Details

Freud's Beyond the Pleasure Principle constitutes a major landmark and a real turning point in the evolution of psychoanalytic theory. Pushing aside the primacy of the tension-discharge-gratification model of mental dynamics, this work introduced the notion of a &quote;daemonic force&quote; within all human beings that slowly but insistently seeks psychic inactivity, inertia, and death. Politely dismissed by some as a pseudo-biological speculation and rapturously espoused by others as a bold conceptual advance, &quote;death instinct&quote; became a stepping stone to the latter conceptualizations of mind's attacks on itself, negative narcissism, addiction to near-death, and the utter destruction of meaning in some clinical situations. The concept also served as a bridge between the quintessentially Western psychoanalysis and the Eastern perspectives on life and death.These diverse and rich connotations of the proposal are elucidated in On Freud's &quote;Beyond the Pleasure Principle&quote;. Other consequences of Freud's 1920 paper - namely, the marginalization of ego instincts and the &quote;upgrading&quote; of aggression in the scheme of things - are also addressed. The editors have gathered a body of distinguished psychoanalysts from around the world to argue, discuss, elaborate upon, and advance Freud's path-breaking contribution. The result is a book of rare intelligence, charm, and clinical significance.Contributors: Salman Akhtar, Ira Brenner, Fatima Caropreso, Michael Feldman, Betty Joseph, Otto Kernberg, Joshua Levy, Ashok Nagpal, Mary Kay O'Neil, Henri Parens, Richard Theisen Simanke, W. Craig Tomlinson, Elisabeth Young-Bruehl