James L Kelley - Academia.edu (original) (raw)
Books by James L Kelley
Book chapter, 2021
Shame has become a prominent topic in recent research in psychology and philosophy, but it has ra... more Shame has become a prominent topic in recent research in psychology and philosophy, but it has rarely been linked to aesthetic contexts. The present study’s examination of the life and work of fashion designer Karl Otto Lagerfeld (1933-2019) attempts to understand how the subject was able to transform shame experiences through his particular approach to aesthetics. Both the history of aesthetics and Positive Psychology 2.0 (PP2.0) will be drawn upon to cast lights on salient events and relationships in Lagerfeld’s life, the overarching concern being to reveal the nexus between the subject’s experience of shame and the strategies he marshalled to meet life challenges.
The chapter takes a psychobiographical approach to the life of the subject, Karl Otto Lagerfeld. The subject was purposefully sampled.
The study found that Lagerfeld’s early affective experiences with his mother, Elizabeth, as well as an entire childhood spent learning about culture and art at her feet, informed his later ability to reach for the positivity hidden within shameful experiences and turn it toward the creation of new and original fashion designs.
Dandyism began in Restoration England when sons of the well-to-do shocked their squire fathers by... more Dandyism began in Restoration England when sons of the well-to-do shocked their squire fathers by dressing in the style of the French court that many of them witnessed at first hand during their Grand Tours of Europe (Van Dooren, 2006: 25-31). By the time the trend jumped the Channel and arrived in Paris, it had taken on a more theoretical cast with the writings of Barbey d'Aurevilly and Charles Baudelaire. These writers updated the socially progressive Romanticism of the Second Empire by combining intensity of stylistic expression with detachment from the mass readership whom they were forced to address. Many of the same critiques of French Bourgeois society were extended by Baudelaire and his ilk, but whereas the July Monarchy Romantics absolutized the work of art, these dandies absolutized their own mode-molded personae as impotent yet unvanquished denunciations of middling vulgarity (Amann, 2015: 6-7; de Vugt, 2018: 5). The dandy did not seek direct social change; rather, he sought to stand out from mass society by combining Stoic detachment with demonic passion. An uncanny aura emanated from his overwrought style of dress and versification; he was a walking, talking Renaissance hieroglyph who could only be deciphered by disaffected journalists, disowned aristocratic scions, and in-the-know café habitués. Dandyism's combination of marketing savvy with a cynicism toward the average “bourgeois” consumer is replicated in Karl Lagerfeld, who once wrapped a sheaf of wheat in expensive bead necklaces for a model to hold while walking the runway at a “Back to Nature” themed Chanel show. He quipped to the model: “It means money-that's all they care about anyway” (Orth, 1992).
We live in an age in which “esotericism” has become almost synonymous with “spiritual.” Everythin... more We live in an age in which “esotericism” has become almost synonymous with “spiritual.” Everything from sex to politics has its occult side; in fact, this imagined esoteric counter-face—hidden yet ubiquitous—is often assumed to actually be the true meaning or reality that the material husk—the exoteric, well-known aspect—serves only to obscure. Modern culture is “occulture.” That is, today's everyman recognizes as legitimate cultural expression only that which is grounded in “rejected knowledge.” But rejected by whom and for what? These questions are rarely even acknowledged, much less tackled. All that matters is that their esoteric wisdom is in some sense anti-traditional and pro-gnostic.
Most distressing of all, for an Eastern Orthodox Christian, is the continued—even growing—confusion among theologians and laymen concerning the relationship between esotericism and the teachings of Orthodoxy. The studies in this volume shed light on the historical development of esoteric thought from an Orthodox perspective.
This three-part analysis of modernity assesses the impact that Western thought and philosophy has... more This three-part analysis of modernity assesses the impact that Western thought and philosophy has had on today's world. Making use of neglected research from the fringes of academia, "Anatomyzing Divinity" traces the circuitous path of occult wisdom from China, India, Egypt and the Hellenistic world to Byzantium and beyond. At the heart of the book is an investigation of the life and thought of G. W. Leibniz, the man who invented calculus and laid the groundwork for binary code, which in turn made computers possible. Leibniz's roots, Kelley shows, lay in the Frankish metaphysical tradition, and thus have little in common with some of his contemporaries' materialism. Along the way, sidelights are turned on 1) the occult basis of Western political systems, as well as 2) the alchemical basis of much Western philosophy and theology.
This study of Greek-American theologian John S. Romanides explores the first half-decade of his c... more This study of Greek-American theologian John S. Romanides explores the first half-decade of his career, a span which includes his seminal book Ancestral Sin. Each chapter of this book is adapted from a lecture written by theologian James L. Kelley, one of the world's foremost authorities on Fr. John's work.
Papers by James L Kelley
Recent research suggests that older people who lack adequate social support can experience inordi... more Recent research suggests that older people who lack adequate social support can experience inordinate shame. The present writing examined the life and work of legendary musician, poet, and painter Don Van Vliet (1941-2010), better known as Captain Beefheart. In the late 1970's, after having already released a series of critically-acclaimed but low-selling albums, Van Vliet was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. Recent shame research was paired with psychoanalytic insights to shed light on Van Vliet's successful transition to life as a respected painter. A qualitative research schema, featuring a hermeneutical-interpretative paradigm and a psychobiographical approach, was employed. The chapter concluded that the subject's infusing into his art his lifelong feeling of shame over American society's unconcern with environmentalism, animal rights, and women's rights allowed him to overcome a history of personal and professional adversity.
This, the first of two interviews conducted with Audrey deChanenedes, was conducted via email 9 F... more This, the first of two interviews conducted with Audrey deChanenedes, was conducted via email 9 February, 2023. The second interview, which was also an email exchange, was completed 23 February, 2023, and is also reproduced herein. Becker’s dissatisfactions with Steely Dan’s touring situation are discussed, as are his troubled relationships with his parents and sister.
Academic instructor, editor, reviewer, and writer with over a decade's experience in the publishi... more Academic instructor, editor, reviewer, and writer with over a decade's experience in the publishing worlds of psychiatry, history, theology, and vocational studies. Dedicated to bringing together minds from diverse fields, backgrounds, and nationalities to produce innovative research supported by top tier academic publishers.
Política Común, 2024
Carl Schmitt (1888-1985) is one of the most significant political thinkers of the twentieth centu... more Carl Schmitt (1888-1985) is one of the most significant political thinkers of the twentieth century. The following is a translation of the famed jurist’s tribute to sociologist and philosopher Hans Freyer (1887-1969). In the short piece, which appeared in the newspaper Christ und Welt in 1957, Schmitt touches on his notion of the katechon. Of further interest to Schmitt scholars is his formulation therein of what might be termed his “inimicos habeo, ergo sum”: “I have enemies, therefore I am.”
Academic instructor, editor, reviewer, and writer with over a decade's experience in the publishi... more Academic instructor, editor, reviewer, and writer with over a decade's experience in the publishing worlds of psychiatry, history, theology, and vocational studies. Dedicated to bringing together minds from diverse fields, backgrounds, and nationalities to produce innovative research supported by top tier academic publishers.
The chapter uses the methods of psychobiography and object relations theory to conduct a single-c... more The chapter uses the methods of psychobiography and object relations theory to conduct a single-case study of the life and loves of German filmmaker Leni Riefenstahl (1902–2003). Leni’s childhood home was dominated by her father, who had to be cajoled, and sometimes outright deceived, into supporting his daughter’s desire to enter a career in the performing arts. Unfortunately, Leni’s success was often her worst enemy: Just as she evaded her father Albert’s censorious glance, so did she avoid the barbs of German film critics by gaining Adolph Hitler as her patron until the fall of the Nazi regime in 1945. At this time, Leni lost not only her marriage and her film career, but even her sanity, if only for a short time. The chapter shows, through a Fairbairnian analysis, how Leni adapted to the disaster that was her early career by reinventing herself as a photographer of African tribes. Also, in her romantic life, she changed tacks. Compared with her late-in-life companion Horst Kettner, Leni’s early romances were relatively shallow because her counterpart was either too involved in promoting her career (Harry Sokal) or too far removed from her working life (Peter Jacob).
Qeios, 2023
Dr. Hyland's paper on Neo-Idealist theories of consciousness is reviewed. The paper is praised fo... more Dr. Hyland's paper on Neo-Idealist theories of consciousness is reviewed. The paper is praised for its style and message, though reservations are expressed about its assumption that Spinozistic monism can yield a therapy appropriate for religious traditionalists.
Clio's Psyche, 2023
Both Leonardo Da Vinci and musician Scott Walker grew up without a strong paternal presence, and ... more Both Leonardo Da Vinci and musician Scott Walker grew up without a strong paternal presence, and both seem to have had neuroses connected to their creative drives later in life. A psychobiographical consideration of both subjects concludes that one contributing cause to their artistic difficulties lies in their compromised preoedipal development, which led Leonardo into procrastination and Walker into dissolution.
Clio's Psyche, 2023
In the final pages of Menninger, Dr. Friedman paints a picture of an aging Karl, a man who remain... more In the final pages of Menninger, Dr. Friedman paints a picture of an aging Karl, a man who remained an enigma until the very end. By turns irascible and serene, the great man would show signs of having come to terms with his dwindling influence upon the Clinic’s affairs, only to launch suddenly into an angry tirade against his grandson Roy’s leadership (Friedman, Menninger, pp. 349-350). Because Dr. Friedman has an enviable ability to control the unfolding of his often complex narrative, we as readers are able to gather insights into the inner dispositions of each of the major players in the historical drama—Flo, Charles, Karl, and Will—and to marvel as the author enriches the picture by sprinkling evaluative comments into descriptions of the interactions between his historical dramatis personae. Is Menninger a psychobiography? In the broadest sense, certainly. However, I am tempted to proclaim this, the first panel in Dr. Friedman’s triptych of psychological biographies, a bridge between psychobiography (with its bold juxtaposition of theory to life history) and classical biography (with its austere attention to source material and its lighter evaluative touch).
Clio's Psyche, 2023
Daniel Benveniste’s Libido, Culture and Consciousness is an attempt to flesh out Freud’s underdev... more Daniel Benveniste’s Libido, Culture and Consciousness is an attempt to flesh out Freud’s underdeveloped notion that psychosexual stages originated with our ancestors’ traumatic prehistoric experiences. Though Freud wrote about his “phylogenetic fantasy” (this term deriving from the title editors gave to an English translation of one of Freud’s unpublished papers) throughout his later life, it is in 1914’s Totem and Taboo that we find the fullest expression of his idea that humans inherit memory traces of their forebears’ traumatic experiences. The 1914 work spoke of a “primal horde” that was lorded over by an alpha male, a “primal father” who kept all the women to himself and subjugated or drove away the weaker males in the group. These disinherited sons banded together, killed and ate their father, and agreed to cooperate to forge a society that was gentler and more equitable. However, the repressed guilt over the patricide influenced the creation of totemism and exogamy, practices that defined the fraternal society that succeeded the primal horde. As Benveniste summarizes Freud in Totem, “The two principal taboos of totemism are the taboo against harming the totem and the taboo against sexual relations within the clan” (p. 18). Freud has, in effect, linked a stage in human history with a psychosexual stage (phallic), a cultural practice (exogamy) and a myth/religious ritual (totemism/totemic feast). Libido, Culture, and Consciousness wishes to extend this kind of analogue-catena into each of Freud’s psychosexual stages, and also into suitably adapted versions of each of Erik Erikson’s psychosocial stages.
International Review of Psychiatry, 2023
The present psychobiography took up the three main psychoanalytic conceptions of love to illumina... more The present psychobiography took up the three main psychoanalytic conceptions of love to illuminate the psychological development of famed experimental writer William Seward Burroughs (1914–1997). The study found evidence of all three concepts of love in the subject’s life strategies: (1) Love as cathexis was present in Burroughs’ fascination with centipedes and other vermin that appeared in his dreams and which symbolised, in part, his terror over early childhood traumas as well as his concomitant struggle to integrate sex with intimacy. (2) Love as eroto-philiac fusion was observed in Burroughs’ unstable and even exploitative relationships with others. This tendency was most salient in Burroughs’ abortive attempts to seduce straight men, as well as in his failed efforts to be a traditional husband and father. (3) Reparative love became the subject’s primary mode of interaction late in life. The study showed that, in his declining years, Burroughs was able to overcome partially the maladaptive strategies of his early life through his numerous pet cats, upon whom he projected aspects of his past romantic partners and friends.
Past leadership research has accorded African women leaders far too little attention. This chapte... more Past leadership research has accorded African women leaders far too little attention. This chapter seeks to redress the imbalance through a psychobiography of a prominent woman leader from Ethiopia, Bethlehem Tilahun Alemu. Aside from its examination of the African-Ethiopian perspective on leadership, this single case study will be guided by Jung’s heroine archetype, as well as by the design leadership approach. The chapter provides insights into intra- as well as inter-psychological qualities in business leadership in a selected woman leader. It contributes to the existing body of psychobiographical research on women leaders by addressing the void in life span research through its dual theoretical grounding, which spans the psychological (Jung’s archetypes) and the social (leadership theory). The research methodology is qualitative, using a hermeneutical-interpretative paradigm and a psychobiographical approach. Conclusions are drawn and recommendations for future research and practice for women in leadership in Africa are offered.
Though Charles Baudelaire often has been named as the quintessential modern poet, few scholars ha... more Though Charles Baudelaire often has been named as the quintessential modern poet, few scholars have been able to shed light on the poet’s religious beliefs as they relate to his art and life. A psychobiographical examination of the subject with a Kleinian emphasis found that Baudelaire forged a personal space for meaning making via his notion of “sacred prostitution”, according to which the human being in his finitude relates to the divine through aesthetic productivity and pious praxis, the goal being expiation of sins, or, in Klein’s language, reparation. The chapter traces how Baudelaire’s familial and professional struggles were partially solved through his attempts to forge a dynamic equilibrium between such classic religio-philosophical binaries as conventional-unconventional and intimacy-aloofness.
Clio's Psyche, 2022
Edvard Munch (1863-1944), who suffered a variety of illnesses throughout his life, offers admirer... more Edvard Munch (1863-1944), who suffered a variety of illnesses
throughout his life, offers admirers of his paintings an example of an artist
who incorporated a pandemic into his art. By analyzing his paintings
related to the 1918 Pandemic, we can see the artist’s ability to turn his
past into a more positive view of life.
Design leadership, a conceptual component in design theory, provides a useful template for leader... more Design leadership, a conceptual component in design theory, provides a useful template for leaders in an ever-changing world. Design leadership has gained importance in global leadership and decision-making processes in contemporary politics. This chapter focuses on the life and work of the famous German political leader, Angela Merkel, who has become one of the most influential global woman leaders in world history. A psychobiographical approach to Merkel’s life and leadership is taken to explore design leadership. The findings will provide insight into successful global governance in terms of design leadership. The chapter provides an example of future-oriented design leadership by using a single case study approach with a purposeful sampling process within a qualitative hermeneutical and interpretative research paradigm. Findings will provide applied insights into design leadership; recommendations will include guidelines for future research and the presentation of best practices.
Book chapter, 2021
Shame has become a prominent topic in recent research in psychology and philosophy, but it has ra... more Shame has become a prominent topic in recent research in psychology and philosophy, but it has rarely been linked to aesthetic contexts. The present study’s examination of the life and work of fashion designer Karl Otto Lagerfeld (1933-2019) attempts to understand how the subject was able to transform shame experiences through his particular approach to aesthetics. Both the history of aesthetics and Positive Psychology 2.0 (PP2.0) will be drawn upon to cast lights on salient events and relationships in Lagerfeld’s life, the overarching concern being to reveal the nexus between the subject’s experience of shame and the strategies he marshalled to meet life challenges.
The chapter takes a psychobiographical approach to the life of the subject, Karl Otto Lagerfeld. The subject was purposefully sampled.
The study found that Lagerfeld’s early affective experiences with his mother, Elizabeth, as well as an entire childhood spent learning about culture and art at her feet, informed his later ability to reach for the positivity hidden within shameful experiences and turn it toward the creation of new and original fashion designs.
Dandyism began in Restoration England when sons of the well-to-do shocked their squire fathers by... more Dandyism began in Restoration England when sons of the well-to-do shocked their squire fathers by dressing in the style of the French court that many of them witnessed at first hand during their Grand Tours of Europe (Van Dooren, 2006: 25-31). By the time the trend jumped the Channel and arrived in Paris, it had taken on a more theoretical cast with the writings of Barbey d'Aurevilly and Charles Baudelaire. These writers updated the socially progressive Romanticism of the Second Empire by combining intensity of stylistic expression with detachment from the mass readership whom they were forced to address. Many of the same critiques of French Bourgeois society were extended by Baudelaire and his ilk, but whereas the July Monarchy Romantics absolutized the work of art, these dandies absolutized their own mode-molded personae as impotent yet unvanquished denunciations of middling vulgarity (Amann, 2015: 6-7; de Vugt, 2018: 5). The dandy did not seek direct social change; rather, he sought to stand out from mass society by combining Stoic detachment with demonic passion. An uncanny aura emanated from his overwrought style of dress and versification; he was a walking, talking Renaissance hieroglyph who could only be deciphered by disaffected journalists, disowned aristocratic scions, and in-the-know café habitués. Dandyism's combination of marketing savvy with a cynicism toward the average “bourgeois” consumer is replicated in Karl Lagerfeld, who once wrapped a sheaf of wheat in expensive bead necklaces for a model to hold while walking the runway at a “Back to Nature” themed Chanel show. He quipped to the model: “It means money-that's all they care about anyway” (Orth, 1992).
We live in an age in which “esotericism” has become almost synonymous with “spiritual.” Everythin... more We live in an age in which “esotericism” has become almost synonymous with “spiritual.” Everything from sex to politics has its occult side; in fact, this imagined esoteric counter-face—hidden yet ubiquitous—is often assumed to actually be the true meaning or reality that the material husk—the exoteric, well-known aspect—serves only to obscure. Modern culture is “occulture.” That is, today's everyman recognizes as legitimate cultural expression only that which is grounded in “rejected knowledge.” But rejected by whom and for what? These questions are rarely even acknowledged, much less tackled. All that matters is that their esoteric wisdom is in some sense anti-traditional and pro-gnostic.
Most distressing of all, for an Eastern Orthodox Christian, is the continued—even growing—confusion among theologians and laymen concerning the relationship between esotericism and the teachings of Orthodoxy. The studies in this volume shed light on the historical development of esoteric thought from an Orthodox perspective.
This three-part analysis of modernity assesses the impact that Western thought and philosophy has... more This three-part analysis of modernity assesses the impact that Western thought and philosophy has had on today's world. Making use of neglected research from the fringes of academia, "Anatomyzing Divinity" traces the circuitous path of occult wisdom from China, India, Egypt and the Hellenistic world to Byzantium and beyond. At the heart of the book is an investigation of the life and thought of G. W. Leibniz, the man who invented calculus and laid the groundwork for binary code, which in turn made computers possible. Leibniz's roots, Kelley shows, lay in the Frankish metaphysical tradition, and thus have little in common with some of his contemporaries' materialism. Along the way, sidelights are turned on 1) the occult basis of Western political systems, as well as 2) the alchemical basis of much Western philosophy and theology.
This study of Greek-American theologian John S. Romanides explores the first half-decade of his c... more This study of Greek-American theologian John S. Romanides explores the first half-decade of his career, a span which includes his seminal book Ancestral Sin. Each chapter of this book is adapted from a lecture written by theologian James L. Kelley, one of the world's foremost authorities on Fr. John's work.
Recent research suggests that older people who lack adequate social support can experience inordi... more Recent research suggests that older people who lack adequate social support can experience inordinate shame. The present writing examined the life and work of legendary musician, poet, and painter Don Van Vliet (1941-2010), better known as Captain Beefheart. In the late 1970's, after having already released a series of critically-acclaimed but low-selling albums, Van Vliet was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. Recent shame research was paired with psychoanalytic insights to shed light on Van Vliet's successful transition to life as a respected painter. A qualitative research schema, featuring a hermeneutical-interpretative paradigm and a psychobiographical approach, was employed. The chapter concluded that the subject's infusing into his art his lifelong feeling of shame over American society's unconcern with environmentalism, animal rights, and women's rights allowed him to overcome a history of personal and professional adversity.
This, the first of two interviews conducted with Audrey deChanenedes, was conducted via email 9 F... more This, the first of two interviews conducted with Audrey deChanenedes, was conducted via email 9 February, 2023. The second interview, which was also an email exchange, was completed 23 February, 2023, and is also reproduced herein. Becker’s dissatisfactions with Steely Dan’s touring situation are discussed, as are his troubled relationships with his parents and sister.
Academic instructor, editor, reviewer, and writer with over a decade's experience in the publishi... more Academic instructor, editor, reviewer, and writer with over a decade's experience in the publishing worlds of psychiatry, history, theology, and vocational studies. Dedicated to bringing together minds from diverse fields, backgrounds, and nationalities to produce innovative research supported by top tier academic publishers.
Política Común, 2024
Carl Schmitt (1888-1985) is one of the most significant political thinkers of the twentieth centu... more Carl Schmitt (1888-1985) is one of the most significant political thinkers of the twentieth century. The following is a translation of the famed jurist’s tribute to sociologist and philosopher Hans Freyer (1887-1969). In the short piece, which appeared in the newspaper Christ und Welt in 1957, Schmitt touches on his notion of the katechon. Of further interest to Schmitt scholars is his formulation therein of what might be termed his “inimicos habeo, ergo sum”: “I have enemies, therefore I am.”
Academic instructor, editor, reviewer, and writer with over a decade's experience in the publishi... more Academic instructor, editor, reviewer, and writer with over a decade's experience in the publishing worlds of psychiatry, history, theology, and vocational studies. Dedicated to bringing together minds from diverse fields, backgrounds, and nationalities to produce innovative research supported by top tier academic publishers.
The chapter uses the methods of psychobiography and object relations theory to conduct a single-c... more The chapter uses the methods of psychobiography and object relations theory to conduct a single-case study of the life and loves of German filmmaker Leni Riefenstahl (1902–2003). Leni’s childhood home was dominated by her father, who had to be cajoled, and sometimes outright deceived, into supporting his daughter’s desire to enter a career in the performing arts. Unfortunately, Leni’s success was often her worst enemy: Just as she evaded her father Albert’s censorious glance, so did she avoid the barbs of German film critics by gaining Adolph Hitler as her patron until the fall of the Nazi regime in 1945. At this time, Leni lost not only her marriage and her film career, but even her sanity, if only for a short time. The chapter shows, through a Fairbairnian analysis, how Leni adapted to the disaster that was her early career by reinventing herself as a photographer of African tribes. Also, in her romantic life, she changed tacks. Compared with her late-in-life companion Horst Kettner, Leni’s early romances were relatively shallow because her counterpart was either too involved in promoting her career (Harry Sokal) or too far removed from her working life (Peter Jacob).
Qeios, 2023
Dr. Hyland's paper on Neo-Idealist theories of consciousness is reviewed. The paper is praised fo... more Dr. Hyland's paper on Neo-Idealist theories of consciousness is reviewed. The paper is praised for its style and message, though reservations are expressed about its assumption that Spinozistic monism can yield a therapy appropriate for religious traditionalists.
Clio's Psyche, 2023
Both Leonardo Da Vinci and musician Scott Walker grew up without a strong paternal presence, and ... more Both Leonardo Da Vinci and musician Scott Walker grew up without a strong paternal presence, and both seem to have had neuroses connected to their creative drives later in life. A psychobiographical consideration of both subjects concludes that one contributing cause to their artistic difficulties lies in their compromised preoedipal development, which led Leonardo into procrastination and Walker into dissolution.
Clio's Psyche, 2023
In the final pages of Menninger, Dr. Friedman paints a picture of an aging Karl, a man who remain... more In the final pages of Menninger, Dr. Friedman paints a picture of an aging Karl, a man who remained an enigma until the very end. By turns irascible and serene, the great man would show signs of having come to terms with his dwindling influence upon the Clinic’s affairs, only to launch suddenly into an angry tirade against his grandson Roy’s leadership (Friedman, Menninger, pp. 349-350). Because Dr. Friedman has an enviable ability to control the unfolding of his often complex narrative, we as readers are able to gather insights into the inner dispositions of each of the major players in the historical drama—Flo, Charles, Karl, and Will—and to marvel as the author enriches the picture by sprinkling evaluative comments into descriptions of the interactions between his historical dramatis personae. Is Menninger a psychobiography? In the broadest sense, certainly. However, I am tempted to proclaim this, the first panel in Dr. Friedman’s triptych of psychological biographies, a bridge between psychobiography (with its bold juxtaposition of theory to life history) and classical biography (with its austere attention to source material and its lighter evaluative touch).
Clio's Psyche, 2023
Daniel Benveniste’s Libido, Culture and Consciousness is an attempt to flesh out Freud’s underdev... more Daniel Benveniste’s Libido, Culture and Consciousness is an attempt to flesh out Freud’s underdeveloped notion that psychosexual stages originated with our ancestors’ traumatic prehistoric experiences. Though Freud wrote about his “phylogenetic fantasy” (this term deriving from the title editors gave to an English translation of one of Freud’s unpublished papers) throughout his later life, it is in 1914’s Totem and Taboo that we find the fullest expression of his idea that humans inherit memory traces of their forebears’ traumatic experiences. The 1914 work spoke of a “primal horde” that was lorded over by an alpha male, a “primal father” who kept all the women to himself and subjugated or drove away the weaker males in the group. These disinherited sons banded together, killed and ate their father, and agreed to cooperate to forge a society that was gentler and more equitable. However, the repressed guilt over the patricide influenced the creation of totemism and exogamy, practices that defined the fraternal society that succeeded the primal horde. As Benveniste summarizes Freud in Totem, “The two principal taboos of totemism are the taboo against harming the totem and the taboo against sexual relations within the clan” (p. 18). Freud has, in effect, linked a stage in human history with a psychosexual stage (phallic), a cultural practice (exogamy) and a myth/religious ritual (totemism/totemic feast). Libido, Culture, and Consciousness wishes to extend this kind of analogue-catena into each of Freud’s psychosexual stages, and also into suitably adapted versions of each of Erik Erikson’s psychosocial stages.
International Review of Psychiatry, 2023
The present psychobiography took up the three main psychoanalytic conceptions of love to illumina... more The present psychobiography took up the three main psychoanalytic conceptions of love to illuminate the psychological development of famed experimental writer William Seward Burroughs (1914–1997). The study found evidence of all three concepts of love in the subject’s life strategies: (1) Love as cathexis was present in Burroughs’ fascination with centipedes and other vermin that appeared in his dreams and which symbolised, in part, his terror over early childhood traumas as well as his concomitant struggle to integrate sex with intimacy. (2) Love as eroto-philiac fusion was observed in Burroughs’ unstable and even exploitative relationships with others. This tendency was most salient in Burroughs’ abortive attempts to seduce straight men, as well as in his failed efforts to be a traditional husband and father. (3) Reparative love became the subject’s primary mode of interaction late in life. The study showed that, in his declining years, Burroughs was able to overcome partially the maladaptive strategies of his early life through his numerous pet cats, upon whom he projected aspects of his past romantic partners and friends.
Past leadership research has accorded African women leaders far too little attention. This chapte... more Past leadership research has accorded African women leaders far too little attention. This chapter seeks to redress the imbalance through a psychobiography of a prominent woman leader from Ethiopia, Bethlehem Tilahun Alemu. Aside from its examination of the African-Ethiopian perspective on leadership, this single case study will be guided by Jung’s heroine archetype, as well as by the design leadership approach. The chapter provides insights into intra- as well as inter-psychological qualities in business leadership in a selected woman leader. It contributes to the existing body of psychobiographical research on women leaders by addressing the void in life span research through its dual theoretical grounding, which spans the psychological (Jung’s archetypes) and the social (leadership theory). The research methodology is qualitative, using a hermeneutical-interpretative paradigm and a psychobiographical approach. Conclusions are drawn and recommendations for future research and practice for women in leadership in Africa are offered.
Though Charles Baudelaire often has been named as the quintessential modern poet, few scholars ha... more Though Charles Baudelaire often has been named as the quintessential modern poet, few scholars have been able to shed light on the poet’s religious beliefs as they relate to his art and life. A psychobiographical examination of the subject with a Kleinian emphasis found that Baudelaire forged a personal space for meaning making via his notion of “sacred prostitution”, according to which the human being in his finitude relates to the divine through aesthetic productivity and pious praxis, the goal being expiation of sins, or, in Klein’s language, reparation. The chapter traces how Baudelaire’s familial and professional struggles were partially solved through his attempts to forge a dynamic equilibrium between such classic religio-philosophical binaries as conventional-unconventional and intimacy-aloofness.
Clio's Psyche, 2022
Edvard Munch (1863-1944), who suffered a variety of illnesses throughout his life, offers admirer... more Edvard Munch (1863-1944), who suffered a variety of illnesses
throughout his life, offers admirers of his paintings an example of an artist
who incorporated a pandemic into his art. By analyzing his paintings
related to the 1918 Pandemic, we can see the artist’s ability to turn his
past into a more positive view of life.
Design leadership, a conceptual component in design theory, provides a useful template for leader... more Design leadership, a conceptual component in design theory, provides a useful template for leaders in an ever-changing world. Design leadership has gained importance in global leadership and decision-making processes in contemporary politics. This chapter focuses on the life and work of the famous German political leader, Angela Merkel, who has become one of the most influential global woman leaders in world history. A psychobiographical approach to Merkel’s life and leadership is taken to explore design leadership. The findings will provide insight into successful global governance in terms of design leadership. The chapter provides an example of future-oriented design leadership by using a single case study approach with a purposeful sampling process within a qualitative hermeneutical and interpretative research paradigm. Findings will provide applied insights into design leadership; recommendations will include guidelines for future research and the presentation of best practices.
Innovative musician, producer and songwriter Walter Becker (1950-2017) wielded humor to distance ... more Innovative musician, producer and songwriter Walter Becker (1950-2017) wielded humor to distance himself from a traumatic childhood and to bind himself to a peer group that shared his skewed, wry worldview. Following years of struggle at the fringes of the music business, Becker achieved worldwide success as co-founder of the platinum-selling band Steely Dan. By the end of the 1970s, however, Steely Dan was defunct, and Becker retreated to the Polynesian-American subculture of Maui, Hawaii, where he continued to write and record songs that tackled the orientalist theme of "East meets West" in his inimitable droll style. This chapter takes up Eysenck's psychology of humor as well as various social theorists' assessments of Romantic irony as spectacles through which to view Walter Becker's lifelong struggle to bend his potentially ego-diminishing sardonicism into positive relations with self and others.
Euorpe's Journal of Psychology, 2021
During his lifetime, Karl Otto Lagerfeld (1933-2018) attained such industry renown that he became... more During his lifetime, Karl Otto Lagerfeld (1933-2018) attained such industry renown that he became widely known as the Emperor of Fashion. Lagerfeld ran several fashion houses, such as Chanel and Fendi, leading them to unprecedented profits. He also created his own fashion label. Owing to his unremitting pursuit of excellence through creative expression, Lagerfeld's creativity, energy and intuition for fashion trends seemed only to expand throughout his long career. The authors suggest that, through his creative approach to fashion, architecture, and publishing, Lagerfeld articulated and refined a core set of values-such as "Bildung, " "lightness" and "the unexpected"-that served as a Diltheyan "nexus" linking the Prussian-born designer with the global consumer. The authors apply two specific creativity theories to Lagerfeld's life and work, namely the mini-c, little-c, Pro-c and Big-C creativity theory and Sternberg's WICS-model (wisdom, intelligence and creativity). The article uses a psychobiographical case study design formulated according to a research paradigm of modern hermeneutics. First-and third-person data on Lagerfeld were collected and evaluated through a hermeneutically-informed syntho-analysis. Research ethics were followed. The findings demonstrate the interplay of minic, little-c, Pro-c and Big-C creativity throughout the subject's lifetime, as well as the subject's application of WICS, both of which led to the subject's worldwide success. Conclusions are drawn and recommendations for future research and practice are provided.
Europe's Journal of Psychology, 2021
During his lifetime, Karl Otto Lagerfeld (1933–2018) attained such industry renown that he became... more During his lifetime, Karl Otto Lagerfeld (1933–2018) attained such industry renown that he became widely known as the Emperor of Fashion. Lagerfeld ran several fashion houses, such as Chanel and Fendi, leading them to unprecedented profits. He also created his own fashion label. Owing to his unremitting pursuit of excellence through creative expression, Lagerfeld’s creativity, energy and intuition for fashion trends seemed only to expand throughout his long career. The authors suggest that, through his creative approach to fashion, architecture, and publishing, Lagerfeld articulated and refined a core set of values-such as “Bildung,” “lightness” and “the unexpected”—that served as a Diltheyan “nexus” linking the Prussian-born designer with the global consumer. The authors apply two specific creativity theories to Lagerfeld’s life and work, namely the mini-c, little-c, Pro-c and Big-C creativity theory and Sternberg’s WICS-model (wisdom, intelligence and creativity). The article uses a psychobiographical case study design formulated according to a research paradigm of modern hermeneutics. First- and third-person data on Lagerfeld were collected and evaluated through a hermeneutically-informed syntho-analysis. Research ethics were followed. The findings demonstrate the interplay of mini-c, little-c, Pro-c and Big-C creativity throughout the subject’s lifetime, as well as the subject’s application of WICS, both of which led to the subject’s worldwide success. Conclusions are drawn and recommendations for future research and practice are provided.
In Søren Kierkegaard’s (1813–1855) philosophical psychology, love is not a feeling or a shared me... more In Søren Kierkegaard’s (1813–1855) philosophical psychology, love is not a feeling or a shared mental state per sé; instead, love is a self-relation that is grounded in a unified and transcendent principle beyond self and society. This chapter seeks, through a Kleinian psychobiography of Kierkegaard, to sketch an outline of a psychology of love beyond the paradigm of persons-in-relation, which is dominant in social science research today. We will draw upon Søren Kierkegaard’s troubled relationship with his father Michael Kierkegaard to illustrate just how the transcendent function of the superego in Freud, which was taken over somewhat by the overarching concept of phantasy in Kleinian thought, can be seen as a gesture toward radical transcendence. In our concluding remarks, we will touch upon Donald W. Winnicott’s “non-communicating self” as a perhaps unconscious elaboration of Freud’s transcendent primal father.
Política común, 2020
The German word Raum is unzerstörbar [incorruptible]. Before anyone spoke it, it was. It retained... more The German word Raum is unzerstörbar [incorruptible]. Before anyone spoke it, it was. It retained its force even when it was deposed in favor of Zeit and "duration" in the Lebensphilosophie of Bergson that was so highly fashionable some fifty years ago, and became the epitome of all things lifeless and mechanical. Its overuse will not cause it to perish. The word will retain its essence [Kern]. Though it be proclaimed loudly in every one of life's marketplaces, and though it be pursued through the entire globe's archives, it will nonetheless find asylum. Dum clamant tacet. Popular or unpopular, fashionable or unfashionable, honored or reviled, it remains an Ur-word and thus integral in its innermost essence. Moreover, our meditation on its phonetic characteristics can only amplify its power, even while preserving its arcanum.
Singer-songwriter Elvis Costello (1954-) rose above professional controversy and personal foibles... more Singer-songwriter Elvis Costello (1954-) rose above professional controversy and personal foibles to become one of the world's most beloved performers. Following a trio of critically-acclaimed albums in the late seventies that rocketed him to stardom in his native U.K., Elvis failed to break the American market in the wake of controversial statements he made during a drunken incident that led much of the U.S. rock press to pan him. The later phases of Costello's career saw him embrace his situation by giving up on superstardom, instead releasing a series of stylistically diverse albums that reflected his less commercial, and more personally meaningful, influences. This chapter utilized both the emotion research of Matthew Ratcliffe as well as object relations theory to trace Costello's long journey to professional and personal fulfillment; it concluded that the subject's taking control of his musical fate was mirrored in his gradual emotional recalibration. That is, Elvis found the answer to his personal and professional missteps by reorienting his affective life. The Angry Young Man of his early recordings gave way to the more sensitive torch singer of his mature years, and the chapter linked this path both to Ratcliffe's notion of an affect world as well as to the theme of emotional reordering featured in object relations theory.
Recent research suggests that older people who lack adequate social support can experience inordi... more Recent research suggests that older people who lack adequate social support can experience inordinate shame. The present writing examined the life and work of legendary musician, poet, and painter Don Van Vliet (1941-2010), better known as Captain Beefheart. In the late 1970's, after having already released a series of critically-acclaimed but low-selling albums, Van Vliet was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. Recent shame research was paired with psychoanalytic insights to shed light on Van Vliet's successful transition to life as a respected painter. A qualitative research schema, featuring a hermeneutical-interpretative paradigm and a psychobiographical approach, was employed. The chapter concluded that the subject's infusing into his art his lifelong feeling of shame over American society's unconcern with environmentalism, animal rights, and women's rights allowed him to overcome a history of personal and professional adversity.
The present psychobiography took up the three main psychoanalytic conceptions of love to illumina... more The present psychobiography took up the three main psychoanalytic conceptions of love to illuminate the psychological development of famed experimental writer William Seward Burroughs (1914-1997). The study found evidence of all three concepts of love in the subject’s life strategies: (1) Love as cathexis was present in Burroughs’ fascination with centipedes and other vermin that appeared in his dreams and which symbolized, in part, his terror over early childhood traumas as well as his concomitant struggle to integrate sex with intimacy. (2) Love as eroto-philiac fusion was observed in Burroughs’ unstable and even exploitative relationships with others. This tendency was most salient in Burroughs’ abortive attempts to seduce straight men, as well as in his failed efforts to be a traditional husband and father. (3) Reparative love became the subject’s primary mode of interaction late in life. The study showed that, in his declining years, Burroughs was able to overcome partially the maladaptive strategies of his early life through his numerous pet cats, upon whom he projected aspects of his past romantic partners and friends. Though Burroughs may not have found an optimal fusion of eros and friendship in his life, the study concludes that he nevertheless was able to find solace and generate insight through his life as an artist and writer. The latter afforded Burroughs an inner circle of devoted friends as well as a worldwide audience. Indeed, Burroughs came to view love as both a diachronic process of “contact” via mourning and remembrance as well as a synchronic, Dionysiac dissolution of boundaries, or what Burroughs termed a “schlup.”
Both Leonardo Da Vinci and musician Scott Walker grew up without a strong paternal presence, and ... more Both Leonardo Da Vinci and musician Scott Walker grew up without a strong paternal presence, and both seem to have had neuroses connected to their creative drives later in life. A psychobiographical consideration of both subjects concludes that one contributing cause to both men’s artistic difficulties lay in their compromised preoedipal development, which led Leonardo into procrastination and Walker into dissolution.
In the final pages of Menninger, Dr. Friedman paints a picture of an aging Karl, a man who remain... more In the final pages of Menninger, Dr. Friedman paints a picture of an aging Karl, a man who remained an enigma until the very end. By turns irascible and serene, the great man would show signs of having come to terms with his dwindling influence upon the Clinic’s affairs, only to launch suddenly into an angry tirade against his grandson Roy’s leadership (Friedman, Menninger, pp. 349-350). Because Dr. Friedman has an enviable ability to control the unfolding of his often complex narrative, we as readers are able to gather insights into the inner dispositions of each of the major players in the historical drama—Flo, Charles, Karl, and Will—and to marvel as the author enriches the picture by sprinkling evaluative comments into descriptions of the interactions between his historical dramatis personae. Is Menninger a psychobiography? In the broadest sense, certainly. However, I am tempted to proclaim this, the first panel in Dr. Friedman’s triptych of psychological biographies, a bridge between psychobiography (with its bold juxtaposition of theory to life history) and classical biography (with its austere attention to source material and its lighter evaluative touch).
This translation of Carl Schmitt's "Der Spiegel" will bring home to the Anglophone world the full... more This translation of Carl Schmitt's "Der Spiegel" will bring home to the Anglophone world the full range of the famous jurist's ouevre. Schmitt is known mostly for his efforts in political theory, but the picture is limited without a window into his youthful musings. This piece is just such a portal. In fact, it is a "mirror" into Schmitt's philosophical likes and dislikes. Often, when a writer tries on an unaccustomed hat, his deeper convictions and more searching moves come into view. Thus it is with "Der Spiegel." The critical notes I have provided will help the reader find a context for the piece.
A thinker such as Hans Freyer, so salient in a line inaugurated by Hegel, has to endure the most ... more A thinker such as Hans Freyer, so salient in a line inaugurated by Hegel, has to endure the most intense hostility [intersivster Feindschaft]. This is because another line, one that also begins with Hegel, ends with Lenin and Stalin, and this line claims a monopoly on Hegel interpretation, which for them has become a source of their intellectual prestige, indeed, of their historical legitimization. Here the struggle to lay claim to Hegel spills out beyond the schoolroom and enters the realm of historical forces. Arthur Rimbaud’s words apply here: The struggle of Spirits [Geister] is as brutal as the bloodiest battle. Nietzsche, in a fit of rage, declaimed: Hegel is the great delayer on Germany’s path to atheism. Every hastener of this path, however, will be of one mind regarding a man like Hans Freyer, who writes in his works about the katechon of 2nd Thessalonians, which is the force that temporarily restrains the diabolical power, along with the most egregious accelerators along the route to the abyss [Abgrund].
The Spanish Flu was only one short episode in a long line of illnesses for Edvard Munch (1863-194... more The Spanish Flu was only one short episode in a long line of illnesses for Edvard Munch (1863-1944), but it gives us an example of an artist who incorporated a pandemic into his art, and, once we relate his paintings about the 1918 Pandemic to his central works, we see just how this greatest of Norwegian artists used his creative work to frame his own past into a more positive, or at least consoling, view of life.
The chapter uses the methods of psychobiography and object relations theory to conduct a single-c... more The chapter uses the methods of psychobiography and object relations theory to conduct a single-case study of the life and loves of German filmmaker Leni Riefenstahl (1902-2003). Leni's childhood home was dominated by her father, who had to be cajoled, and sometimes outright deceived, into supporting his daughter's desire to enter a career in the performing arts. Unfortunately, Leni's success was often her worst enemy: Just as she evaded her father Albert's censorious glance, so did she avoid the barbs of German film critics by gaining Adolf Hitler as her patron until the fall of the Nazi regime in 1945. At this time, Leni lost not only her marriage and her film career, but even her sanity, if only for a short time. The chapter shows, through a Fairbairnian analysis, how Leni adapted to the disaster that was her early career by reinventing herself as a photographer of African tribes. Also, in her romantic life, she changed tacks. Compared with her late-in-life companion Horst Kettner, Leni's early romances were relatively shallow either because her counterpart was too involved in promoting her career (Harry Sokal) or too far removed from her working life (Peter Jacob).
Though Charles Baudelaire often has been named as the quintessential modern poet, few scholars ha... more Though Charles Baudelaire often has been named as the quintessential modern poet, few scholars have been able to shed light on the poet’s religious beliefs as they relate to his art and life. A psychobiographical examination of the subject with a Kleinian emphasis found that Baudelaire forged a personal space for meaning making via his notion of “sacred prostitution”, according to which the human being in his finitude relates to the divine through aesthetic productivity and pious praxis, the goal being expiation of sins, or, in Klein’s language, reparation. The chapter traces how Baudelaire’s familial and professional struggles were partially solved through his attempts to forge a dynamic equilibrium between such classic religio-philosophical binaries as conventional-unconventional and intimacy-aloofness.
Innovative musician, producer and songwriter Walter Becker (1950-2017) wielded humor to distance ... more Innovative musician, producer and songwriter Walter Becker (1950-2017) wielded humor to distance himself from a traumatic childhood and to bind himself to a peer group that shared his skewed, wry worldview. Following years of struggle at the fringes of the music business, Becker achieved worldwide success as co-founder of the platinum-selling band Steely Dan. By the end of the 1970s, however, Steely Dan was defunct, and Becker retreated to the Polynesian-American subculture of Maui, Hawaii, where he continued to write and record songs that tackled the orientalist theme of "East meets West" in his inimitable droll style. This chapter takes up Eysenck's psychology of humor as well as various social theorists' assessments of Romantic irony as spectacles through which to view Walter Becker's lifelong struggle to bend his potentially ego-diminishing sardonicism into positive relations with self and others. Positive Psychology 2.0 (PP2) will be called upon to frame the chapter's discussion section, in which it is concluded that Becker was able to mitigate the self-other corrosion that emanated from his hipster-satirist persona by integrating into his art the more earnest, sincere sentiments that sprang from life on his Maui estate, where sustained interaction with family, friends, and artistic collaborators reflected his embrace of a slow-paced, pastoral culture that the Manhattan-born bohemian had earlier dismissed as shallow and vacuous.
As both Schwab (2016a) and Giang (2013) have noted, each industrial revolution has eliminated or ... more As both Schwab (2016a) and Giang (2013) have noted, each industrial revolution has eliminated or drastically altered a host of common occupations. The Fourth Industrial Revolution is qualitatively different, however, in that it not only obviates entire job sectors but also requires workers to embrace and internalize an entirely new vocational culture (Kessler, 2017). Shifts in work culture certainly occurred in the past, such as the Enclosure Movement in England (Neeson, 1993; Marx, 1967: 717-733) and Fordism in the United States (Hounshell, 1984; Polanyi, 1944), but these movements did not splice directly into each and every person's life as does the 4IR, which is intertwined with the technological innovations that saturate the global population's personal choices as well as its work paths (Brynjolfsson & McAfee, 2014; Ford, 2015; Pew Research Center, 2018). This study, while averring that the 4IR world will reward those holding terminal degrees from the highest-tier universities, nonetheless warns that holding a doctorate will not guarantee success in the future workforce (Johannessen, 2019: 22). Instead of clinging to a profession that has customarily provided high income and security, such as engineer or lawyer, the 4IR worker, or entreployee, should raid the entrepreneurial toolkit, grafting the strategies and mindsets found therein onto their own self-managed “company of one” (Jarvis, 2019). Ripe for such an appropriation would be the “effectuation process”, which in the entrepreneurial lexicon refers to the fulfillment of work tasks using the materials, contacts, and information at hand, rather than first picturing a goal and only afterward devising means to achieve that end (Hisrich, Peters, & Shepherd, 2017: 9).
Benveniste’s book is an attempt to flesh out Freud’s underdeveloped notion that psychosexual stag... more Benveniste’s book is an attempt to flesh out Freud’s underdeveloped notion that psychosexual stages originated with our ancestors’ traumatic prehistoric experiences. Though Freud wrote about his “phylogenetic fantasy” (this term deriving from the title editors gave to an English translation of one of Freud’s unpublished papers) throughout his later life, it is in 1914’s Totem and Taboo that we find the fullest expression of his idea that humans inherit memory traces of their forebears’ traumatic experiences. The 1914 work spoke of a “primal horde” that was lorded over by an alpha male, a “primal father” who kept all the women to himself and subjugated or drove away all of the weaker males in the group. These disinherited sons banded together, killed and ate their father, and agreed to cooperate to forge a society that was gentler and more equitable. However, the repressed guilt over the patricide influenced the creation of totemism and exogamy, practices that defined the fraternal society that succeeded the primal horde. As Benveniste summarizes Freud in Totem, “The two principal taboos of totemism are the taboo against harming the totem and the taboo against sexual relations within the clan” (p. 18). Freud has, in effect, linked a stage in human history with a psychosexual stage (phallic), a cultural practice (exogamy) and a myth/religious ritual (totemism/totemic feast). Libido, Culture, and Consciousness wishes to extend this kind of analogue-catena into each of Freud’s psychosexual stages, and also into suitably adapted versions of each of Erik Erikson’s psychosocial stages.