Thanks for the article on this really remarkable human being -- Dr. Sabrina Spielrein.
In my view, Spielrein's major contributions to the early development of depth psychology at the beginning of the 20th Century are not known because she was never fully and adequately acknowledged by Carl Gustav Jung. Freud also failed to properly cite her for her pioneering work in a number of different areas of psychoanalytic theory. Her innovative thinking about the death instinct did not posit a death instinct and a life instinct that were "opposed." In her view, the death instinct was part of the sexual instinct; something must be destroyed for something to be created. This was part of the transformational psychology of the unconscious. This was not her only `idea'. She was very creative. Jung arguably took many of her ideas and reworked them into the Analytical Psychology that he claims to have created.
The author tries to be too `even-handed', writing as though Spielrein and Jung were mutual beneficiaries of a brilliant romance. Increasingly, it seems clear that Jung was a very exploitative figure in the many-sided relationship with Spielrein. The article ought to be more critical of his psychological manipulation, narcissism, antisocial personality, sexual objectification of women, anti-semitism, anti-Russian attitudes, chronic lying, and so on. Jung also "took" more than he gave in the relationship with Freud. Jung is not a very nice person and I think that this is part of the reason why Spielrein's career never got off the ground. Once she ended up back in Russia, things deteriorated under totalitarian conditions, and as the Russians say: "No one ever pulls himself out of a swamp by pulling on his own hair." The question is: why was one of the greatest psychological minds of the early 20th century not saved? If Hannah Arendt could be saved, why not someone like Dr. Sabrina Spielrein? The answer is that Dr. Spielrein was conveniently abandoned on the margins of history by an intellectual elite that had a presumptive responsibility to protect her and help advance her career but failed to do so.
It is worth noting that Freud was forced to flee from Vienna to London where he died, and Spielrein was shot by an SS death squad in a vast killing operation in Rostov-on-Dom, whilst Carl Jung was working his Nazi connections to advance his predatory career in German Psychology.
On a brighter note, I understand that Spielrein's grandfather and greatgrandfather were well-known Hassidic Rabbis. I understand that she practiced Judaism until 11 years of age. I understand that she was mystically inclined from a young age. Did she get any of her ideas from Judaic thought? Did she use Hassidic ideas or Kabbalistic notions in her study of the human psyche? Did she study Hebrew as a child? Did the family speak Yiddish. She went to a Polish Kindergarten until 5 years of age. Did she speak Polish? She uses Italian in her Diary. Did she speak Italian? Coming from Rostov-on-Dom on the Black Sea, would she necessarily have been exposed to Asiatic culture elements from Indo Eurasia?
Spielrein was Piaget's analyst and planned to write a paper with him around 1920. She also knew Vygotsky and Luria in Russia. She was a student of Bleuler, and worked with Claparede and Flournoy. This shows the intellectual depth and range of her interests.
I object to the language used in the following: "men of Einsatzkommando 10a from Einsatzgruppe D killed them." Use of the words `men of' ought to be dropped. To call the murderers `men' humanizes and normalizes them.
Thanks for the article on this really remarkable human being -- Dr. Sabrina Spielrein.
In my view, Spielrein's major contributions to the early development of depth psychology at the beginning of the 20th Century are not known because she was never fully and adequately acknowledged by Carl Gustav Jung. Freud also failed to properly cite her for her pioneering work in a number of different areas of psychoanalytic theory. Her innovative thinking about the death instinct did not posit a death instinct and a life instinct that were "opposed." In her view, the death instinct was part of the sexual instinct; something must be destroyed for something to be created. This was part of the transformational psychology of the unconscious. This was not her only `idea'. She was very creative. Jung arguably took many of her ideas and reworked them into the Analytical Psychology that he claims to have created.
The author tries to be too `even-handed', writing as though Spielrein and Jung were mutual beneficiaries of a brilliant romance. Increasingly, it seems clear that Jung was a very exploitative figure in the many-sided relationship with Spielrein. The article ought to be more critical of his psychological manipulation, narcissism, antisocial personality, sexual objectification of women, anti-semitism, anti-Russian attitudes, chronic lying, and so on. Jung also "took" more than he gave in the relationship with Freud. Jung is not a very nice person and I think that this is part of the reason why Spielrein's career never got off the ground. Once she ended up back in Russia, things deteriorated under totalitarian conditions, and as the Russians say: "No one ever pulls himself out of a swamp by pulling on his own hair." The question is: why was one of the greatest psychological minds of the early 20th century not saved? If Hannah Arendt could be saved, why not someone like Dr. Sabrina Spielrein? The answer is that Dr. Spielrein was conveniently abandoned on the margins of history by an intellectual elite that had a presumptive responsibility to protect her and help advance her career but failed to do so.
It is worth noting that Freud was forced to flee from Vienna to London where he died, and Spielrein was shot by an SS death squad in a vast killing operation in Rostov-on-Dom, whilst Carl Jung was working his Nazi connections to advance his predatory career in German Psychology.
On a brighter note, I understand that Spielrein's grandfather and greatgrandfather were well-known Hassidic Rabbis. I understand that she practiced Judaism until 11 years of age. I understand that she was mystically inclined from a young age. Did she get any of her ideas from Judaic thought? Did she use Hassidic ideas or Kabbalistic notions in her study of the human psyche? Did she study Hebrew as a child? Did the family speak Yiddish. She went to a Polish Kindergarten until 5 years of age. Did she speak Polish? She uses Italian in her Diary. Did she speak Italian? Coming from Rostov-on-Dom on the Black Sea, would she necessarily have been exposed to Asiatic culture elements from Indo Eurasia?
Spielrein was Piaget's analyst and planned to write a paper with him around 1920. She also knew Vygotsky and Luria in Russia. She was a student of Bleuler, and worked with Claparede and Flournoy. This shows the intellectual depth and range of her interests.
I object to the language used in the following: "men of Einsatzkommando 10a from Einsatzgruppe D killed them." Use of the words `men of' ought to be dropped. To call the murderers `men' humanizes and normalizes them.
Once again, thank you for the article.