Examining Shakespeare's plays through the lens of modern psychoanalysis, this book delves into the concept of dream-thought and the unconscious. It highlights the contrast between the overt narratives and the deeper, symbolic meanings that resonate with dreamlife. By analyzing the plays in this innovative way, the author uncovers hidden layers of interpretation, enriching the understanding of Shakespeare's work and its psychological dimensions.
This is no mere parody - it is a confession, a treatise, and a very, very clever tragi-farce, which is as funny as it is serious, and serious as it is funny. There is a living, breathing countertransference exploration throughout this fictitious analysis of an all-too-recognizable late-twentieth century young adult, Hamlet Dane, and his alter-ego analyst Dr Horacio. Hamlet in Analysis explores, amongst other things, the cracks and gaps between analytic theory and practice through the candid, private thoughts of our analyst-narrator, whose constantly self-limited philosophy is pierced, rankled, ruptured, and herniated by his young patient, provoking an ongoing challenge to his own sanity. But it contains the best actors in the world, either for tragedy, comedy, history, pastoral, pastoral-comical, historical-pastoral, tragical-historical, tragical-comical-historical-pastoral, scene individable, or poem unlimited
In this intelligent and insightful work, Meg Harris Williams presents a clear and readable introduction to the works of influential psychoanalyst Donald Meltzer. The book covers Meltzer's ideas on key themes including sexuality, dreams, psychosis, perversion and aesthetics, and his work with both children and adults. This book focuses especially on Meltzer's views on the nature of psychoanalysis itself, as an investigative method conducted by the cooperation between two people. His intuitive understanding of dreams is underscored by a scholarly interest in philosophy and linguistics. The book will give readers a window into Meltzer's clinical seminars and supervisions, as well as a comprehensive overview of his published work, all thoughtfully brought together by someone who worked with Meltzer for many years. Bringing Meltzer's ideas into contemporary context, this fresh approach to his work makes his rich and complex theories about our inner world accessible to all. Part of the Routledge Introductions to Contemporary Psychoanalysis series, this book will be of great importance to psychoanalysts, clinicians and scholars familiar with Meltzer's ideas, as well as those seeking an introduction to his work.