the function of metapsychology – study of an american controversy, 1970s–1980s 2021 manuel batsch.pdf

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THEFUNCTIONOFMETAPSYCHOLOGY–STUDYOFANAMERICAN
CONTROVERSY,1970s–1980s
ManuelBatsch,Essex,UK
MANUELBATSCHisalecturerattheUniversityofEssexintheDepartmentof
,hepursuedhis
researchontheroleoftheoryinthepsychoanalyticclinic,publishingarticlesinpeer-
reviewedjournalsandbookchapterssuchas‘ProjectforaScientificPsychology:The
ImpossibilityofaText’intheforthcomingvolumeWildingAnalysis:FromtheCouchto
CulturalandPoliticalLife(Routledge,BeyondtheCouchSeries).Inparallel,ManuelBatsch
worksasanhonorarypsychotherapistatCamdenPsychotherapyUnitandheisfollowingthe
trainingoftheInstituteofPsychoanalysis.
Introduction:TheEsotericNameofPsychoanalysis
ItisstrikingthatFreudinventstwoneologismssimultaneously:psychoanalysisand
,‘HeredityandtheAetiologyofthe
Neuroses’,Freudusestheterm‘psychoanalysis’forthefirsttime:
Iowemyresultstoanewmethodofpsycho-analysis,JosefBreuer’sexploratory
procedure;itisalittleintricate,butitisirreplaceable,sofertilehasitshownitself
tobeinthrowinglightupontheobscurepathsofunconsciousideation.(Freud,
1896a,)
,
inalettertoWilhelmFliess,Freudcreatedtheword‘metapsychology’:‘Iamcontinually
occupiedwithpsychology–reallymetapsychology’(Masson,1985,).
Hereis‘psychoanalysis’intendedforascientificpublication,‘metapsychology’used
inthesecrecyofaprivatecorrespondence,asifmetapsychologywasatfirsttheothername,
–thepracticeof
psychoanalysis–andasetofconcepts–metapsychology–existsinFreud’sworksincetheir
birth,,whatwasthe
functionofmetapsychologyinFreud’spsychoanalyticalpractice?
Referringtotheproblemsraisedbytheclinicofhysteria,Freudwrote:‘Youseethat
theremainderoftheproblemliesoncemoreinthefieldofpsychology–and,whatismore,a
psychologyofakindforwhichphilosophershavedonelittletopreparethewayforus’
(Freud,1896b,).Infact,metapsychologywasforFreudthisfieldofresearchinwhich
hecouldproblematizeconventionalassumptionsaboutthepsychologyofhisneurotic
,intheprocessgivingbirthtodifferent
modelsofthefunctioningofpsychiclife.
EachevolutionofFreud’smetapsychologyraiseddebatesandcontroversieswithin

unconsciouswaschallengedearlyon,notablybyEricFromm(1947)andKarenHorney
(1937),whotriedtoapprehendthepsychenotasanapparatusbutratherthroughits

psychologicalapproachwithaculturaloneisarichfieldofinvestigationwhenitcomesto
thevicissitudesofFreud’,itisonethatIwillleave
asideinthispapersincethecontroversyIamresearchinghereisofamoreepistemological

and1980squestionedthelegitimacyofFreud’
exploretherejectionofmetapsychologybythisgenerationofAmericananalystsandsuggest
1:.

willalsolookatsomeofthereactionsthattheseAmericanpolemicstriggered,notablyfrom
respondentswhopointedtothecentralimportanceofmetapsychologyinrelationtothe
clinic.
The1970s–1980scontroversyoverFreud’smetapsychologytookplaceinthewider

bookWorkingKnowledge,JoelIsaacidentifiesthedifferentepistemologicalmodelsthrough
whichhumanscienceshavesoughttolegitimizetheproductionofknowledgesinceWorld
,positivistphasethatgoesfromafterthewarto1962,during
whichhumansciencesaspiretoreproducethecausalexplanatorymodelsofnaturalsciences,
followedbyasecond,hermeneuticphasethatputsatitscoretheunderstandingofsubjective
meanings(Isaac,2012,–10).Thispaperexploresthewayinwhichagenerationof
psychoanalysts,trainedandforthemostpartbornintheUnitedStates,raisedintheirturnthe
problemoflegitimizingpsychoanalyticknowledge,andhowthecoreofthisendeavour
revolved,forthem,aroundFreud’
reflections,theactorsofthemetapsychologicalcontroversyreproducedthetwomainmodels

confrontingthescientificlegitimacyofmetapsychology,theseanalystsfromtheNewWorld
helpusretrospectivelytounderstandthenatureofthisoldFreudiantheoreticalproject.
‘TheMaidservantofPsychiatry’:MetapsychologyandItsDiscontents

lastletterstoTheodorReik,abouttheissueoflayanalysis,hewrotethatforAmerican
analysts,‘analysisisnothingelsebutoneofthemaidservantsofpsychiatry’(Gay,2006,p.
633).FreudfeltthatintheUnitedStatespsychoanalysiswasnotconsideredanautonomous
fieldofknowledge,
wassuchamotivation–findingatheoreticalwombforpsychoanalysis–thatpushedaseries
ofAmericananalyststoattackFreud’
tryingto‘understand,clarify,andputtoworkthepsychoanalytictheoryofthinking’(Holt,
2009,).Inotherwords,theywereattemptingtodiscovernewepistemological

models,theyallstartedtheirendeavourswithacompleterejectionofFreud’s
metapsychology.
ThischallengetoFreud’smetapsychologywasinfactpartofamoregeneralturn
,
theywerestudyingitintheformthattheyhadreceivedit:whichwasmainlythroughHeinz
,HartmannandAnnaFreudwereindeedthetwomost
influentialFreudiantheoristsintheUnitedStates(Ellman,2010,).ThroughtheUS
publicationofAnnaFreud’sTheEgoandtheMechanismsofDefencein1946and
Hartmann’sEgoPsychologyandtheProblemofAdaptationin1958,acertainreadingof
Freud’sstructuralmodelwasspreadinwhichknowledgeoftheunconsciouswasgained

exampleofthefactthatwhatwasbeingevaluatedwasanegopsychologyversionof
metapsychologyisthatthesecriticsretainednothingofthedeathdrivebutaggression.
Hence,itisimportanttounderstandthedefinitionofmetapsychologygivenbyclassicalego
psychology.
Hartmannthoughtofpsychoanalysisasanaturalsciencethatwas‘movinginthe
directionofbecomingageneraltheoryofhumanbehavior’(Hartmann,1964b,).He
perceivedthisasessentialinordertobridgepsychoanalysisanddevelopmentalpsychology.
Hartmandidnotraisethequestionoftheroleplayedbymetapsychologyintheevolutionof
2:.
Freud’sthoughtbuttreateditasasetofgivenconceptsthathetriedtomakeaseasily
,hisaimwas
tobalancethe‘rationalismofenlightenmentandtheirrationalismoftheromantics’
(Hartmann,1964a,).Withinthepsychoanalyticscientificedifice,heviewed
metapsychologynotasmetatheorybutas‘theoryonthehighestlevelofabstraction’().
Hartmann’sapproachexpressedadesiretoestablishahierarchicalclassificationof
psychoanalyticpropositions,whichwouldconstituteoneoftheepistemologicalobsessionsof
egopsychologyandafoundationalanchorforthecriticsofmetapsychology.
Intheirgroundbreakingpaper,‘ThePointsofViewandAssumptionsof
Metapsychology’publishedin1959,DavidRapaportandMertonGillproposedsucha
classificationwithanascendingorderofgeneralization:empiricalpropositions,general

metapsychologicalpresentationasadescriptionofapsychicalprocess‘initsdynamic,
topographicalandeconomicaspects’(Freud,1915c,).ForRapaportandGill,
metapsychologicalpropositionsincludethedynamicpointofview,theeconomicpointof
view,thestructuralpointofview,andadditionallythegeneticpointofviewandtheadaptive
pointofview.
Withthispaper,RapaportandGillsignedaformofmanifestoforanego
psychologicalunderstandingofmetapsychology,andthismanifestohadtwomain
,theyrejectedthetopographicalpointofviewinfavourofthestructural
,theyaddedgeneticandadaptivedimensionsinordertoredefine

preciselytherecognitionthatsuchanattemptwouldleadtoadeadend,andthat‘Freudian
natural-sciencemetapsychologyisaseriousobstacletothedevelopmentofpsychoanalysis’
(Gill,1988,),thatwouldeventuallypushGilltochangehisviewandtoreframe
metapsychologywithin‘aself-containedhermeneutic’modelofpsychoanalysis.
AnotherattempttoclassifypsychoanalyticpropositionswasmadebyRobertWaelder
inhis1962paper,‘Psychoanalysis,ScientificMethod,andPhilosophy’.Waelder
distinguishedsixdegreesofrelevanceinFreud’sdoctrine,fromthemostimportanttotheless
important:thelevelofobservation,thelevelofclinicalinterpretation,thelevelofclinical
generalizations,thelevelofclinicaltheory,thelevelofmetapsychologyandfinallythelevel
ofFreud’
Waeldernotatthelevelofmetapsychologybutatthelevelofclinicalobservation.
Thewaytheseanalysts,orientedtowardsegopsychology,establishedahierarchyof
Freud’scorpusinfactpreparedthegroundforthegeneralattackonmetapsychology,because

approachingFreudahistorically,asifFreud’sconceptshadappearedinonegoasaready-

constantworkinprogressand,moreover,thatinthisworkinprogressmetapsychology
,itcouldbearguedthatmetapsychologydoesnotaimto
beacoherentsystembutaspaceofcreativitythatattimesfollowsandattimesguidesthe
clinicalwork.
ThesecondprejudicewastoforceonFreud’stheoryatypeofhierarchyborrowed
,themainauthorsfromegopsychologyproposedthat
metapsychologywasthemostspeculativepartofFreud’
,
MenningerFoundation,hementoredmanyoftheresearcherslikeGeorgeKlein,RoySchafer,
’smetapsychology.
3:.
,Frank(1979)understoodmetapsychologyasthe
metatheoryofpsychoanalysisandArlowdefineditas‘aprioriassumptionsbeyond
hypothesesderivablewithintheclinicalsetting’(Arlow,1975,).Freud,however,
neverpresentedsuchahierarchicaledificeofknowledge,butratherdevelopedhisown
-Rechtman,even‘more
thantheunconsciousinitself,theradicalnoveltywasinFreud’seyesthewholeintellectual
endeavourthatledtothisdiscovery’(Micheli-Rechtman,2010,,mytranslation).
InTheResistancestoPsycho-Analysis(Freud,1925[1924]a),Freudreturnedtothe
motivesbehindthehostilitytriggeredtowardspsychoanalysis,whichhehadtouchedon
earlierinADifficultyinthePathofPsycho-Analysis(1917b).Hestressedthepeculiarityof
thepsychoanalyticepistemologicalframework,whichsuccumbscompletelyneithertothe
mechanisticapproachofthenaturalscientist,
maintainsadifficultmiddlepositionbetweenperceptionandspeculation,betweenclinical

nothingbutdisadvantagesfromitsmiddlepositionbetweenmedicineand
,like
everyothernaturalscience,itisbasedonapatientandtirelesselaborationoffacts
fromtheworldofperception;philosophers,measuringitbythestandardoftheir
ownartificiallyconstructedsystems,findthatitstartsfromimp