Sigmund Freud revolutionized the way in which we think about oursleves. From its beginnings as a theory of neurosis, Freud developed psychoanalysis into a general psychology which became widely accepted as the predominant mode of discussing personality and interpersonal relationships. Anthony Storr goes one step further and investigates the status of Freud's legacy today and the disputes that surround it.
This book works to expose that vision and to demonstrate its fertility for further inquiry. It reconstructs several of Freud's works on ordinary mental life, tracking his method of inquiry, in particular his search for the child within the adult, and culminating in a deployment of his tools independently of his analyses. It shows how to read Freud for his insight and generativity and how to push beyond the confines of his analyses in pursuit of new lines of exploration. In this endeavor, in turn, it at once echoes and encourages the spirit of play with ideas so characteristic of, and so engaging in, Freud.
As one of the first theorists to explore the unconscious fantasies, fears, and desires underlying religious ideas and practices, Freud con be considered one of the grandparents of the field of Religious Studies. Yet his legacy is deeply contested. How can Freud be taught in a climate of critique and controversy? The fourteen contributors to this volume, all recognized scholars of religion and psychoanalysis, describe how they address Freud's contested legacy; they ""teach the debates."" They go on to describe their courses on Freud and religion, their innovative pedagogical practices, and the creative ways they work with resistance.
Freud's "Beyond the Pleasure Principle" constitutes a major landmark and a real turning point in the evolution of psychoanalytic theory. Pushing aside the primacy of the tension-discharge-gratification model of mental dynamics, this work introduced the notion of a daemonic force within all human beings that slowly but insistently seeks psychic inactivity, inertia, and death. Diverse and rich connotations of the proposal are elucidated in this book.
This book is a meditation on the role of psychoanalysis within Latin literary studies. Neither a sceptic nor a true believer, Oliensis adopts a pragmatic approach to her subject, emphasizing what psychoanalytic theory has to contribute to interpretation.
