In Poland and elsewhere there has been a noticeable increase of interest in various aspects of the Polish-Jewish past which can be explained, the author argues, in terms of a broader intellectual need to explore the "blank spots" of Poland's national history. This quest begins and ends with Polish anti-Semitism and the Shoah, during which most of Europe's Jews were annihilated on Polish soil, but also focuses on the events of 1946-1968, the years of pogroms, anti-Semitic campaigns, and mass emigration of the Jews from Poland. All these became main issues of public reflection in Poland after a silence for almost forty years and led to the widespread view that Polish-Jewish relations are irredeemably poisoned by anti-Semitism. If this is the case, how is it possible then, the author asks, that Jews still play an important role in the cultural expressions and the consciousness of the Polish people? To find an answer, she explored Polish-Jewish relations in a small Galacian town from the early 19th century to the end of World War II. Detailed analysis of archival materials as well as interviews with Polish inhabitants of this town and Jewish survivors living elsewhere reveal a pattern of Polish-Jewish interdependence that has led to a far more complex picture than is generally assumed.

The rapid postwar economic growth in the Southeast Asia region has led to a transformation of many of the societies there, together with the development of new types of anthropological research in the region. Local societies with originally quite different cultures have been incorporated into multi-ethnic states with their own projects of nation-building based on the creation of "national cultures" using these indigenous elements. At the same time, the expansion of international capitalism has led to increasing flows of money, people, languages and cultures across national boundaries, resulting in new hybrid social structures and cultural forms. This book examines the nature of these processes in contemporary Southeast Asia with detailed case studies drawn from countries across the region, including Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand. At the macro-level these include studies of nation-building and the incorporation of minorities. At the micro-level they range from studies of popular cultural forms, such as music and textiles to the impact of new sects and the world religions on local religious practice. Moving between the global and the local are the various streams of migrants within the region, including labor migrants responding to the changing distribution of economic opportunities and ethnic minorities moving in response to natural disaster.

Symbiosis and Ambiguity is the first English edition of the classic study of early object relations by influential Argentinian psychoanalyst José Bleger (1922-1972). It is rooted in Kleinian thinking and rich in clinical material. Bleger's thesis is that starting from primitive undifferentiation, prior to the paranoid-schizoid position described by Klein, autism and symbiosis co-exist as narcissistic relations in a syncretic ‘agglutinated’ nucleus. In symbiosis part of the mind is deposited in an external person or situation; in autism it is deposited in the patient's own mind or body. The nucleus is ambiguous and persists in adults as the psychotic part of the personality. Symbiosis tends to immobilise the analytic process, so the analyst must mobilise, fragment and discriminate the agglutinated nucleus, whose ambiguity tends to ‘blunt’ persecutory situations. The psychoanalytic setting functions as a silent refuge for the psychotic part of the personality, where it creates a ‘phantom world’. At some point, therefore, the setting itself has to be analysed and the analytic relationship de-symbiotised, as Bleger observes in a celebrated chapter on the setting. José Bleger’s work demonstrates the need to analyse early narcissistic object relations as they arise clinically, especially in the setting. More widely, he regards undifferentiation and participation as operating throughout life: in groups, institutions, and society as a whole.

In this important new volume, Michael Robbins presents an exploration of schizophrenia unique in both its breadth and depth. His work renders this mysterious condition much more comprehensible, and offers both theoreticians and clinicians of different scientific orientations new possibilities for treatment and interdisciplinary collaboration. The book interweaves an explication of the nature and treatment of schizophrenia, drawn from interlocking perspectives including organic, psychological, interpersonal, familial, and socio-cultural, with five of the most detailed case reports of treatment to be found in the literature. Part I introduces the work by covering basic definitions of schizophrenia, the hierarchical systems model for mental illness, issues concerning the data presented in the book, and the methodology used to gather information. Representing the extremes in outcome, Part II comprises two extensive case studies: One is the story of an unusually successful treatment; the other is a case that proved to be a multisystem failure. Chapters in Part III synthesize what is known about the disorder from the perspectives of neuroscience, psychology and psychoanalysis, family systems, and society and culture, incorporating Dr. Robbins' original ideas in these areas. The contributions of such factors as constitutional vulnerability are also explored. Chapters on treatment issues in Part IV cover evaluation and treatment planning from a systems perspective, and review studies of the efficacy of a psychological approach. Technique, process, and the stages of psychotherapy are discussed in detail, as are issues of hospital treatment, pharmacologic and somatic modalities, and family treatment. Part V consists of three complete case studies that are illuminating reading for professionals and students alike. Covering the cases from inception to termination, and spanning the gamut of clinical experience, they include one case that had a positive outcome, one in which the patient seemed to choose to remain ill, and one successful treatment of a chronic schizophrenic. Rounding out the volume is a chapter that summarizes the work and points the way for future research. This thought-provoking book is basic reading for all human science professionals interested in the study and treatment of mental illness, in philosophical and practical questions about the relationships among the scientific disciplines, or in broad questions about the connections among the individual, the family, and social structure.

Recognition is one of the most debated concepts in contemporary social and political thought. Its proponents, such as Axel Honneth, hold that to be recognized by others is a basic human need that is central to forming an identity, and the denial of recognition deprives individuals and communities of something essential for their flourishing. Yet critics including Judith Butler have questioned whether recognition is implicated in structures of domination, arguing that the desire to be recognized can motivative individuals to accept their assigned place in the social order by conforming to oppressive norms or obeying repressive institutions. Is there a way to break this impasse? Recognition and Ambivalence brings together leading scholars in social and political philosophy to develop new perspectives on recognition and its role in social life. It begins with a debate between Honneth and Butler, the first sustained engagement between these two major thinkers on this subject. Contributions from both proponents and critics of theories of recognition further reflect upon and clarify the problems and challenges involved in theorizing the concept and its normative desirability. Together, they explore different routes toward a critical theory of recognition, departing from wholly positive or negative views to ask whether it is an essentially ambivalent phenomenon. Featuring original, systematic work in the philosophy of recognition, this book also provides a useful orientation to the key debates on this important topic.

This book brings together important psychoanalytic papers which shed light on the psychological nature of psychotic states and address aspects of their psychotherapy. This book includes selections from the works of Harold F. Searles, Edith Jacobsen, Victor Tausk, Robert C. Bak, Nathaniel J. London, Norman Cameron, and others and offers a critical essay by Peter Buckley.