Elizabeth Severn: The "Evil Genius" of Psychoanalysis

347 Pages·2017·3.062 MB·English

by  Arnold William Rachman

ELIZABETH SEVERN
Elizabeth Severn: The “Evil Genius” of Psychoanalysis chronicles the life and work of
Elizabeth Severn, both as one of the most controversial analysands in the history of
psychoanalysis and as a psychoanalyst in her own right. Condemning her as “an evil
genius”, Freud disapproved of Severn’s work and had her influence expelled from
the psychoanalytic mainstream. In this book, Arnold William Rachman draws on
years of research into Severn to present a much-needed reappraisal of her life and
work, as well as her contribution to modern psychoanalysis.
Rachman’s re-discovery, restoration, and analysis of The Elizabeth Severn
Papers – including previously unpublished interviews, papers, books, brochures,
and photographs – suggests that, far from a failure, the analysis of Severn by Sándor
Ferenczi constitutes one of the great cases in psychoanalysis, one that was respon-
sible for a new theory and methodology for the study and treatment of trauma
disorder, in which Severn played a pioneering role.
Elizabeth Severn should be of interest to any psychoanalyst looking to shed fresh
light on Severn’s progressive views on clinical empathy, self-disclosure, counter-
transference analysis, intersubjectivity, and the origins of relational analysis.
Arnold William Rachman is a licensed psychologist, trained psychoanalyst, and
Fellow of the American Group Psychotherapy Association.
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ELIZABETH SEVERN
THE “EVIL GENIUS” OF
PSYCHOANALYSIS
Arnold William Rachman
First published 2018
by Routledge
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© 2018 Arnold William Rachman
The right of Arnold William Rachman to be identified as author of this
work has been asserted by him in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the
Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
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British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
A catalog record for this book has been requested
ISBN: 978-1-138-12286-4 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-1-138-12287-1 (pbk)
ISBN: 978-1-315-64922-1 (ebk)
Typeset in Bembo
by Deanta Global Publishing Services, Chennai, India
IMAGE 1 P icture of Sándor Ferenczi, 1925, given to Elizabeth Severn with the
inscription: “To Dr. Elizabeth Severn as a token of high consideration.
Budapest, December 1925. S. Ferenczi”
IMAGE 2 Severn’s dedication from her 1920 book, The Psychology of Behavior, which she
gave to Sándor Ferenczi in July 1925, written in her own handwriting with
the inscription: “With appreciation to one who can still find fragrance in the
garlands of former years, S. Ferenczi. From his grateful pupil, Elizabeth Severn,
Budapest July 9, 1925”
CONTENTS
List of figures ix
Foreword xi
About the author xii
Acknowledgments xiii
1 Finding psychoanalysis: a personal journey 1
2 Finding Ferenczi: my struggle to build a bridge from
phenomenology and humanistic psychotherapy to
relational analysis 15
3 Finding “R.N.” as Elizabeth Severn 24
4 Finding The Elizabeth Severn Papers: an unknown legacy
of psychoanalysis 30
5 Eissler finds Severn: discovering the Eissler/Severn interview 35
6 Freud’s condemnation of Severn as an “evil genius” 44
7 Todschweigen (death by silence): removal of Elizabeth Severn’s
ideas and work from mainstream psychoanalysis 57
8 Psychoanalysis of difficult cases: Freud’s case of the Wolf Man
and Ferenczi’s case of Elizabeth Severn 71
9 Elizabeth Severn as a person 88
viii Contents
10 Severn finds Ferenczi: from psychiatric patient to analysand
to analytic partner 109
11 Severn as a clinician 116
12 The development of trauma analysis 136
13 Analyzing the Ferenczi/Severn analysis 147
14 The rule of empathy: Ferenczi and Severn’s contributions 153
15 The clinical in-vitro experiment in intersubjectivity
between Ferenczi and Severn 163
16 The Confusion of Tongues between Sándor Ferenczi and
Elizabeth Severn 170
17 A two-person psychology for psychoanalysis: Severn and
Ferenczi’s analytic partnership 178
18 Non-interpretative measures in the analysis of trauma 198
19 Severn’s trauma of premature termination 218
20 Severn’s recovery, 1933–1959: “To Work, To Love” (Freud) 229
21 Severn and Ferenczi’s recovered memories of childhood
sexual abuse: an appraisal 238
22 The development of therapeutic regression:
Severn, Ferenczi, and Balint 243
23 Severn’s Orpha function: resilience and
recovery from trauma 260
24 Ferenczi’s case of R.N., Elizabeth Severn: a landmark in
psychoanalytic history 272
25 Severn as a psychoanalyst 289
References 305
Index 324
LIST OF FIGURES
These are the 19 images used in the book, Elizabeth Severn: “The Evil Genius” of
Psychoanalysis, taken from The Elizabeth Severn Papers, which are the literary prop-
erty of Arnold William Rachman.
Image 1 P icture of Sándor Ferenczi, 1925, given to Elizabeth
Severn with the inscription: “To Dr. Elizabeth Severn
as a token of high consideration. Budapest, December 1925.”
S. Ferenczi v
Image 2 Severn’s dedication from her 1920 book, The Psychology of Behavior,
which she gave to Sándor Ferenczi in July 1925, written in her own
handwriting with the inscription: “With appreciation to one
who can still find fragrance in the garlands of former years,
S. Ferenczi. From his grateful pupil, Elizabeth Severn,
Budapest July 9, 1925” vi
Image 3 Drawing by Margaret Severn: “Correct attitude of
psychoanalyzed daughter toward telepathic mother,” 1927 99
Image 4 Oil painting of Margaret Severn by Olga Kovàcs, 1926 103
Image 5 Collage cover by Arnold William Rachman, “Analysis of Elizabeth
Severn by Sándor Ferenczi,” from his book, Sándor Ferenczi:
The Psychotherapist of Tenderness and Passion 104
Image 6 Elizabeth Severn’s announcement of the opening of her first
office as a clinician in San Antonio, Texas in 1908 120
Image 7 A nnouncement of Dr. Elizabeth Severn’s course on
Thought-Force in Washington D.C. in the winter of 1912 122
Image 8 Dr. Elizabeth Severn’s announcement of her office at the
Hotel Seymour in New York City and Dr. Elizabeth
Severn’s appointment card 123