Freud-Anna Freud Correspondence Reveals Family Dynamics and Psychoanalytic History

A collection of nearly 300 letters exchanged between Sigmund Freud and his daughter Anna from 1904 to 1938, published by Fayard, offers an intimate look at the founder of psychoanalysis and his family. The volume, prefaced by Élisabeth Roudinesco and edited by Ingeborg Meyer-Palmedo, with translation by Olivier Mannoni, documents Freud's concerns about Anna's health and sexuality, including her homosexual tendencies. Freud, despite considering homosexuality not a disease, attempted to 'normalize' her and warned her against the predatory Dr. Jones. The correspondence also reveals the political context of rising nationalism, fascism, and antisemitism in Europe, linking individual neuroses to historical tragedies. After Freud's death in 1945, Anna continued his work in London, developing new concepts and clashing with Melanie Klein. She vigilantly guarded Freud's memory and the publication of his correspondence. The book highlights Freud's theory of the death drive and his view that society is built on a foundational crime, making him a target of attacks from various groups. The recent attempt by Michel Onfray to discredit Freud is dismissed as futile. The correspondence underscores the embodied nature of intellectual production, with Freud suffering from jaw cancer while caring for his daughter.