Freud Museum London Series – serie

Franz Alexander began his psychoanalytic career in 1920s Berlin at the vanguard of the psychoanalytic movement. He won the admiration of Freud who praised him as “extraordinarily good” and “one of our strongest hopes for the future”. He later moved to the US and was a pivotal figure in American psychoanalysis, but his work moved into obscurity following disagreements with other key figures in the field. Fast forward to today and many of Alexander’s methods have become common practice in psychotherapeutic treatment. His granddaughter, Ilonka Venier Alexander, is determined to bring his contributions to the attention of a whole new generation unfamiliar with this early titan of the field.In order to bring the work of Franz Alexander to as wide an audience as possible, this book is written in an engaging style to pique the interest of students, practitioners, and academics, including those unfamiliar with psychoanalysis. Topics discussed include juvenile delinquency and criminology; the mind–body connection and the concept of psychosomatic medicine; the use of evidence-based research to measure the effectiveness of psychotherapy and other treatments; the corrective emotional experience; and short-term and flexible treatment in psychoanalysis. The latter two rank among the most controversial of his theories, yet they have stood the test of time and demonstrate his continuing importance to the field.For those interested in history, in psychoanalysis, and in fascinating life stories, this book is a must-read.

This moving memoir opens a door into the life of a young girl growing up in a psychoanalytic household. It offers insight into not only the expectations of girlhood in upper-class New York in the 1950s, but also the burgeoning psychoanalytic community at that time with particular focus on the brilliant Gregory Zilboorg.Caroline Zilboorg draws on her memories of growing up in a what she calls 'a psychoanalytic household', and on a wealth of privately held scrapbooks and photographs. She recounts pivotal experiences from her birth in New York City in 1948 through the death of her father in 1959. Both chronological and reflective, the memoir tells the story of a girlhood shaped by the attitudes of the period towards femininity and masculinity, attachment and differentiation, as well as an account of her brief psychoanalysis with Margaret Mahler in 1955. The chronological narrative is placed throughout within the context of the long-term impact on the author’s personal and professional life, and the book includes 21 previously unpublished images selected from her personal archives.This exceptional memoir is an homage to Freud, an intimate account of childhood and coming of age, and a privileged glimpse of a particular moment in psychoanalytic history. It is highly recommended to psychoanalysts, historians, and those interested in the lives of others.