Why Freud? An introduction to the Freudian Clinic

‘A battle may be fought over Freud, but the war is over our culture’s image of the human soul. Are we to see humans as having depth - as complex psychological organisms who generate layers of meaning which lie beneath the surface of their own understanding? Or are we to take ourselves as transparent?’ Jonathan Lear

“Reading Freud in itself trains us.’ Jacques Lacan

Why start with Freud’s writings in today’s psychoanalytic clinic? Is Freud’s thinking relevant? Should we relegate his thinking to the Victorian wardrobes which no longer fit our homes and lives? Or did his ideas constitute a ‘Copernican revolution’ we might still wish to heed in the 21st century? Where did later analysts take his ideas?

This course is an introduction to Freud’s thinking in relation to clinical psychoanalysis and psychotherapy. It will critically engage with his thinking around central ideas such as the unconscious, repression and the symptom, dream interpretation, sexuality, the Oedipus complex and transference as well as topics such as neurosis and psychosis.

This short course is open to anyone, but perhaps it will be of particular interest to those who are considering training as clinicians or clinicians wishing to refresh their reading of Freud.

Seminar Leaders include: Stefan Marianski, Peter Nevins, Lucia Corti, Laura Chernaik, Andrea Fassolas, Luca Bosetti, Yannis Grammatopoulos, Hephzibah Rendle-Short and Michelle Willett

Advance reading suggested:
Anything from The Standard Edition of the Complete Psychological works of Sigmund Freud. The ‘Introductory Lectures’ would be a good place to to begin.

This is a 10 week course (2 seminars per evening) to be held on Wednesday evenings, 6:30pm-9:15pm, in the Autumn term 2023. (October 4th- November 1st, and November 15th- December 13th)

Cost: £500 payable before course commences plus £25 administration charge to accompany the application form (cheques payable to ‘The Guild of Psychotherapists’).

If you have any queries regarding the course, please call on 020 7401 3260 or e-mail: training@guildofpsychotherapists.org.uk.