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This paperback edition of a work originally published in 1959 might appear dated, since it is a collection of chapters of discussions held in 1958 sponsored by the philosophy department of New York University with Sidney Hook as the moderator. Sidney Hook, well known for his portentous writing in philosophy and politics, attempted to do quite an impossible task. He assembled a wide range of talented academic philosophers and members of the “impossible profession,” Heinz Hartmann, Lawrence Kubie, Jacob Arlow. The selection of these three psychoanalysts gives the reader a flavor of their presentations. The rejoinders by the philosophers at times are reminiscent of Herman Wouk's Caine Mutiny. Captain Queeg (the psychoanalyst rolling his silver balls in his hand) must defend his rather bizarre, irrational behavior. There appears to be some sense and reason for his behavior, his “theories,” his “observations,” yet when viewed with a cool detachment of the philosophical methods: empiricism, linguistic analysis, logic, the result is either admiration for psychoanalysis or describing Freudian ideas as a “pseudoscience.”
The psychoanalysis presented to the philosophers is of course Freud's work. Hartmann gives an overview of Freud's heroic efforts, even quoting Freud saying that Einstein had “predecessors from Newton onward.” Freud did everything by himself. Hartmann's summary, appearing as an open system, goes full circle, and the message becomes a closed system. Freud's ideas are so aesthetically complete, so remarkable that they can not be touched. They can be amended; however if they are contradicted it is similar to the children of darkness attempting to overthrow the children of the light. Although he borrows the concept of “participant observation” from Sullivan, he cannot give credit to him, and brings in Albert Ellis as a worthy contributor to analytic thought!
Ernest Nagel follows, and he brings in the big guns. A remarkable philosopher and teacher, his reputation at