Linda A W Brakel - Philosophy, Psychoanalysis and the A-rational Mind

Other books on these topics have of course been written. There are three in particularIrrationality and the Philosophy of Psychoanalysis by Sebastian Gardner (1993); Open Minded by Jonathan Lear (1998); and The Psychoanalytic Mind: From Freud to Philosophy by Marcia Cavell (1993)each of which I will deal with in a later chapter pointing out the contrasts. But as a preview, let me state what this current volume uniquely offers: (1) an account of psychoanalysis as a general theory of mind fitting in with ordinary science and requiring no special psychology (different from Gardners view in which psychoanalysis is separate from Ordinary Psychology); (2) a coherent view of a-rationally mediated beliefs, desires, wishes, and even phantasies that are propositional (rather than the pre-propositional nature of phantasies for Gardner and Lear); and (3) an account of primary process a-rational mentation as developmentally earlier and not ontologically dependent upon secondary process (which differs from what Cavell holds).

Further, this book demonstrates the integrated use of psychoanalytic data, concepts, and theories with principles and concerns from the philosophy of mind and action, enriching both sides by constraining psychoanalytic theorizing, while broadening philosophys scope. Thus, philosophers of mind and action, and psychoanalytic theorists, as well as clinical psychoanalysts (and clinical psychologists, psychiatrists, and social workers) might well find this book of value. At the same time it is hoped that academic psychologists of various stripes (e.g. developmental, cognitive, social) will also find this work of interest insofar as they too grapple with issues concerning the psychological attitudes, consciousness and unconscious mentation, rationality and its vicissitudestopics directed toward understanding more fully the complex nature of the human mind.

This book is about the philosophical implications of a set of important psychoanalytic concepts, all closely connected to the foundation of psychoanalytic theory. It examines selected intersections of philosophy and psychoanalysis, and it has two intersecting goals. One is to provide, through philosophical analyses, a level of conceptual rigor that has too often been lacking in addressing psychoanalytic concepts. I hope the increased rigor will lead to a renewed appreciation for psychoanalytic theory as a general theory of mind. No less important is the second goal. Uniquely here, psychoanalytic topics are examined philosophically with the aim of expanding philosophys domain. Just as the philosophy of human action can embrace more than rationally mediated action, the philosophy of mind should extend to encompass more than rational and conscious mentationthe philosophy of mind can be a philosophy of the a-rational and unconscious mind too.

Although there are many important books about philosophy and psychoanalysis (e.g. the particular concepts to be taken up in the chapters of this book, I now turn to the vital task of this introductionpresenting the foundational structure of psychoanalysis as a general theory of mind. It is a general theory both simple and elegant, consisting of just five fundaments.