Description
Drawing from Kohut's conceptualisation of self, Riker sets out how contemporary America's formulation of persons as autonomous, self-sufficient individuals is deeply injurious to the development of a vitalizing self-structure—a condition which lies behind much of the mental illness and social malaise of today's world.
By carefully attending to Kohut's texts, Riker explains the structural, functional, and dynamic dimensions of Kohut's concept of the self. He creatively extends this concept to show how the self can be conceived of as an erotic striving for connectedness, beauty, and harmony, separate from the ego. Riker uses this distinction to reveal how social practices of contemporary American society foster skills and traits to advance the aims of the ego for power and control, but tend to suppress the needs of the self to authentically express its ideals and connect with others. The book explores the impact that this view can have on clinical practice, and concludes by imaginatively constructing an ideal self-psychological society, using Plato's Republic as a touchstone.
Informed by self psychology and philosophy, this book is essential reading for psychoanalysts, psychotherapists and philosophers, seeking to revisit and revise constructions of both self and humanity.
Table of Contents
Introduction Part One: Kohut and Self Psychology 1. The Structure of the Self as a Transformation of Narcissistic Libido 2. The Functions of the Self, Selfobjects, and Ethical Life 3. The Self as Erotic Striving 4. Metapsychology: The Self, the Ego, and Personhood 5. A Self Psychological Understanding of Psychopathology Part Two: The Concept of Self in the Modern World 6. The Construction of Individuals in Modern Society 7. Contemporary Social Practices that Undermine the Self and the Psycho/Social Ills that Result from this Destabilization Part Three: Plato's Republic and a New Self Psychological Society 8. Plato's Republic: The Ideal of a Rational State and Soul 9. The Ideal Self Psychological State: A New Republic 10. Transcending the Self: Metaphysics, Spirituality, and the Meaning of Life
