Letter from Sándor Ferenczi to Sigmund Freud, June 18, 1915

Pápa, June 18, 1915

Dear Professor,

The time since the beautiful days of Whitsun went by rather quickly. I am now working on all kinds of small things; the bigger work still has to ripen. The necessity arose before completing the theory of coitus to study the other (fantastic) fetal situation, sleep, better. The two things do belong together. I am now reading a diligent book about the physiology of sleep (by Piéron).1 I am sending Rank the lecture I gave in Munich (Belief, Disbelief, and Conviction), as well as a work that relates to the comparisons of patients in analysis.2 I don't know for certain if you will like them; I would gladly have sent them to you to look through, but I know how much you dislike reading manuscripts.

In the meantime I was in Budapest once, without having come to a decision in the matter in question3 (about which I spoke quite openly with Frau G.). Even the world war with its turmoil can't bring about a decision (Goethe married Christine after her heroic performance in the war against the French).4

My social intercourse with the officers and their families is becoming progressively sparser; even the friend5 who was recently won here seems too abnormal and caught up in certain prejudices, so the future of this new acquisition doesn't promise as much as I was able to promise myself by virtue of his undeniable psychological brilliance. I fear that his surprising intuition is partly owing to his abnormality (there were cases of paranoia in his family).

It is the lack of any diversion that makes me industrious—we have become virtually accustomed to the vicissitudes of war. The front is now somewhat closer to us; the railway station is already full [of] trains traveling from (and to) Italy. The peace prophecies have fallen silent.

How are you and yours—especially the warriors? Please give my regards also to Martin and Ernst when you get a chance.—How are the summer plans going?

Kind regards,

Ferenczi