ABSTRACT
We have looked at the nature of the psyche from a number of perspectives. We have talked about the unconscious: its infinite extent, the unknowable nature of its contents, the teleological thrust that pushes us into relationship with others and with ourselves. We have studied Bion’s ideas about the nature of thinking/dreaming and looked at the way his theory can structure our listening in clinical hours. The eternal human struggle between a related approach to life and to others versus an egocentric, narcissistic one has been explored from two points of view: a structural description of the universal complex that organizes our anti-related or pathological tendencies; and a dynamic description of the conflict between facing into the truth or turning toward soothing lies. Let us consider what impact all of these matters have on our clinical work.
