The second installment, of more narrow interest than her "Hannah
Arendt "(p. 787), in postmodern pioneer Kristeva's planned
three-volume triptych on female geniuses. After her provocative
study of the endlessly conflicted German-Jewish philosopher,
Kristeva (Linguistics/Univ. of Paris) turns to a psychoanalyst
whose work, unlike Arendt's, will be little known to nonspecialist
readers. Austrian-born Melanie Klein (1882-1960) was an early
acolyte of Sigmund Freud's whose elaborate modifications of his
theories provoked considerable irritation on the part of the master
himself and many of his intellectual progeny. Whereas Freud's
elaboration of such matters as the Oedipus complex "oriented the
psychic life of the subject around the castration ordeal and the
function of the father," Kristeva writes, Klein insisted on the
primacy of the female, thus running the risk "of reducing the
oedipal triangle into a dyad." Non-Freudians will be somewhat
bemused by Kristeva's approving summaries of Klein's ideas on anal
fixation, "oral-sadistic and cannibalistic desires," the equation
of the penis with "bad and toxic excrement," and other matters; of
more interest to generalists is her account of the controversies
such ideas aroused in orthodox circles, which involved, among other
things, a long and heated war of attrition between Klein and
Freud's daughter Anna. Kristeva's ideas, which in other works are
surrounded by impenetrable thickets of specialized language, here
are clearly expressed (credit for at least part of that must surely
go to the translator), and she capably demonstrates why Klein,
despite the "ambiguous, ambivalent" nature of her theories, should
be regarded as an innovator and pioneer in psychoanalytic theory.
Of much substance, though of interest to a very small readership.
(Kirkus Reviews)
To the renowned psychoanalyst, philosopher, and linguist Julia
Kristeva, Melanie Klein (1882--1960) was the most original
innovator, male or female, in the psychoanalytic arena. Klein
pioneered psychoanalytic practice with children and made major
contributions to our understanding of both psychosis and autism.
Along the way, she successfully introduced a new approach to the
theory of the unconscious without abandoning the principles set
forth by Freud. In her first biography of a fellow psychoanalyst,
the prolific Kristeva considers Klein's life and intellectual
development, weaving a narrative that covers the history of
psychoanalysis and illuminates Kristeva's own life and work.
Kristeva tells the remarkable story of Klein's life: an unhappy
wife and mother who underwent analysis, and -- without a medical or
other advanced degree -- became an analyst herself at the age of
40. In examining her work, Kristeva proposes that Klein's "break"
with Freud was really an attempt to complete his theory of the
unconscious. Kristeva addresses Klein's numerous critics, and, in
doing so, bridges the wide gulf between the clinical and
theoretical worlds of psychoanalysis.
Klein is celebrated here as the first person to see the mother
as the source of not only creativity, but of thought itself, and
the first to consider the place of matricide in psychic
development. As such, Klein is a seminal figure in the evolution of
the provocative ideas about motherhood and the psyche for which
Kristeva is most famous. Klein is thus, in a sense, a mother to
Kristeva, making this book an account of the development of
Kristeva's own thought as well as Klein's.
General
Is the information for this product incomplete, wrong or inappropriate?
Let us know about it.
Does this product have an incorrect or missing image?
Send us a new image.
Is this product missing categories?
Add more categories.
Review This Product
No reviews yet - be the first to create one!
Welcome to Loot.co.za!
Sign in / Register |Wishlists & Gift Vouchers |Help | Advanced search
