FREUD: A LIFE FOR OUR TIME
Peter Gay, Ph.D.
W.W. Norton & Company
New York, 1988 651 pages
$25.0

Kim, M.D., Edward

English

FREUD: A LIFE FOR OUR TIME
Peter Gay, Ph.D.
W.W. Norton \u26 Company
New York, 1988 651 pages
$25.0

Name not available

Book Review: Humanizing Freud

Jefferson Digital Commons

Jefferson Journal of PsychiatryVolume 7 | Issue 2 Article 16June 1989Book Review: Humanizing FreudEdward Kim, M.D.Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PAFollow this and additional works at: https://jdc.jefferson.edu/jeffjpsychiatryPart of the Psychiatry CommonsLet us know how access to this document benefits youThis Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Jefferson Digital Commons. The Jefferson Digital Commons is a service of ThomasJefferson University's Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL). The Commons is a showcase for Jefferson books and journals, peer-reviewed scholarlypublications, unique historical collections from the University archives, and teaching tools. The Jefferson Digital Commons allows researchers andinterested readers anywhere in the world to learn about and keep up to date with Jefferson scholarship. This article has been accepted for inclusion inJefferson Journal of Psychiatry by an authorized administrator of the Jefferson Digital Commons. For more information, please contact:JeffersonDigitalCommons@jefferson.edu.Recommended CitationKim, M.D., Edward (1989) "Book Review: Humanizing Freud," Jefferson Journal of Psychiatry: Vol. 7 : Iss. 2 , Article 16.DOI: https://doi.org/10.29046/JJP.007.2.015Available at: https://jdc.jefferson.edu/jeffjpsychiatry/vol7/iss2/16Humanizing FreudFREUD: A LIFE FOR O UR T IMEPeter Ga y, Ph .D .W.W. Norton & CompanyNew York, 1988651 pages$25 .00Edward Kim, M.D.Peter Ga y's Freud: A Life for Our Tim e reads like an epic novel. T h is mightcause some to feel that the author is somehow ch eapening his subject, renderingit digestible to a generation raised on Harold Robbins an d "Genera l Hospital. "Nevertheless, I thorough ly enjoyed the book. Far from trivializing th e life an dwork of one of this cen tury' s most influential thinkers, Ga y has succeededadmirably in humanizing a Freud who ha s a lte rnate ly been maligned andmythologized but rarely accessible.A nonmedical cu ltu ra l historian with formal psych oanalyt ic train ing , Dr.Gay po ssesses a literary sty le whi ch gives his subject matter a vibrant tangibili ty,making his work a pleasure to read . In particular, his ab ility to deftly weavecultu ra l and political factors into th e text provides a complex and tumultuou sstage for this fascinating drama, a sto ry worth reading . Fr eu d is depicted as adevoted hu sband, loving fath er, and bel eagu red fo un der of psychoanalysis, bu tDr. Ga y never lets us lose sight of th e entire man , a co mplex charac te r at onceintimidating and approachable . The young Sigmund who refused to play themeek "good Jew" to his Gentile classmates at th e Unive rs ity of Vienna is everybit th e forerunner of " Herr Professor," th e indom ita b le and prolific mi ndbehind th e psychoanalytic movement. The work's chief strength , howeve r , liesin its depicti on o f Freud as a man of relati onships rather th an merely a loneex p lo rer. T he tension and passion of his life is hi ghlighted th rough co rrespon-den ces with Wilhelm Flies s, C.G. Jung, Sandor Feren czi, an d Lou And reas-Sa lome. Ga y sensitive ly outlines recu rrent th emes in Freud 's life as th ey wereinflue nced by powerful relations h ips: h is own oe d ipa l co nflict s affecting (per-haps inhibiting) his explora tion offema le psych ology; his penchant for fos teringill-fa te d relationships with adherents who ultimat ely " betrayed" him . By cas tingFreud in th e cont ext o f his most important relationships, Pe ter Ga y reveals theman behind th e work, an utterly human , co urageously vulnerable scho lar andclinician.103104 JEFFERSON JOURNAL O F PSYCH IATR YOne aspect of the book which I initially found annoying is Gay's use of atopical rather than purely chronological structure. The individual chapters aregrouped into sections representing historical epochs in Freud's life: th e pre- andproto-psychoanalytic period of 1856- I 905; the elaborations of 1902- I 9 I5; therevisions of 19 I 5- I939. However, each chapter discusses a particular issue ortheme affecting Freud and psychoanalysis. Moreover, chapters are subd ividedinto still more discreet topics, some of which may take place concu rrently withone another and even with events in different chapters. This fru st rat ed myobsessive desire for order, but I was compensated by a multilayered appreciat ionof the complexity and richness of Freud's life. A quick rereading and cross-referencing of confusing sections helped bring the temporal aspects into greaterrelief. Dr. Ga y has clearly written a biography rather than a chronology. Wecome to understand Freud as an individual who lived much more than a series ofhistorical events and papers. Such is the value of good biography.The very phrase, "A Life for Our Time," indicates that th e author hasattempted to interpret the Freud of late Victorian Europe to a n e nt irelydifferent world. In the end, each of us will construct our own Freud based on ourpersonalities and the available data. Dr. Ga y has given us a Freud biographywhich emphasizes his struggles and triumphs against the ba ckdrop of h uma nweakness and historical change. In a world weary of media-m ark eted poli ticiansa nd unblemished heroes, Peter Gay's biography portrays a life we ca n apprecia tein our time .

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