Karl Abraham : the birth of object relations theory

369 Pages·2014·10.401 MB·English

by  Abraham, Karl, Sanfeli Isabel, Walters, Kate

KARL ABRAHAM

KARL ABRAHAM
The Birth of
Object Relations Theory
Isabel Sanfeliu
Translated by Kate Walters
First published in Spanish in 2002 as Karl Abraham o el descubrimiento de la
melancolía by Biblioteca Nueva
First published in English in 2014 by
Karnac Books Ltd
118 Finchley Road
London NW3 5HT
Translated from Spanish by Kate Walters
Copyright © 2014 by Isabel Sanfeliu
The right of Isabel Sanfeliu to be identified as the author of this work has
been asserted in accordance with §§ 77 and 78 of the Copyright Design and
Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored
in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic,
mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written
permission of the publisher.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A C.I.P. for this book is available from the British Library
ISBN-13: 978-1-78220-087-1
Typeset by V Publishing Solutions Pvt Ltd., Chennai, India
Printed in Great Britain
www.karnacbooks.com
CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ix
ABOUT THE AUTHOR xi
FOREWORD TO THE ENGLISH EDITION xiii
by Nicolás Caparrós
FOREWORD xix
by Luis Fernando Crespo
PART I: ABRAHAM, PSYCHOANALYSIS, AND HIS TIME
CHAPTER ONE
An introduction 3
CHAPTER TWO
Historical context 7
v
vi CONTENTS
CHAPTER THREE
The limits of a life 19
CHAPTER FOUR
Abraham’s time in Zurich: the decisive change (1904–1907) 27
CHAPTER FIVE
Transfer to Berlin (1908–1915) 37
CHAPTER SIX
The Great War 81
CHAPTER SEVEN
The psychoanalytic trenches again 95
PART II: ABRAHAM’S ROLE AND UNIQUENESS
IN PSYCHOANALYTIC THEORY
CHAPTER EIGHT
First psychoanalytic papers, his theoretical contribution 115
CHAPTER NINE
Abraham and the psychoanalytic movement 119
CHAPTER TEN
Abraham, linguistics, and mythology 137
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Applied psychoanalysis 143
CHAPTER TWELVE
The correspondence 147
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
The Berlin Psychoanalytic Society, the Institute,
and the Polyclinic 155
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Training analyst and supervisor 159
CONTENTS vii
PART III: EVOLUTION OF ABRAHAM’S THOUGHT
REGARDING THE HISTORY OF LIBIDINAL
DEVELOPMENT (1907–1925)
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Incorporation into psychoanalysis 165
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
The beginnings of object theory (1907–1916) 169
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
The first pregenital stage of the libido (1916) 195
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
A short study of the development of the libido,
viewed in the light of mental disorders (1924) 217
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Character-formation on the genital level of the libido 243
CHAPTER TWENTY
Final papers 255
PART IV: ABRAHAM, THE OBJECT, AND
PSYCHOANALYSIS
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
The object as a key concept 265
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
Abraham—pioneer of object relations theory 271
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
To conclude 279
CHRONOLOGY 283
THE SCIENTIFIC ENVIRONMENT OF
KARL ABRAHAM 297
viii CONTENTS
APPENDIX 319
REFERENCES 331
INDEX 335
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
For their support during the course of this research project I would
particularly like to mention:
Nicolás Caparrós, who has been the wind beneath my wings from
the very beginning and an intuitive sounding board throughout the
whole process.
Robert Hinshelwood, whose validation constituted a fundamental
backbone for this edition together with his kindness as a mediator.
Kate Walters, my meticulous translator, whose professionalism led
her to explore the depths of psychoanalytic terminology through our
many conversations.
And, watching from the sidelines, Pablo, Laura y Miguel; my essen-
tial accomplices, providing their selfless support.
ix