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Of his Pioneer Work in Psychoanalysis
Of his Achievement as the First English Translator of Freud
Of his Contribution in Making the Science of Psychoanalysis a most Important part of Psychiatry
This Collection of Papers is Dedicated in Gratitude and Admiration by his Friends and Colleagues
Isador H. Coriat, Chairman
John M. Murray
Smith Ely Jelliffe
Dr. A. A. Brill was born in Austria, the oldest of four children, all of whom are living. His father, not having had any opportunity for an education, having been orphaned in early life, was most anxious to give him one. Having been a noncommissioned officer in the Austrian Army for many years, he had the ambition to send his son to the army medical school to study medicine. Dr. Brill recalls having heard him make this remark to one of his cronies with whom he used to bowl and drink beer every Sunday afternoon.
He recalls that, one day, when he was very young, surely not more than four or five, he had something on one of his fingers, probably a paronychia. His father took him to the surgeon. He recalls being frightened almost to death and he acted accordingly, which made this doctor furious. He vented all his anger on Dr. Brill's poor father, who soldier-like stood at attention and seemed to be afraid himself. This experience he never forgot. The only impression that it left was that for once he saw his father being bullied and accepting it, and as that was by a physician he must have resolved then and there that some day he would be one.
But before this episode he recalls that some woman asked his mother when he was born. When she was told that he was born in October, she remarked, “He will have to shed blood. He will either be a doctor or a murderer.” He was very young when he heard this prediction, but it recurred to him from time to time. On many occasions, like many of us, he has felt he should have liked to commit murder, but somehow the indirect method was taken and he has