Freud Among the Philosophers: The Psychoanalytic Unconscious and Its Philosophical Critics

200 Pages·1996·2.59 MB·English

by  Donald Levy

Freud Among the Philosophers

D O N A LD LEVY
Freud Among
the Philosophers
THE PSYCHOANALYTIC
UNCONSCIOUS AND ITS
PHILOSOPHICAL CRITICS
Yale University Press
New Haven & London
Copyright © 1996 by Yale University. All rights reserved. This book may not be
reproduced, in whole or in part, including illustrations, in any form (beyond that
copying permitted by Sections 107 and 108 of the U.S. Copyright Law and except by
reviewers for the public press), without written permission from the publishers.
Designed by Betty Ng. Set in Sabon type by Keystone Typesetting, Inc., Orwigsburg,
Pennsylvania. Printed in the United States of America by Vail-Ballou Press,
Binghamton, New York.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Levy, Donald, 1936-
Freud among the philosophers : the psychoanalytic unconscious and its
philosophical critics / Donald Levy.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 0-300-06632-5 (cloth : alk. paper)
1. Psychoanalysis and philosophy. 2. Psychoanalytic
interpretation. I. Freud, Sigmund, 1856-1939. II. Title.
BF175.P45L48 1996
I50.i9'52 —dc20 96-2169
CIP
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
The paper in this book meets the guidelines for permanence and durability of the
Committee on Production Guidelines for Book Longevity of the Council on Library
Resources.
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 21
In memory of my parents and of my sister

Contents
Acknowledgments ix
Introduction i
i Wittgenstein's Critique of Psychoanalysis 9
2 Is the Psychoanalytic Unconscious a Dispensable
Concept? 57
3 The Problem of Unverifiability 83
4 Is Psychoanalysis a Scientific Advance?
Griinbaum's Critique 129
Afterword 167
Appendix: Addendum to Griinbaum 173
References 179
Index 185

Acknowledgments
This book had its origins in work I did for the doctoral
degree in philosophy at Cornell University. Richard Boyd advised
me during the process of writing my thesis, and I am grateful for his
efforts on my behalf. Paul Edwards and Marilyn Hamilton provided
invaluable suggestions and support during the years in which I strug­
gled to turn some of the ideas in my thesis into articles (Levy, 1983a,
1983b, 1987, 1988). The long incubation that transformed those
articles into this book could not have succeeded without the inter­
vention of many people, prominent among them being my col­
leagues at Brooklyn College and Michael Eigen, whose numerous
hints and riddling remarks helped greatly. Several sabbatical leaves
made possible by the administration at Brooklyn College provided
me with the time I needed to write. I am indebted to Adolph Griin-
baum for corresponding with me concerning my review (1988) of
his book. Marcia Cavell and Paul Robinson encouraged my work at
a crucial time, as did David Richards; from start to finish, his advice,
assistance, encouragement, and support sustained me while I wrote
this book, as did the kindness and enthusiasm o fDiane Richards.