A Psychoanalytic Approach to the Feminine

This book dissects the concepts and characteristics of the feminine in both male and females, separating them from womanhood and femininity, and equipping readers with the tools to better understand pathologies such as masochism, narcissism, depression, and paranoia.

A Psychoanalytic Approach to the Feminine sees Houari Maïdi dissect the concepts and characteristics of the feminine in both males and females, separating them from womanhood and femininity, and equipping readers with the tools to better understand pathologies such as masochism, narcissism, depression, and paranoia.

Starting from Freud's binary depiction of gender identity through the lens of bisexuality, Maïdi seeks to redress the way in which traditional psychoanalysis considers sexual characteristics. He separates the feminine from gender, showing how historically misogynistic theories in psychoanalysis have potentially damaged the progress of the field, as well as female and male analysands alike. Depictions of the feminine are considered through their relationship with traumatic seduction, mourning and melancholy to address questions related to different clinical and psychopathological representations.

Using clinical vignettes throughout, this book is essential reading for psychoanalysts and those interested in the intersection between gender and analysis.

Autorentext

Houari Maïdi is a psychoanalyst and professor of psychopathology, psychoanalysis, and clinical psychology at the University of Burgundy Franche-Comté, France.

Inhalt

Introduction 1. The riddle of the feminine 2. The feminine and castration 3. From the guilt of being feminine to the feminine being of guilt 4. The feminine victim 5. The melancholic feminine 6. Can you be innocent if you love someone guilty? 7. Feminine destiny 8. Feminine hypochondria 9. Feminine paranoia 10. Feminine masochism Conclusion References Index of names