11 October 2015
Is Freud and Breuer’s Studies on Hysteria still relevant today?
This special event marks the 120th anniversary of the publication of Studies on Hysteria - first published in 1895. Written by Sigmund Freud and Joseph Breuer, it was the book that launched Freud's career and his subsequent theories of psychoanalysis. Freud’s work has been a major influence on the (psychological) model and treatment of Hysteria – now known in psychiatry as Conversion Disorder or Functional Neurological Symptom Disorder. This disorder is increasingly recognised as a common and highly disabling affliction for which there are few evidence-based treatments. Although Freud’s work – and the psychoanalytic model more broadly – have been increasingly challenged in recent years we are finding new evidence to support his theories, which are now being tested using the tools of modern neuroscience.
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| Images (from above) The Lesson of Dr Charcot (detail) Lithographic print hanging above Freud's couch, after an original painting by Andre Brouillet depicting a clinical lesson on Hysteria. Freud attended such lessons during his training and was significantly influenced by Charcot. Montogmery Clift and Susannah York in a scene from John Huston's film Freud: The Secret Passion (1962), showing Freud seated behind the patient for the first time. |
This event is aimed at the general public and assumes no prior knowledge or training in psychology or psychiatry. It starts with an introductory lecture on Hysteria and a review of Freud and Breuer’s book. There will then be a debate by four international experts about whether Studies on Hysteria is still relevant to our understanding and treatment of the disorder today.
More info here.
