Chapter I. Reunion (1919-1920)

THE years succeeding the world war were extremely hard. Everything had come to a standstill in Vienna and life there was scarcely bearable. The monotonous diet of thin vegetable soup was far from being adequately nourishing and the pangs of hunger were continuous. The winters of 1918-19 and 1919-20 were the worst of all, with their completely unheated rooms and feeble illumination. It needed a tough spirit to endure sitting still and treating patients for hour after hour in that deadly cold, even if equipped with an overcoat and thick gloves. Then in the evening Freud had his correspondence to answer with his half-frozen fingers, numerous proofs to correct of new editions of his books and of the periodicals for which he felt responsible. Yet somehow there was energy left to contemplate new ideas and produce further works.

To the inevitable hardships there were added many sources of anxiety. It was months before any news could be had of Freud's eldest son who was a prisoner of war in Italy. For a couple of years he was concerned about his sons' chances of finding work—one was still a student—and he had to help not only them but also his son-in-law in Hamburg, besides other members of his family and various friends. The economic situation in Austria was as bleak as it could be, and the future prospects just as dark. Freud's own financial position was very serious, its future still more precarious. His earnings could not keep pace with the steady rise in prices, and he was forced to live on his savings. In October, 1919, he estimated that these would last another eighteen months, but that was on the optimistic assumption that the inflation would not increase.1 Actually he lost all his savings, amounting to 150,000 crowns (then worth £6000), and so had nothing left for his old age.2 But his chief anxiety concerned his wife's future, on the expectation that she would survive him—as she did. He had insured his life on her behalf for 100,000 crowns (£4000). He had felt sa