Leading articles

THE VIENNA PSYCHOANALYST wants to give not only already internationally established psychoanalysts, but also still unknown psychoanalysts the opportunity to post a self-written and not yet published article on the FrontPage of our online magazine!

Our Users then can leave comments, ask questions or discuss the articles in our forum. Our aim is to provide an international platform where for the first time anyone interested in psychoanalysis can exchange ideas on certain topics.
Articles are welcome in German and/ or English.

If you are interested, please send your article to
leadingarticle@theviennapsychoanalyst.at


(For reasons of readability, the male form is used with personal names, however the female form is also always intended.)

In our interview series "in conversation with“, we will briefly present the authors of the leading articles. We want to give our users the opportunity to read the leading article from a different point of view.

This week we are very glad to welcome Anna Lindemann from Vienna, Austria:

Anna Lindemann studied literature, philosophy and history at the University of Bielefeld and did her doctorate at the University of Vienna. Her first book Sigmund Freud, das ‚Cocain‘ und die Morphinisten: Ein Beitrag zur Geschichte der wissenschaftlichen und klinischen Praxis im Umgang mit Suchtmitteln (1850-1890) was published in July 2018. She currently works as a freelance historian in the field of the history of science and teaches at the SFU (Sigmund Freud Private University) Vienna.



DWP: What led you to deal with psychoanalysis, respectively with Freud and his achievements?

Anna Lindemann: Freud was one of the most influential thinkers of his time and is part of our shared identity . If you are interested in psychology, you cannot ignore Freud.


DWP: Have you ever undergone psychoanalysis?

Anna Lindemann: No, but a depth psychology-oriented psychotherapy. That was a great experience!


DWP: If you had the opportunity to talk to Sigmund Freud, what would be the topic?

Anna Lindemann: I would definitely want to know Freud’s opinion on the theses I have developed about him as a “cocaine” researcher. I certainly would also ask for clarification of some contradictory and controversial information in Freud´s research on Cocain (1884-1887), and then ask him for a review of the period.


DWP: Fabric or leather couch?

Anna Lindemann: Preferably, a fabric couch, because I would feel ashamed and guilty for sitting on animal skin.


DWP: Bruno Bettelheim pointed out the importance of fairy tales in childhood. Will you tell us your favorite fairy tale? And do you see parallels to your own adult life?

Anna Lindemann: I especially like the Sandman and the Golden Pot from E.T.A. Hoffmann, and the Blond Eckbert von Ludwig Tieck. As Nathanael (sandman protagonist) wonders if he´s dealing with actual powers or just his imagination, I often wonder if things in my life would develop (completely) differently if they were represented differently in my mind. Like the student Anselmus (protagonist of the Golden Pot), I strive for the ´miraculous´, but am always held back by profane life tasks.


DWP: I dream, …

Anna Lindemann: I dream of a staged  alien attack that eliminates national and ethnic conflicts and makes us stop destroying nature, and thus our livelihoods. The initiators are rulers from the worlds of business, politics, media and science who are spreading a new ideology of a religious character worldwide. Its key elements (such as environmental protection, responsible behavior, human, animal and plant rights) promise ´salvation´, namely the protection against the alien enemy (with greenhouse gas allergy). In the sense of a ´positive mass psychosis´, the actual threat from within would be ignored and the external enemy would merely serve as a (medially processed) projection. Psychic mechanisms, which often cause destruction, are applied to bring about world salvation!


DWP: What do you find good or particularly good about psychoanalysis and is there anything you do not like about it?

Anna Lindemann: I find it particularly good that the meaning of the unconscious is uncovered, that psychoanalysis also fits in well with the conscious phenomenal world, and, to some extent, its deterministic viewpoint, which sheds light on contexts. The strong focus of Freudian psychoanalysis on sexual conflicts is too one-sided for me (though it was probably justified given the society at that time). Some of Freud´s basic ideas are convincing, others not. Their verifiability is limited.


DWP: Do you have a favorite Freud - quote?

Anna Lindemann: "I do not consider the cocaine action itself to be a direct one – possibly on the motor-nerve substance or on the muscles - but indirect, effected by an improvement of the general state of well-being."


DWP:  Are there other psychoanalysts, in addition to Sigmund Freud, who you like to study?

Anna Lindemann: At the moment, I´m more concerned with other areas of the academic psychology. On occasion, I would like to take a closer look at Freud´s student.


Thank you very much for this conversation, we are already looking forward to your leading article!