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Bruce Fink's richly detailed and provocative volume is a major contribution to the evolving status of psychoanalytic technique. Written from a Lacanian perspective, Fundamentals of Psychoanalytic Technique covers the full range of pertinent topics from basic ways of listening and speaking to varieties of analytic interpretion, the handling of transference, countertransference, and dream work, and offers a frank approach to telephone analyses and the treatment of psychotics. In fulfillment of his major objective to present a comprehensive picture of contemporary Lacanian practice, Fink offers detailed discussions of controversial methods like the famous short sessions and succinct verbal interventions for which Lacan was known. While not focusing explicitly on Lacanian theory, he does provide useful and readily understandable glosses on numerous concepts, which help make sense of the clinical approach. Finally, the book is replete with memorable and pungent citations from Lacan, who as a master aphorist had points to make about virtually every aspect of psychoanalytic practice.
I found the book quite readable and informative on almost every page, even when the subject matter seemed elementary and familiar, but especially when I found myself debating points with which I disagreed. Fink has a manner of taking on other authors that is generally respectful, while openly challenging and critical, and he alternates between a personal, commonsensical tone and the voice of a commited adherent of Lacan. His critique of relational and intersubjective approaches—for placing excessive confidence in the analyst's subjective reactions and empathic capacities—seems compatible with mainstream perspectives. His observation of the risk of imposing the analyst's feelings and fantasies on patients, especially