Freudian Fraud: The Malignant Effect of Freud's Theory on American Thought and Culture - Hardcover

Torrey, E. Fuller

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0060168129 ISBN 13: 9780060168124

Publisher: Harpercollins, 1992

Synopsis

There may not be any more Freudians, but there seems no end to those who, like psychiatrist Torrey, would blame Freud and his theories for everything that is wrong with modernity, particularly in America. In its own malevolent way, quite interesting and thoroughly readable. Annotation copyright Book News, Inc. Portland, Or.

About this title

From the Publisher:

Originally published by HarperCollins Publishers, 1992. Paperback by HarperPerennial, 1993.

From the Author:

I didn't make many new friends writing Freudian Fraud, and in fact, I lost a few old ones. There seemed to be no middle ground in feelings about the book; reviewers either loved it or they hated it. Some of the negative reviews came from reviewers who themselves had been in psychoanalysis for years. In such cases, psychoanalysis often becomes a religion and the book therefore attacked their god. Other reviewers seemed profoundly upset that I had focused on Freud's cocaine addiction, including the period when he formulated his most important theories. Other Freud biographers have minimized the magnitude and length of Freud's addiction to cocaine, but I believe it is seminal (so to speak) for understanding Freud's rather strange sexual theories.

The book, nevertheless, provided me with great pleasure in its creation. The underlying question that I was addressing-why did Freud's ideas become so much more popular in the United States than in Europe-had bothered me for years. Finding an answer was most satisfying.

About this edition

• Publisher: Harpercollins
• Publication date: 1992
• ISBN 10: 0060168129
• ISBN 13: 9780060168124
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1