Contexts of Being

In this volume, the authors complete the circle begun with Faces in a Cloud (1979) and continued with Structures of Subjectivity (1984) and Psychoanalytic Treatment: An Intersubjective Approach (1987- with Brandchaft). They now extend intersubjectivity theory to a rethinking of the foundational pillars of psychoanalytic theory since they have already demonstrated the degree to which psychological theory is influenced by the subjective world of the psychological theorist, explored the various "structures of subjectivity" that organize the subjective world, and applied the intersubjective perspective to a broad array of clinical issues.

Beginning with an in-depth critique of the concept of the isolated individual mind, Stolorow and Atwood argue that this myth has long obstructed recognition of the intersubjective foundations of psychological life. The authors then proceed to a series of chapters that reframe, from the standpoint of intersubjectivity theo