Sunday, August 10, 2014

Sophie Robert Reviews "The Last Psychoanalyst"

Sophie Robert has just posted a review of The Last Psychoanalyst on her Facebook page. I include it here with my translation.

Those who have read the book or who have followed the debate about autism in France—see my autism tag, at left—know how important Robert's work has been in exposing the negative influence that French psychoanalysis has had on the treatment of autism in that country.

Without further ado, here is Robert’s review, in the original French:

Pour ceux qui sont en vacances, ou ceux qui viennent de rentrer, je vous conseille la lecture "The last psychoanalyst" de Stuart Schneiderman : un essai caustique, drôle et brillant sur l'église psychanalytique. L'auteur y raconte comment ayant échoué à devenir une thérapie, la psychanalyse s'est transformée en pseudo religion fondamentaliste. Un point de vue que je partage entièrement. Il est d'autant plus intéressant qu'il est ici relaté de l'intérieur : Stuart Schneiderman ayant été psychanalyste lacanien pendant les années 70 au coeur même de l'Ecole de la Cause Freudienne (rebaptisée savoureusement "Holly Freudian Church") avant de tourner casaque et devenir coach à New York. Il a fréquenté les personnes qui m'ont poursuivie en justice et tenté de censurer la problématique de l'autisme en France. Depuis l'affaire du MUR, Stuart Schneiderman a pris ouvertement position pour les parents des enfants autistes, dans plusieurs billets de son blog, notamment "an army of mothers". Le dernier chapitre de son livre est consacré à l'épopée du procès du MUR et la situation de l'autisme en France. Une saine lecture qui mettra du baume au coeur des parents, et confortera les pros (les bons) dans leurs baskets.
Vivement la traduction en français!

My translation:


For those who are on vacation or who have just returned I recommend that you read Stuart Schneiderman’s “The Last Psychoanalyst.” It is a caustic, drole, brilliant essay on the psychoanalytic church. In his book the author recounts how psychoanalysis, having failed to become a therapy transformed itself into a fundamentalist pseudo-religion. I myself agree wholeheartedly. This is even more interesting coming from someone who has been on the inside. Stuart Schneiderman was a Lacanian psychoanalyst in the 70s in the heart of the School of the Freudian Cause (which he deliciously rebaptizes the Holly (Wholly) Freudian Church. He hung out with some of the people who were suing me and who were trying to censure the truth about autism in France. During the affair around [my film] Le Mur, or The Wall, Stuart Schneiderman openly sided with the parents of autistic children, in several blog posts, especially his post on “an army of mothers.” The last chapter of his book is dedicated to the trial around my film, The Wall and the situation surrounding the treatment of autism in France. A sane reading that will soothe the troubled hearts of parents and will comfort the good professionals. We look forward to the French translation.

1 comment:

  1. I searched for Sophie Robert and found her recent documentary, “The Wall or psychoanalysis put to the test for autism”. So this is what she's being sued about.
    http://www.supportthewall.org/2011/12/watch-the-wall-le-mur-by-sophie-robert/
    ------
    This 52 minutes documentary is the result of 4 years of investigation among psychiatrists and psychoanalysis practitioners in France. It evidences the perception and the bad care of children with autism in France. As a reminder, most of these professionals are heads of pedo-psychiatric departments in major French hospitals.
    Sophie Robert has met over 40 professionals in France and gathered more than 60 hours of dailies. Yet, three professionals interviewed in this documentary have sued Sophie Robert and request the documentary to be banned by the court.
    ------

    And a review:
    http://sfari.org/news-and-opinion/autism-in-the-arts/2012/documentary-review-le-mur-the-wall

    Oh, and I missed your January blog about her and the lawsuit.
    http://stuartschneiderman.blogspot.com/2014/01/the-liberation-of-sophie-robert.html
    http://stuartschneiderman.blogspot.com/2012/05/french-psychoanalysts-unedited.html

    I only saw the first 5 minutes of the doc, and can't judge the honesty of her editing, and knowing the likes of Michael Moore to twist around what people say, I can understand why people feel attacked when their own words are used against them.

    The conflict itself opens the question of the psychology of conflict, and how best to open minds of others, especially those with "fundamentalist" beliefs.

    If it wasn't for the politics of power, I'd say its best to debate facts, opinions and beliefs in private between honest truth seekers, but if it seems all the power exists on some "orthodox" view that has absolute political power to ignore facts to protect their power, then I can see publicity to show controversy and embarrassment maybe is the path to challenge, even if not to break the view of the faithful converts, but to convince the unconverted to ask more questions before "entering the faith"?

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