Dreams That Turn Over a Page: Paradoxical Dreams in Psychoanalysis (The New Library of Psychoanalysis)

Winner of the 2010 Sigourney Award! In Dreams That Turn Over a Page, the author discusses a particular type of dream that comes after a phase in analysis where integration has taken place. Accompanied by anxiety and fear, which seem surprising as the dream follows a phase of integrative work in the analysis, these dreams are in fact a mark of progression as they indicate a capacity to own anxiety. Quinodoz describes the important technical implications of this understanding, suggesting that it is essential to interpret to the patient that the anxiety indicates not a regression, but a shift in the opposite direction. In addition to the theory and discussion of the literature, he gives many clinical examples of such dreams from patients in psychoanalysis to illustrate the concepts of dreams that turn over a page. As Freud's classical theory of dreams does not by itself suffice to interpret or explain the formation of these particular dreams, Quinodoz invokes contemporary ideas to understand the underlying transformations which bring the 'return' of split-off parts of the self during the phases of integration. The author considers the reasons why dreams that mark this transition have a more powerful impact than others on both patient and analyst, and observes similarities between the clinical impact of such a dream and the aesthetic impact of a work of art. Foreword / Hanna Segal -- Pt. 1. Clinical Characteristics -- 1. What Are Dreams That Turn Over A Page? -- 2. A Source Of Uncanny Feelings And Anxiety -- 3. Countertransference And Containing Capacity -- 4. Progress And Retreat In Response To Progress -- 5. Retrospective Illumination -- Pt. 2. Interpretations -- 6. Interpreting In Two Stages -- 7. Interpretations Of A Dream That Turns Over A Page: Tania's Dream -- Pt. 3. Dreams And Integration -- 8. Investigations In The Psychoanalytic Literature -- 9. Classical And Post-freudian Approaches -- 10. Formation Of Dreams That Turn Over A Page: Hypotheses -- 11. Impact: Clinical And Aesthetic. Jean-michel Quinodoz ; Foreword By Hanna Segal ; Translated By Philip Slotkin. First Published As Les Rêves Qui Tournent Une Page, Presses Universitaires De France, 2001. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 98-101) And Indexes. Book Cover......Page 1 Title......Page 6 Copyright......Page 7 Contents......Page 8 Acknowledgements......Page 12 Foreword by Hanna Segal......Page 14 1 What are dreams that turn over a page?......Page 18 2 A source of uncanny feelings and anxiety......Page 24 3 Countertransference and containing capacity......Page 29 4 Progress and retreat in response to progress......Page 35 5 Retrospective illumination......Page 41 6 Interpreting in two stages......Page 48 7 Interpretations of a dream that turns over a page......Page 55 8 Investigations in the psychoanalytic literature......Page 70 9 Classical and post-Freudian approaches......Page 84 10 Formation of dreams that turn over a page......Page 92 11 Impact: Clinical and aesthetic......Page 102 Bibliography......Page 113 Author index......Page 118 Subject index......Page 119 The characteristic feature of these dreams is that include an anxiety-inducing primitive manifest content that frightens the dreamer, whereas for the psychoanalyst, notwithstanding their regressive appearance, they signify the completion of a stage in the processes of psychic integration. I wrote this book to draw attention to a particular kind of dream I have regularly observed both in my own analysands and in supervisions, which I have called 'dreams that turn over a page' (J.-M. Quinodoz 1987, 1999, 2000b). This book discusses a particular type of dream which comes after a phase in analysis where integration has taken place.