THE PSYCHOANALYTICALLY ORIENTED PSYCHOLOGY INTEREST GROUP OF THE APS

 

Presents a lecture by  Dr Doris McIlwain

 

CHARISMA & TRANSFERENCE: MUTUAL TRANSFORMATION IN THE CLINIC AND IN CULTURE

 

Part of living the good life is to make good our losses and to involve others in our projects.  From many psychoanalytic points of view this entails a movement out into the intersubjective world, away from an exclusive focus on the intrapsychic domain of wish-fulfilling thought, imagos and fantasy.  We need to find words, gestures and creative artefacts to convey something of our inner world to wider culture(s), as writers like Adam Phillips and Joel Whitebook suggest.

 

Such transformation entails moving towards a fresh apprehension of the world, self and others - as fresh at least as we desiring creatures can achieve.  This transformative movement is not towards a disenchanted resignation in the face of reality.  At its best it includes a creative, manic or Œdivine inspirationš as Winnicott, Ricoeur and Freud (in his study of Leonardo da Vinci) have suggested.  For such personal transformation to be an ongoing creative dynamic, it cannot be a one-person event.  It cannot merely be that analysand is changed by analyst; seeker changed by mentor. The desire of the analyst is at issue here as well.  I suggest that something shared and in-between each is transformed, so that each participant in such a charismatic relationship can be open to transformation.

 

I would like address what makes this possible.  What is the recipe, if you like, for a productive charisma?  If charisma is to culture what transference is to the clinical situation, what can a seeker of change be offered other than counter-transference?  Analysands and seekers of all sorts are disadvantaged and damaged if they are used by the narcissism of those they seek for personal transformation.  This talk explores what promotes an enhancing and mutually transformative charismatic relationship.

 

Dr Doris McIlwain

Doris is an academic and a researcher with a deep interest in psychoanalytic issues.  She has done field research on charismatic new religions in NSW and Victoria, and is currently doing cross-cultural research with yoga practitioners.

 

 

   Professional Development points for APS members pending.

 

 

DATE:                          Monday 6 September 2004

TIME:                                       8.00 ­ 9.30 pm

VENUE:                        Crows Nest Centre, 2 Ernest Place, Crows Nest (check board at entrance for room)

COST:                         $22.00 (includes GST).  Please bring the correct money or a cheque made out to the Australian Psychological Society.

ENQUIRIES:                Henry Luiker  9389 4512 or Joanne Abbey  9745 5583

 

This lecture is open to members and guests of the Australian Psychological Society and other interested professionals.