Leo Rangell – författare

When Otto Fenichel died suddenly at age 48, Anna Freud mourned the loss of "his inexhaustible knowledge of psychoanalysis and his inimitable way of organizing and presenting his facts." These qualities shine in his classic text, which has been a beacon to generations of psychoanalysts. Investigating the relationship between biological needs and external influences—the tensions and inhibitions that nurture neuroses—Fenichel concludes that "neuroses are social diseases," arising from the demands of civilization on the developing organism. For this 50th anniversary edition, distinguished psychoanalyst Leo Rangell has written an introduction to set the context of Fenichel's work and an epilogue to describe its influence.

This book turns out to have a scientific relevance and value that will similarly interest many, not only those in the specialized field of neuroscience but very individual who has a brain and a mind and wonders about them.

This book turns out to have a scientific relevance and value that will similarly interest many, not only those in the specialized field of neuroscience but very individual who has a brain and a mind and wonders about them.

The theory of psychoanalysis was the breakthrough that defined the intellectual ambience of the 20th century. Two-thirds of the way into the century, the new science peaked and started a steep decline. While many look to external factors, or more recently to internal organizational ones, Dr. Leo Rangell has steadfastly pointed to theoretical fragmentation as the source of the loss of inspiration the discipline previously enjoyed.The Controversial Discussions need to be superseded by Discussions of Controversies. The British attempt at mid-century, with its outcome far from logical or inspiring, had best be followed by reparative discussions throughout the analytic world, with human impediments met and dissolved, for as long as it takes. The ideational issues that divide are few and finite in comparison to the breadth of the consensual base. Dr. Rangell traces the mixture of ideas and people intrinsic to the history of splits, and describes a total, cumulative, composite theory aiming toward internal coherence in the service of survival and the future of the science.

This is a rare autobiographical history written from the center of the inner circle of psychoanalysis. Today, only a few psychoanalysts remain who have Dr. Rangell's unique, insider's view of the last half century of psychoanalytic history. His close associations with the major contributors to theory during this time permit him to chronicle the constant marriage of people and ideas that has been the hallmark of the psychoanalytic community over the previous decades. His insights are enhanced by his leadership role across the spectrum of psychoanalytic organizations (local, national, and international) that has allowed him to witness and participate in the great debates of our time. Written as Dr. Rangell approached the age of 90, this chronicle possesses the same clarity and incisiveness that has always characterized Rangell's writing. He is still the tough-minded thinker ready to challenge the fuzzy thinking that threatens to split psychoanalysis into factions.In this work, Dr. Rangell gives us his valuable perspective on the significant individuals in psychoanalysis and their ideas: from the early dissension of the 20s and 30s to the war years, to the "golden years" of the 50s and early 60s where complications in the field manifested in the splitting of Institutes. He goes on to cover the turmoil surrounding the theoretical debates of the 70s, followed by his look at the attempt at pluralism in the 80s, the eclecticism of the 90s, and finishing with a discussion of the discipline as it is now. Then, using his own prodigious contributions to the great debates of our time, Dr. Rangell fuses divisive views into a unitary theory of psychoanalysis. This composite theory offers an amalgamated view that provides coherence in place of the fragmentation, personal warring, and disarray that constitutes the present state of psychoanalysis.