Freud and Psychoanalysis

One hundred years after the birth of psychoanalysis, renowned scholar W. W. Meissner combines a comprehensive account of the evolution of Freud's thought with a synthesis of contemporary psychoanalytic theory that includes the contributions of Margaret Mahler and Erik Erikson, as well as those of Heinz Hartmann, Heinz Kohut, Otto Kernberg, Ronald Fairbairn, Donald Winnicott, and Anna Freud. Dr. Meissner details the development of psychoanalytic theory, tracing its evolution from the earliest stages of Freud's thinking to recent developments such as object relations theory and self-psychology. A chapter on psychoanalytic therapy completes this unique and essential volume. Freud and Psychoanalysis was originally published as part of a reference work addressed to psychiatrists. The University of Notre Dame Press edition of this classic study makes it available for the first time to a wider audience. The only contemporary work on Freud and the field he founded written by a psychoanalytic psychiatrist, this will appeal to everyone interested in Freud or intellectual history—therapists, psychoanalysts, psychiatrists, medical students, collegiate, graduate, and divinity students and professors, and the general public.

W. W. Meissner, S.J., M.D. (1931-2010) was University Professor of Psychoanalysis at Boston College and Training and Supervising Analyst Emeritus at Boston Psychoanalytic Institute. He is the author of many books, including The Cultic Origins of Christianity: The Dynamics of Religious Development; and The Therapeutic Alliance: The Vital Element of Clinical Practice.