You do not currently have permission to view the full text for this document. Please sign in to an account with an active subscription or contact support.
My First Response to reading the interview of Benjamin Wolstein by Irwin Hirsch was to feel sorry that I had not read Wolstein's works more studiously and recognized him as he deserved to be recognized. I barely recall reading some of his papers many years ago, no doubt giving up too early because of the density of his writing and lack of case material. Paralleling my regret at not giving him his due, I am pleased to see the publication of this interview because it opens a window to the world of Wolstein's deep and humane conceptions of the relational analytic situation. Not burdened by having to write, and aided by Hirsch's penetrating questions, Wolstein the man, the analyst, and the very plain-speaking advocate for mutuality is revealed. His humility in the face of Hirsch's admiration, his refusal to create any “rules,” and his steadfast belief that each therapeutic relationship is unique create a portrait of a man who accepted his position as facilitator of the patient's experience, not mover and shaker, and certainly not standard-bearer. He said he was not into theory building or telling other people how to work, implicitly stating that he had no interest in providing anything that people could use to defend their behavior in relation to patients. He didn't want analysts to be like him, he wanted them to become themselves and help their patients to do the same.
Despite Hirsch's many questions on this front, Wolstein brushes aside any notions that we, as analysts, will exert undue influence on our patients if we are forthcoming about our personal experience. If anything, he seemed to become ever-so-slightly impatient with this line of questioning, as if to say to Hirsch, “No, we are not on the same track. It's not a question of influence. If we influence them or fail to influence them in any way, it is because they are seeking that influence. They take what they can, or refuse it. It is their experience.” The issue for Wolstein was authenticity rather than influe