Donald Meltzer was one of the most creative contributors to the object relations tradition, and there is much to be gained from reading and rereading his books. This class will focus on selections from two of his works: Dream-life, and The Claustrum. In Dream-life Meltzer entirely revises Freud's understanding of dreams, describing dreams as emerging out of the most creative and advanced parts of the mind. In The Claustrum, he describes how this creative capacity of mental life can be severely undermined and damaged in retreats from mental pain. In this class we will explore Meltzer's ideas especially as they relate to our clinical work, and in particular how they are expressed in actual dreams, helping us to develop our capacities in our work with dreaming. This course is cosponsored by the Center for Object Relations.
5 Tuesdays, January 10, 24, February 14, 28, and March 14, 7:30-9 pm
Fee: $100