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In a book of remarkable depth and intellectual excitement, Rob Weatherill captures Freud's most problematic and controversial concept of the death drive and engages us in a journey that will take us through all the main authors who have tackled this perplexing topic. Beginning with Freud's initial speculations on the matter and continuing with an incisive examination of the works of Klein and Bion, Weatherill also examines contemporary discoveries in the field of biology and finishes with contributions made by Lacan, and by Baudrillard in the area of postmodern cultural theory.
As we know, Freud's introduction of the concept of the death drive in “Beyond the Pleasure Principle,” undoubtedly grew into one of the most disputed subjects of debate within the field of psychoanalytic theory and practice. Analysts who otherwise consider themselves “orthodox,” have fiercely rejected the whole notion of a death drive and dismiss it as a pure speculative folly void of any clinical application, whereas post-Freudian analysts, such as Klein and Bion, strongly accepted it, thus creating an interesting paradox.
Weatherill provides us with a much needed comprehensive study on the concept of the death drive and raises important questions that he examines from varying points of view. His discussion is both thorough and revealing as he analyzes and blends countless works of reference into a most enlightening synthesis that leaves one with the feeling of having made a truly meaningful and inspiring trip though a major sector of psychoanalytic thinking.