Sigmund Freud and the Women around Him

Sigmund Freud and the Women around Him
Inge Scholz-Strasser GI/file
Sigmund Freud and the Women around Him
Inge Scholz-Strasser GI/file

Sigmund Freud and the Women around Him

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By the end of the 19th century, Sigmund Freud had formulated the principles for his theory of the human psyche using women’s narratives. In listening to them, he attempted to decode their secrets, and in so doing found a language which promised to ameliorate their suffering. Be they mothers, sisters, wives, in-laws, patients, colleagues, or his daughter-colleague Anna, women have always played a key role in the life and career of “the father of psychoanalysis.” The significance of some these women for Freud, as well as their importance for the development of psychoanalytic theory and therapy, is presented via their selected biographies.

Inge Scholz-Strasser has been the chairwoman of the Sigmund Freud Foundation since 2003 and has directed the Sigmund Freud Museum in Vienna as the academic executive officer since 1996. In addition to having initiated numerous academic collaborations, she created the Freud-Fullbright Research Grant, which supports young researchers and academics. In 1989 she founded the “Sigmund Freud Museum of Contemporary Art Collection,” a collection of international art focusing on psychoanalysis. As chairwoman and executive officer, her central aim is to expand and update the Sigmund Freud Museum while increasing international academic projects and cultural collaboration. Inge Scholz-Strasser has published many works on the history of psychoanalysis and has been the curator of many exhibitions.

Recorded Wednesday, October 08, 2008 at Goethe-Institut Chicago.