A Prophetic Analyst: Erich Fromm's Contribution to Psychoanalysis

Rating:
Summary: An important work to further our understanding of Fromm
Review: Mauricio Cortina and Michael Maccoby give us a rare gift in A PROPHETIC ANALYST: ERICH FROMM'S CONTRIBUTIONS TO PSYCHOANALYSIS, by editing the work of eighteen contributors presented at the Erich Fromm International Symposium held in Washington, D.C. in March 1994. Erich Fromm was read by millions and was highly influencial in the 1940s and 50s, but fell into neglect in his later years, in spite of the fact that some of his important work, SOCIAL CHARACTER IN A MEXICAN VILLAGE (co-authored with Micheal Maccoby) and THE ANATOMY OF HUMAN DESTRUCTIVENESS was published in the 1970s. Erich Fromm greatly admired Freud, yet was courageously critical of many aspects of his theory. The contributors to this book take a similar attitude toward Fromm, admiring his major contributions to psychoanalysis without shrinking from pointing out his short-comings. This is a scholarly work, but (also in Fromm's own tradition) one that is highly readable. I recommend it to anyone who has found Fromm a source of understanding or inspiration in the past. For the clinician, it offers rare insight into Fromm's contributions to clinical psychoanalysis. It deepens understanding of his work as a sociologist and philosopher. For the merely curious about Fromm as psychoanalyst or social thinker, this book could be a good beginning. Robert Duckles, Ph.D. [e-mail]