The current resurgence of interest in the scientific origins of psychoanalysis has overshadowed the artistic and literary models to which Freud had recourse time and again in the development and presentation of his theories. It is this neglected aesthetic wellspring of psychoanalysis to which Harry Trosman calls attention in Freud and the Imaginative World.

Trosman enriches our understanding of psychoanalysis by demonstrating how Freud's cultural and humanistic commitments guided his pursuit of a science of mind. Toward this end, he undertakes a number of challenging tasks: to situate Freud in the formative culture of his time, to adumbrate the human concerns that infromed his work in the natural sciences, and to delineate the multiple "modes of influence" that fostered his creativity. The second part of the book moves from the cultural sources of Freud's creativity to the psychoanalytic contribution to our understanding of art and literature. Here, Trosman focuses on the consumer of art and literature, tracing psychoanalytic perspectives on aesthetic responsiveness from Freud to the present. Trosman's critical review of the da Vinci and Hamlet literature illustrates the limitations as well as the explanatory potential of the two principal genres of applied psychoanalytic work, and leads naturally to the reflective estimation of psychoanalysis and creativity that concludes the work.

Throughout, Trosman is a well-informed and engaging guide, both to the imaginative Freud and to the abundant literature on psychoanalysis and the arts. He documents Freud's continuing indebtedness to the literary models that nourished his theorizing and gave shape to his narrative clinical expositions, even as he takes pains to show how psychoanalysis has, in many ways, outgrown Freud's own reductive explanations of aesthetic phenomena. A skillfully crafted overview, Freud and the Imaginative World is an exemplary introduction to a crucial aspect of the Freudian legacy.

In "Contemporary Psychoanalysis and Masterworks of Art and Film," Harry Trosman demonstrates that a psychoanalytic point of view can vastly enrich one's understanding and appreciation of works of art.

Drawing on current psychoanalytic views of the importance of fantasy, attachment and individuation theory, preoedipal factors in development, and object relations, Trosman addresses the impact of psychoanalysis on the understanding of the visual arts, painting, and film. Vel zquez's "Las Meninas," Giorgione's "The Tempest," Rembrandt's self-portraits, and Seurat's "La Grand Jatte" are among the paintings Trosman analyzes. He also considers such films as Antonioni's "L'avventura," Welles's "Citizen Kane," Hitchcock's "Vertigo," and Fellini's "8 1/2." The result is an insightful and innovative perspective, integrating classical and contemporary psychoanalytic thought with art and film criticism.

The current resurgence of interest in the scientific origins of psychoanalysis has overshadowed the artistic and literary models to which Freud had recourse time and again in the development and presentation of his theories. It is this neglected aesthetic wellspring of psychoanalysis to which Harry Trosman calls attention in Freud and the Imaginative World. Trosman enriches our understanding of psychoanalysis by demonstrating how Freud's cultural and humanistic commitments guided his pursuit of a science of mind. Toward this end, he undertakes a number of challenging tasks: to situate Freud in the formative culture of his time, to adumbrate the human concerns that infromed his work in the natural sciences, and to delineate the multiple "modes of influence" that fostered his creativity. The second part of the book moves from the cultural sources of Freud's creativity to the psychoanalytic contribution to our understanding of art and literature. Here, Trosman focuses on the consumer of art and literature, tracing psychoanalytic perspectives on aesthetic responsiveness from Freud to the present. Trosman's critical review of the da Vinci and Hamlet literature illustrates the limitations as well as the explanatory potential of the two principal genres of applied psychoanalytic work, and leads naturally to the reflective estimation of psychoanalysis and creativity that concludes the work. Throughout, Trosman is a well-informed and engaging guide, both to the imaginative Freud and to the abundant literature on psychoanalysis and the arts. He documents Freud's continuing indebtedness to the literary models that nourished his theorizing and gave shape to his narrative clinical expositions, even as he takes pains to show how psychoanalysis has, in many ways, outgrown Freud's own reductive explanations of aesthetic phenomena. A skillfully crafted overview, Freud and the Imaginative World is an exemplary introduction to a crucial aspect of the Freudian legacy.

In "Contemporary Psychoanalysis and Masterworks of Art and Film," Harry Trosman demonstrates that a psychoanalytic point of view can vastly enrich one's understanding and appreciation of works of art.

Drawing on current psychoanalytic views of the importance of fantasy, attachment and individuation theory, preoedipal factors in development, and object relations, Trosman addresses the impact of psychoanalysis on the understanding of the visual arts, painting, and film. Vel zquez's "Las Meninas," Giorgione's "The Tempest," Rembrandt's self-portraits, and Seurat's "La Grand Jatte" are among the paintings Trosman analyzes. He also considers such films as Antonioni's "L'avventura," Welles's "Citizen Kane," Hitchcock's "Vertigo," and Fellini's "8 1/2." The result is an insightful and innovative perspective, integrating classical and contemporary psychoanalytic thought with art and film criticism.