Wittgenstein and Freud

I studied philosophy at university and became a convinced Wittgensteinian, publishing several books on Wittgenstein including Wittgenstein: Re-thinking the Inner. I then followed Wittgstein’s advice and left philosophy to explore the real world. At that point, I was not very sympathetic to Freud, but for various reasons I became interested in psychoanalysis in my forties and read a lot of psychoanalytic books before myself having a ten-year analysis.

I am still fascinated by psychoanalysis and want to get clear what I think about it. I also still very much a Wittgensteinian. I believe that eliminating confusion confusion can help us see things more clearly, even if ultimately we are still left with a decision as to make as to what we think about something. It seems clear to me that psychoanalysts are doing something real and important, but I don’t think the basis of what they are doing is very clear. This blog is an attempt to explore this issue. I am not sure where my reflections are going to take me, but I am absolutely certain that input from others will get me to a better place, so do please comment if the topics I write about interest you. Many thanks.

Paul Johnston

Questions?