Appalachian Psychoanalytic Society
(a local chapter of Division 39 of the American Psychological Association)
presents a
Fall Conference
with
Jamieson Webster, PhD
on
Lacan's Returns to Dora
and
the Prominence of Hysteria
in Psychoanalytic Theory
and Technique
November 11, 2023
8:30am - 4:30pm
Lighthouse Knoxville
6800 Baum Drive
Knoxville, Tennessee 37919
Program Description
The task of this intermediate-level conference is to introduce Lacan’s thinking on neurosis, how it takes shape through Freud, and then focus on hysteria's place of prominence in Lacan’s work as well as the enduring significance of the concept in contemporary clinical practice. Lacan lauds hysteria as the neurosis in direct dialog with a given historical moment, shifting with the dominant discourse, and thus teaching the psychoanalyst where we are in the struggle between neurosis and civilization. He returned to the case of Dora throughout his seminars to refine his understanding. He even saw analysis as the progressive “hystericization” of the patient and depicted himself as a hysteric attempting to teach the psychoanalysts. Importantly, Lacan’s reading of Dora seems to mark important shifts in his own life from beginning to write as an analyst, to being thrown out of the IPA, to struggles with his school. Reading Lacan’s first text on Dora closely “Interventions on Transference" (in Écrits) through his reworking of Dora in Seminars I, III, IV, X, and XVII, Dr. Webster hopes to provide a broad overview of his thinking on hysteria and its important place in clinical work and technique.
Presenter
Jamieson Webster, PhD, is a psychoanalyst in New York City who teaches at The New School for Social Research. She earned her doctoral degree from CUNY Graduate Center in 2008. She has published on conversion disorder, the "Hamlet doctrine," and the "life and death" of psychoanalysis. Her most recent publication is "Disorganisation and Sex" (Divided, 2022). She is also on the board of Pulsion Psychoanalytic Institute.
Schedule
8:30am Registration
8:55am Welcome and Introduction
9:00am Presentation
10:30am Break
10:45am Presentation
12:15pm Lunch will be provided on-site and is included in the registration fee. A vegetarian option will be available.
1:15pm Presentation
2:45pm Break
3:00pm Presentation
4:30pm Complete Evaluations and Adjourn
Learning Objectives
After attending this intermediate conference in full, participants will be able to:
1. Identify the key elements in Freud’s understanding of transference. Compare and contrast the various ways that the transference concept evolved after Dora.
2. Compare and contrast Lacan’s view of transference informed by his reading of Dora, with the typical understanding in American psychoanalytic theory and practice.
3. Discuss whether the prominence of hysteroid symptomatology has changed from the time of Freud and Lacan's writing to the present. Identify why this is an important issue today.
4. Discuss what, if anything, patients with hysterical presentations attempt to "teach" the analyst, and the degree and manner to which this applies to their own clinical work.
5. Compare and contrast past and current manifestations of hysterical symptoms. Describe how current symptoms speak to Lacan and Freud's historical moments as well as our own.
6. Lacan lauds hysteria as the neurosis in direct dialog with a given historical moment, shifting with the dominant discourse, and thus teaching the psychoanalyst where we are in the struggle between neurosis and civilization. Describe how this applies to their clinical practices.
Bonus Objective: Recalling that Freud had little more experience than a psychoanalytic
candidate first control case, if you were his supervising analyst, where would you begin?
Participants
This program is open to all APS members. It is not limited to individuals practicing in a predominately psychoanalytic mode. The material will be appropriate for clinicians with intermediate levels of experience and knowledge.
Registration Fees and Policies
BY November 6, 2023:
Professional Members and Scholar Members: $125
Non-members: $145
Early-Career Professional Members: $50
Graduate Student Members: $25
AFTER November 6, 2023:
Professional Members and Scholar Members: $145
Non-members: $165
Early-Career Professional Members: $70
Graduate Student Members: $45
Registration will close on November 10, 2023.
Although walk-ins will be accepted, please register online at www.aps-tn.wildapricot.org in advance to assure adequate food and seating.
If you prefer to pay by check, please print the Program Registration form, and mail with your payment to:
Wesley Gosselin, LMSW
APS Treasurer
100 Forest Court
Knoxville, TN 37919.
Refunds honored with written/electronic notice at least 48 hours before date of conference. Contact Wesley Gosselin, LMSW.
Contact the APS President Frank Pittenger, PhD to negotiate fees, if needed.
Facility is accessible to persons who are physically challenged. If participants have special needs, we will attempt to accommodate them. Please address requests, questions, concerns and any complaints to Frank Pittenger, PhD.
APS Membership
Eligible professionals can join APS or renew their membership for the 2023-2024 program year for $80. Scholars can join/renew for $50 and Early-Career Professionals can join/renew for $45. Graduate students may join or renew for $25.
American Psychological Association Approval Statement
Division 39 is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. Division 39 maintains responsibility for this program and its content.
Continuing Education
This program, when attended in its entirety, is available for 6.0 continuing education credits. With full attendance and completion of a program Evaluation and Learning Assessment, a certificate will be issued. Psychologists will have their participation registered through Division 39.
APS and Division 39 are committed to conducting all activities in conformity with the American Psychological Association’s Ethical Principles for Psychologists. APS and Division 39 are also committed to accessibility and non-discrimination in continuing education activities. Participants are asked to be aware of the need for privacy and confidentiality throughout the program. If program content becomes stressful, participants are encouraged to process these feelings during discussion periods.
Selected References/Recommended Reading
Burgoyne, B. (2021), Presentation on transference, In Reading Lacan’s Ecrits, pp, 27-48. New York: Routledge.
Finkelstein, Susan and Weiss, Heinz (2022) The Claustro-Agoraphobic Dilemma in Psychoanalysis. New York: Routledge.
Freud, S. (1905/1953) Fragment of an analysis of a case of hysteria, In The Standard edition of the complete psychological works of Sigmund Freud, Vol 7 pp 1-122 (Ed. and
trans. Strachy, J.).Grose, Anoushka (2016) Hysteria Today. London: Karnac Books.
Lacan, Jacques (2021) The Object Relation: The Seminar of Jacques Lacan Book IV. London: Polity.
Lacan, J. (2006/1966). Presentation on transference, In Ecrits (Trans., Fink B.), pp 176-188 New York: Norton
Leader, D. (2018). Hysteria today, pp. 27-34, In Hysteria today, (Edited by Grose, A), New York: Routledge.
Rose, Jacqueline (2020) To Die One’s Own Death. London Review of Books Vol 42. No 22.
Webster, J. (2016) I am not a muse: Disappearance of the hysteric today. Division Review 15:46-51
Webster, J. (2019). Conversion disorder: Listening to the body in psychoanalysis, New York: Columbia University Press.
Webster, J. (2019) Riding in cars with Jacques Lacan in The New York Review of Books.
Contact
If participants have special needs, we will attempt to accommodate them. Please address requests, questions, concerns and any complaints to APS President Frank Pittenger, PhD.
There is no commercial support for this program nor are there any relationships between Division 39, APS, presenter, program content, research, grants or other funding sources that could reasonably be construed as conflicts of interest. During the program, the validity/utility of the content and risks/limitations of the approaches discussed will be addressed, as applicable.