That Is the Wrong Question: Thoughts about Clinical Writing in Psychoanalysis.

This paper plays with the possibilities of writing about psychoanalytic work in different ways with different levels of disclosure about both patient and analyst. Various issues around anonymity, confidentiality, consent and identity are explored, highlighting the many questions that come up. These issues of how to write psychoanalytically are also addressed from the point of view of culture and the sociopolitical gestalt of our time.

Clinical Evidence, Triangulation of Perspectives and Contextualization. Part 1: The Beginning of Carla's Treatment.

We propose to critically evaluate and strengthen the level of clinical evidence in psychoanalysis, using a strategy of triangulating clinical phenomena from different perspectives and increasing contextual knowledge. Insufficient discussion of alternative hypotheses and limited contextual information are two Achilles heels of psychoanalytic case presentations. We examine the concept and quality standards of clinical evidence in psychoanalysis and related disciplines, with particular attention to the contribution of the three-level model (3-LM). We analyze the case of a patient treated with transference-focused psychotherapy (TFP), making explicit the theoretical-clinical agreements and disagreements of the authors. We discuss the strengths and limitations of triangulation and contextualization, concluding that they make clinical work and psychoanalytic writing more reliable, transparent, auditable, and replicable.

Ontological Psychoanalysis in Clinical Practice.

The author describes and then clinically illustrates what he terms the ontological dimension of psychoanalysis (having to do with coming into being) and the epistemological dimension of psychoanalysis (having to do with coming to know and understand). Neither of these dimensions of psychoanalysis exists in pure form; they are inextricably intertwined. Epistemological psychoanalysis, for which Freud and Klein are the principal architects, involves the work of arriving at understandings of play, dreams, and associations; while ontological psychoanalysis, for which Winnicott and Bion are the principal architects, involves creating conditions in which the patient might become more fully alive and real to him- or herself. The author provides clinical illustrations of the ontological dimension of psychoanalysis in which the process of the patient's coming more fully into being is facilitated by the experiences in which the patient feels recognized for the individual he is and is becoming. This occurs in an analysis in which the analyst and patient invent a form of psychoanalysis that is uniquely their own.

What We Do, What We Say, What We Don't Say: Confidentiality In The Publication Of Clinical Writing.

Questions concerning analysts' publication of material from the analyses of their patients have troubled the field of psychoanalysis since its inception. Disguise inevitably distorts the clinical material and is often insufficient to protect the patient from recognition. Asking the patient's consent for publication intrudes upon and alters the analytic process. While analysts have largely reached a consensus about the need for anonymity in published material, there is still considerable debate about the necessity for obtaining patients' consent when using their material for publication. In this paper, I will trace the evolving meanings of disguise, and particularly of consent, in the analytic literature. I will place a particular emphasis upon the differing theoretical belief systems that underlie the analyst's decision to ask consent from her patient or not to do so, and I will argue that, although decisions on asking consent remain a complex matter, such coherent belief systems should play an important part in analysts' decisions regarding consent. I will illustrate my thought processes and some clinical situations with brief examples, and I will conclude with some practical recommendations, with the hope that these will stimulate further discussion in the analytic community.

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.

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.

Fifty Years of Change: A Shared Journey.

The author shares a personal account of 50 years of experience practicing psychodynamic psychiatry and psychoanalysis after migrating from Argentina to the United States. Her career developed in parallel as a clinician and as an academic psychiatrist, with leadership roles in the American Psychiatric Association, the Association of Women Psychiatrists, and the American Academy of Psychodynamic Psychiatry and Psychoanalysis. After describing what constitutes the essence, substance, and form of psychoanalysis, she reviews the historic shift within psychoanalysis in the United States from intrapsychic dyadic practice with selected patients to the application of psychodynamic concepts to everyday psychiatric care of patients with complex morbidities in multiple clinical settings.

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.

Soft diamonds: poetic sentiment, poetic speech, and poetic specimen in the clinical hour.

Three links between poetry and psychoanalysis are highlighted in this paper. These refer to the presence, in the clinical hour, of (i) poetic sentiment, (ii) poetic speech, and (iii) poetic specimen. Each is elucidated in detail and with the help of socio-clinical vignettes. The aim of the paper is to demonstrate that, through the affirmative holding and partial unmasking of the instinctual-epistemic conflation in verse and free-association, both poetry and psychoanalysis seek to transform the private into shared, the hideous into elegant, and the unfathomable into accessible.

Letter from Florence.

It is a fascinating decision to hold a conference on identifications in Florence. Now identified for more than five centuries with a brief portion of its millennial story, it sometimes seems imprisoned in its apparently timeless beauty, which is in fact extremely fragile and precarious. In this alternation of isolation and openness Florence is undoubtedly an ideal representation of Italian history. In the end, the characteristics of the development of psychoanalysis in Italy could also be summed up in the oxymoronic pairing of Isolation and Openness. It is thanks to this evolutionary niche that linguistic isolation has been transformed from a difficulty into an advantage. Italian psychoanalysis is a blend of different psychoanalytic traditions interpreted and retranslated into an autonomous psychoanalytic language. If we wish to trace a common feature in Italian psychoanalysis we could point to the concept of relationship as one of its most important transformations, with a shift of focus onto the work of the analytic couple. "Psyche is extended, knows nothing about it", the later Freud's most enigmatic legacy, seems to be one of the compasses for contemporary psychoanalytic research in Italy, one that spins around extensions of practice and the widening of technique.

Inhibition.

This article explores the notion of inhibition at a theoretical and clinical level in psychoanalysis. The first part follows the development of the notion in Freud's work, from the "Project" (1950a [1895]) to Inhibitions, Symptoms and Anxiety (1926d). It identifies the two approaches to inhibition, the first from an energetic point of view, the second from the angle of its relations to anxiety. The second part of the article is devoted to the links between inhibition and Freud's thoughts about death, in particular in Inhibitions, Symptoms and Anxiety and the links to the death drive. It draws on some of Jones' notes and presents a brief clinical illustration. The third part focuses more particularly on general inhibition, especially in depression and melancholia. Based on the treatment of one patient, the author shows how the slow process of overcoming general inhibition is achieved through the gradual use of negation. From an economic point of view, it is suggested that psychoanalytic treatment, through the transference and associative speech, has an effect on the depletion of energy by diverting the "suction" of stimuli, paving the way for the formation of drive representatives, or inhibitions as symptoms, which will need to be dissected.

Unhinged: A Prospective Perspective on Being Unsafe1.

Given the unprecedented events unfolding around the globe over the past four years, psychoanalytic communities near and far have sought to ask and ventured to answer the question: What does psychoanalysis have to offer individuals, and the collective, as a way of seeing and being with the reality of what is? Taking up these questions in such a time as this, feels, perhaps inevitably, unsafe. Sometimes it can feel as if there is a silent and unspoken mandate to ensure safety at all costs when we seek to find a spirit of the depth's response to the spirit of the times. I propose that the work of psychoanalysis is grounded in nothing but the journey through that which is unsafe. This article will take up Ann Ulanov's notion that one's own evil is the hinge door into collective and archetypal evil. To become unhinged means to risk well-formulated understandings, theories, and modalities about being and becoming for the other and instead to allow the other to penetrate that which is unknown in ourselves, upending our well-formed theories and pressing us to take up our own lives in new and unpredictable ways.

Compte tenu des événements sans précédent qui se sont déroulés dans le monde entier au cours des quatre dernières années, les communautés psychanalytiques proches et lointaines ont cherché à poser la question suivante et à y proposer des réponses: qu'est­ce que la psychanalyse peut offrir aux individus, et au collectif, comme moyen de voir et d'être avec la réalité de ce qui est ? Aborder ces questions dans un moment comme celui­ci nous fait nous sentir en danger, et c'est peut­être inévitable. Parfois, on peut avoir le sentiment qu'il y a un décret silencieux et tacite d'assurer la sécurité à tout prix lorsque nous cherchons à trouver une réponse de l'esprit des profondeurs à l'esprit du temps. Je propose que le travail de la psychanalyse n'est fondé sur rien d'autre que le voyage à travers ce qui est dangereux, risqué. C'est, en effet, ce qu'implique la recherche d'une conversation active et vivante avec l'esprit des profondeurs et c'est ce qui distingue le travail de thérapie du travail de psychanalyse. Si nous nous enfermons dans des notions de sécurité, nous resterons liés à des notions similaires d'anonymat analytique et d'innocence, restant inconscients de notre propre implication dans les horreurs qui continuent d'aliéner, d'étouffer et d'isoler ceux qui sont en marge. Cette présentation reprendra la conception d'Ann Ulanov selon laquelle le mal d'une personne est la porte charnière du mal collectif et archétypal. Notre travail, individuellement et collectivement, est de descendre dans ce territoire dangereux à l'intérieur de nous­mêmes pour voir ce qui s'y est passé et ce qui reste à vivre dans les zones d'ombre. Devenir déséquilibré signifie mettre en doute des compréhensions, des théories et des modalités bien formulées sur l'être et le devenir pour l'autre et, à la place, permettre à l'autre de pénétrer ce qui est inconnu en nous­mêmes, bouleversant nos théories bien formées et nous poussant à prendre notre propre vie en main d'une manière nouvelle et imprévisible. En ce sens, la psychanalyse est intrinsèquement une forme d'activisme intérieur et extérieur. Ce qui est proposé ici est un regard sur la façon dont la psychanalyse, déséquilibrée, se déplace au­delà des murs sécurisants et au­delà des murs de la salle de consultation vers le monde au sens large.

Dados los acontecimientos sin precedentes que han tenido lugar en todo el mundo en los últimos cuatro años, las comunidades psicoanalíticas cercanas y lejanas han tratado de preguntarse y han intentado responder a la pregunta: ¿qué tiene el psicoanálisis que ofrecer a los individuos, y al colectivo, en términos de ver y estar con la realidad de lo que acontece? Abordar estas cuestiones en un momento como el actual puede resultar inevitablemente inseguro. A veces puede dar la sensación de que existe un mandato silencioso y tácito de garantizar la seguridad a toda costa cuando tratamos de encontrar una respuesta del espíritu de las profundidades al espíritu de los tiempos. Propongo que el trabajo del psicoanálisis no se basa en otra cosa que en el viaje a través de lo que es inseguro. Esto, de hecho, es lo que implica buscar una conversación activa y viva con el espíritu de las profundidades y es lo que distingue el trabajo de la terapia del trabajo del psicoanálisis. Si nos encerráramos en las nociones de seguridad, seguiríamos limitados por nociones similares de neutralidad analítica e inocencia, permaneciendo inconscientes de nuestra propia implicancia en los horrores que continúan ajenos, encerrando y aislando a aquellos que se encuentran en los márgenes. Esta presentación retomará la noción de Ann Ulanov de que el mal propio es la puerta de entrada al mal colectivo y arquetipal. Nuestro trabajo individual y colectivo es descender a este territorio inseguro dentro de nosotros mismos para ver lo que ocurrió allí y lo que permanece viviendo en las sombras. Perturbarse significa arriesgar comprensiones, teorías y modalidades bien formuladas sobre el ser y el devenir para el otro y, en su lugar, permitir que el otro penetre en lo que es desconocido en nosotros mismos, trastornando nuestras teorías bien formadas y presionándonos para que asumamos nuestras propias vidas de maneras nuevas e impredecibles. De este modo, el psicoanálisis es inherentemente una forma de activismo interior y exterior. Lo que se ofrece es una mirada sobre cómo el psicoanálisis, perturbado, traspasa los muros de la seguridad y va más allá de las paredes del consultorio analítico para adentrarse en el mundo en general.

Alan Roland: A Personal Reflection on the Legacy.

This appreciation of the work of Alan Roland reviews his pioneering contributions to the field of cross-cultural psychoanalysis based on the clinical experience with patients from non-Western cultures, most notably India and Japan.

Aging, Dying, and the Analytic Process.

The panel discussion presented at the New York Psychoanalytic Society and Institute's 1066th Scientific Meeting held on June 8, 2023, takes up aging and dying of an analyst and their impact on patients and on the nature of analytic process. Participants reflect on conflicts and challenges arising with more analysts and patients living to an advanced age, on the unregulated nature of analysts' retirement, and on multilayered meanings of analysts' ethical commitment to their work.