What is the place of truth and lies in psychoanalytic discourse? What are the consequences in terms of collusion and communication? How can a ‘lie’ carry a meaning? These questions, and many more, are explored in the inaugural book of the new Contemporary Bion series from Phoenix. A stellar line-up of contributors examine these notions from a variety of perspectives with reference to Bion. Featuring Nicola Abel-Hirsch, Joseph Aguayo, David Bell, Ron Britton, Robert Caper, Roosevelt Cassorla, Maxine Dennis, Judy Eekhoff, Tomasz Fortuna, Denis Flynn, Antonia Grimalt, Alberto Hahn, R. D. Hinshelwood, Monica Horovitz, Dimitris-James Jackson, Carlos Tabbia, and Margot Waddell. With a Foreword from P. C. Sandler. Description: Bion’s Vertices: On Truth and Lies is divided into three parts which investigate the truth/lie domain, emotional change and growth, and creativity in relation to truth and lies, and show its relevance in clinical practice. The wide-ranging discussions include chapters on aesthetic processes in poetry and psychoanalytic thought, knowledge, representation, misunderstandings, chaos, perversions, propaganda, the analyst’s mind, the protective function of lying, and racialisation in relational context. This is a must-read book for all those with an interest in Bion and the application of his theory to contemporary thought and practice. About the Author: Dr Tomasz Fortuna trained as a psychoanalyst at the Institute of Psychoanalysis in London. He is a member of the British Psychoanalytical Society and Hanna Segal Institute for Psychoanalytic Studies. He had worked as a psychiatrist in the NHS for sixteen years and, currently, he works at the Portman Clinic and is in private psychoanalytic practice. At the Portman Clinic he conducts individual forensic psychotherapy as well as group work and assessments. He offers consultations and reflective practice to prison staff. He is a Visiting Professor at the psychiatry department of the Universiti Putra Malaysia. He teaches and supervises in the UK and abroad (including Poland, Russia, China, Malaysia, Singapore and South Korea). His professional interests include the relationship between psychoanalysis and the arts, understanding of severe emotional disturbance and criminal behaviour. He is interested in current developments in Bion’s thought and is a member of the Bion in Marrakech seminar. Dr Fortuna is a Course Lead for the ‘Foundations in psychodynamic approaches to risk and complexity’, a one-year course offered at the Portman Clinic (Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust). In addition, he teaches courses at the Tavistock Clinic and the Institute of Psychoanalysis. He co-authored a book Melanie Klein: The Basics and was a guest-editor of Empedocles: European Journal for the Philosophy of Communication. |
