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Psychoanalytic theory and practice have always been influenced by social and political forces. Psychoanalysis at the Political Border, a volume of 17 original essays written in honor of Rafael Moses, M.D., explores how these forces influence aspects of psychoanalytic practice that can be said to be “on the political border.” For readers unfamiliar with Dr. Moses, the book is an introduction to a psychoanalyst who has worked in an environment unfamiliar to most Western clinicians. For others, this volume will be both informative and a warm reminder of the work of an important contributor to contemporary psychoanalysis. Both Dr. Moses and his patients in the Middle East have been influenced by dramatic events and social upheaval unknown to most psychoanalysts in North America. (This conclusion is, of course, debatable. Perhaps it is only the magnitude of the “political battles” our patients must confront that distinguishes practice in the United States from that in war-torn areas of the world.)
The book is divided into four parts extending from the topic of conflict with the individual to conflicts directed toward groups and nations. Part I contains two chapters about Rafael Moses, one by his wife, Rena Moses-Hrushovski, Ph.D. Part II consists of seven chapters about individual psychopathology, including the formation of hatred, love, and motivation. Part III deals with conflicts toward and within groups, from sibling rivalry to the psychology of ideologies. The chapters in Part IV, “At the Psychopolitical Border,” address more directly the theme suggested by the book's title in discussions of public opinion and the political process, national leaders, and the aftermath of the Nazi experience for the German psychoanalytic community.
Each of the chapters is worthwhile and succeeds in its principal objective, honoring some aspect of Dr. Moses' professional work and life interests, but their relevance to the theme of the book is not always clear. Although all of the contri