ABSTRACT
In this chapter the author discusses clinical presentations of affect and their management, and present case vignettes to illustrate three different forms of emotional expression. He emphasizes their intersubjective aspect—how expressions of emotion lead to varied responses by the therapist. Jacques Lacan’s criticism of the recourse to affect in treatment echoes familiar therapeutic cliches about “getting the feelings out” or “saying what one feel” as descriptions of dynamic treatment. Treating the expression of affect as a goal in itself risks perpetuating a fruitless search for “true feelings” in analytic therapy, as illustrated by a case presented by a senior candidate, Dr. Bates, to a supervision seminar. His patient, Adriana, a successful manager with some conflicts at work, sought psychotherapy at the suggestion of a sibling, who believed that their family upbringing had adversely affected their ability to get along with other people. Nancy’s case illustrates some of the points about intersubjectivity in treatment.
