Freud's Mass Psychology examines one of the key concepts in the theory of the psyche. Surprenant treats it as an epistemological issue rather than exclusively as a socio-political issue. Focusing on this neglected concept enables the author to raise anew the question of the 'application' of psychoanalysis, beyond a mechanistic understanding of this term and of Freud's writings. This study brings together important topics associated with psychoanalysis, recent French philosophy, and political thought. The original arguments that it develops should interest anyone preoccupied with the relevance of psychoanalytic concepts in philosophy and in related disciplines, notably in the field of literary studies.

Autorentext

CÉLINE SURPRENANT is a Lecturer in the School of European Studies at the University of Sussex.

Zusammenfassung
Celine Surprenant's study examines the term mass in Freud's writings, and shows that it denotes less a type of human grouping than a preoccupation with quantity, one of the key concepts in Freud's theory of the psyche. When psychoanalysis turns its attention to the many, it is indeed confronted with fundamental epistemological questions, concerning the scientific status of its concepts or the analogical and metaphorical procedures that underlie the analysis of society. From the moment that quantity becomes attached with 'large scale phenomena', it poses enormous difficulty to the Freudian theory of the mind. The book offers an original contribution to Freudian studies by demonstrating that the problem of the mass, rather than standing as an exclusive socio-political concern, touches upon the question of the philosophical relevance of Freud. Focussing on this neglected term allows the author to raise anew the question of the 'application' of psychoanalysis, beyond a mechanistic understanding of this term and of Freud's writings.

Inhalt

Introduction Psychoanalytic Concepts Quantity, Mass and Metaphor Sciences of the Crowd On a Large Scale Figurative Language According to Freud Conclusion: 'On Transience'