Conversations

by Christopher Bollas

Christopher Bollas proposes ordinary conversation as a distinct literary genre that shares certain formal qualities with poetry, prose, and drama. We converse with others and with ourselves, and he capitalises on the unique irony of this convergence, often to hilarious effect, but with a disturbing undertone that opens new perspectives.The psychoanalyst Paula Heimann ‘Who is speaking? To whom? About what? And why now?’ We speak with the voice and position of many others – mothers, fathers, siblings, teachers – and ordinary conversation therefore stages the history of our interpersonal engagements. Heimann’s questions also apply when we talk to ourselves, and our inner dialogues reveal the hidden genius of our private world in which we are both actor and audience, poet and reader, politician and electorate. It’s quite a ride, and an art form all of its own.

204 pages, Paperback

Published December 5, 2023

About the author

Christopher Bollas, Ph.D. is a Member of the International Psychoanalytical Association and has been practicing for over fifty years. Former Director of Education at the Austen Riggs Center he was Visiting Professor of Psychoanalysis at the Institute of Child Neuropsychiatry of the University of Rome. He is a prolific author and international lecturer.

Reviews

[Ece Eken · Rating 4 out of 5]

Christopher Bollas’ın kalemiyle Yapı Kredi yayınlarından çıkan Sonsuz Soru kitabıyla tanışmıştım. “Konuşmalar” kitabı farklı türde bir kitap. Ancak dokunduğu yer yine aynı, bilinçdışı. Kitap 23 ayrı diyalogdan oluşuyor. Bazı diyalogların anlamı kendini yüzeyinde ve tek seferde belli ederken, bazıları içeride bir yerleri tetikliyor ve uyandırıyor. Metaforların oldukça güçlü olduğu ve etkili kullanıldığı diyaloglar bunlar. Yalnızlık, korku, güvensizlik, bellek, görmezden gelmek, ‘bilmemeye’ çalışmak, algı yönetimi, cevabını almak istemediğimiz sorularla meşguliyetimiz, savaş, ırkçılık… yine serbest çağrışımla akan konuşmaların satır aralarında okunuyor.

[Kübra · Rating 4 out of 5]

The way I look at Conversations is the same in which I look for life: liquid but knows how to flow according to the streams. The book has 23 different ordinary and daily dialogues that intervenes life into philosophical- if that is the case- questionings. It, in a way, opens a door for a reader to stumble upon the conversation and think twice about it. While reading, you might have a sense to disagree or discuss it with the characters in which it is related to Bollas's ironic and humourous intentions. I loved how it is experimental, free from aesthetic concerns, and open to different dicsussions/interpretations since its narrative is fragmented/unkown; does not feel like stream-of-consciousness though. Another thing I loved is that Bollas's intention to show that conversation is not trivial; it is a stage on which our psychic histories, unconscious desires, and hidden conflicts are performed. You might end up after reading questioning yourself: "How much do I speak, listen, or hide in everyday life?"