Main description:

From Tribal Division to Welcoming Inclusion: Psychoanalytic Perspectives provides a fascinating contribution to our understanding of the increasingly polarized and divisive nature of global politics. By describing the significant role of early mental mechanisms in interactions between the individual and society, the book offers a unique understanding of how our early mental life explains the social, cultural and political positions we assume later.

Splitting and projection are early defences meant to shield the growing mind from unbearable aspects of reality, but they hinder our capacity for open-minded thought, and in contributing to the dangerous atmosphere of "us versus them", introduce tribal myths of an innocent group and external persecutors. The book illustrates these distortions of reality using a range of vignettes, notably the myth of white supremacy and the savage legacy of the Civil War in the United States. Gaining support from the work of Wilfred Bion, the book emphasises the need for integration of mind and the restoration of our capacity to face painful realities, including one's own violence and hatred.

This psychoanalytic study provides a balm for turbulent times. It will be of great interest to researchers and interested readers in the broad field of psychoanalysis, as well as those in the fields of political science, cultural studies and anthropology.

Contents:

DEDICATION

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

PREFACE

INTRODUCTION

PART I: THE MIND MAY DISTORT REALITY IN ORDER TO MAINTAIN SECURITY AND STABILITY

CHAPTER 1: THE MYTH OF WHITE SUPREMACY

CHAPTER 2: SEEKING SECURITY AMID EMOTIONAL TURBULENCE

PART II: THE MIND FACES FEARED REALITIES: RESCUE VIA COURAGE AND ATTENTIVE CARE

CHAPTER 3: SEEKING SECURITY VIA CARE AND THOUGHT

CHAPTER 4: LESSONS DERIVED FROM CARE, COURAGE AND SELF-RESPECT

CHAPTER 5: TRANSFORMATIONS VIA TRUST IN THE AS YET UNKNOWABLE

CHAPTER 6: APPRECIATING THE PAIN OF INTEGRATION

CHAPTER 7: SUMMARY REFLECTIONS

INDEX

REFERENCES