The Shadow of the Object: Psychoanalysis of the Unthought Known

by Christopher Bollas

Basing his view on the object relations theories of the "British School" of psychoanalysis, Christopher Bollas examines the human subject's memories of its earliest experiences (during infancy and childhood) of the object, whether it be mother, father, or self. He explains in well-written and non-technical language how the object can affect the child, or "cast in shadow," without the child being able to process this relation through mental representations of language.

Genres: Psychology, Psychoanalysis, Nonfiction, Philosophy, Psychiatry

301 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 1987

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

[Jamey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Check out his essay "The Normotic," about people who have an obsessive need to be normal, and who "seem genuinely naive when asked about their inner lives..."

[Maddy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a wonderful account of lost objects and unknown thought within psychoanalysis. Bollas text covers a lot of ground - from the foundations of these objects, to its manifestations (most notably the part on normatic illness which, as he notes, could make a wonderful science fiction text) and how it in turn is reflected back upon the analyst. Psychoanalysis is a fascinating discourse, albeit an immensely problematic one, and since I've always approached it from a philosophical angle (much to Freud's chagrin) this book helped to give be a bigger picture (though the bigger the picture gets in psychoanalysis it always goes back to the beginning).

[0 · Rating 2 out of 5]

object relations meets heideggerian phenomenology in bollas' reworking of the unconscious as the "unthought known"--a preverbal atmospheric affect which is produced through the relationship of an infant and its primary caretaker and is reactivated in dreams, moods, everyday relationships, and most especially in the analytic transference and countertransference. by carefully monitoring one's countertransference towards the analysand, an analyst can become aware of the ways in which the analysand is relating to them, and can reflect back to the analysand their projection in the form of a subjective interpretation. in this way, the analyst acts as a kind of bionian container for the analysand's unspeakable experience and gives it voice so that the analysand can claim it as an aspect of themselves that they can consciously know rather than an aspect of themselves that they unthinkingly act out.

[Jeremy Johnston · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bollas shoots from the hip, which rocks. Where most academics use a book to support a single theory or conceit, he blasts off 10 or 15. Each chapter is a fun little ride with a theorist/English teacher who dgaf but who coins terms like “normotic” and “trisexual” and “extractive introjection” (projective identification backwards!).

I did notice my interest completely vanish after the chapter on expressive use of countertransference, maybe because the point he makes in that section meant a lot to me and there just wasn’t anything else to say. Great read.

[Bonitaj · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is psychoanalytic thought at its finest. Not for the faint hearted though. You need a good grasp of Object Relations theory before you venture forth. Aimed more at the practising clinician or the post grad PhD student.

[Kate Artyukhova · Rating 5 out of 5]

Збірка психоаналітичних статей від представника Британської школи, Крістофера Болласа.
Читала книгу практично вдруге. Десь два роки тому відразу майже її проковтнула, не дочитавши чверть, і закинула. Тоді мене дуже вразила ідея трансформаційного об'єкта (мати), настроїв, як спосіб переживати близькість. А після розділу про крадіжку самості, мені снились страшні сни)))
Цього разу читала довго, місцями було важко, останні розділи складно сприймались. Сподобалась інтерпретація патологічної брехні у психопатичних особистостей - як репрезентація галюцинаторного світу, яке пережила особистість у немовлячому віці при постійній відсутності об'єкта-матері.
Книгу вартує читати психологам та аналітикам однозначно.

[Judy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fabulous discussion of object relations. The concept of the "unthought known" is worth the entire book. Chapter 6, "Moods and the Conservative Process" was especially good.

[أحمد · Rating 5 out of 5]

كتاب مختلف في علم النفس
رؤية بولاس ثاقبة في فهم النفس البشرية
هو متأثر بتجربته في التعامل مع الأطفال المتوحدين.. وشايف ان الداخل النفسي واحد الفرق ان الطفل المتوحد مش بيقدر يعبر عن علاقته بالكيانات بطريقة لغوية او منطوقة

اما الغير متوحدين فلو انصتنا ليهم ولسلوكهم بنفس طريقة محاولتنا لفهم المتوحدين.. ممكن ساعتها نفهم نمط العلاقات الأساسي بتاعهم اللي اتعلموه من علاقتهم مع الكيان الأول (الأم) وفي العلاج النفسي المعالج من خلال استعمال المريض للمعالج بيقدرالمعالج يفهم حالات ما قبل اللغة عند الطفل اللي شكلت الوعي بتاع الشخص لاحقا..

هنا الكيان الأول بيلقي ظله علي المعالج وبيشوفه العلاقة من خلال المريض وتصرفاته

فكرة ان فيه حاجة عندنا خبرة بيها ونعرفها كويس بس لأنها اتكونت قبل قدرتنا علي الكلام فمبنقدرش نوصف الفكرة دي بالكلام بس بتبقي موجودة بشكل ما, بولاس وصف ده في كلمتين The Unthought Known
الكتاب كاشف لأنماط كتير في طرق العلاقات ونموذج العقل وانا شايفه رائع.. هو مكتوب بطريقة محتاجة خلفية شوية عن التحليل النفسي بس اعتقد القراء من خارج المجال ممكن يلاقوا الأفكار مش صعبة اوي
تفاعلت وانفعلت بالعمل ده فترة طويلة ورغم ان عدي اكتر من 30 سنة علي اصداره الا انه مازالت افكاره معاصرة وطازجة

[S · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm currently reading this book, or listening to it in Google Play Books with its "Read Aloud" feature, & I can already give it 5 stars. The content is interesting.

[rachel perry · Rating 5 out of 5]

excellent. very helpful

[Danica · Rating 4 out of 5]

This started out dense and assumed a knowledge of analytic theory that far outspans my limited understanding of some of Bollas's reference points. However, I forged through because of his distinct voice, and his devotion to following the idea of psychoanalysis to the furthest point, with equal parts exploratory rigor and deep compassion. The gravitational point around which chapters of varied topics hinge is the unthought known -- an essence which is the environment or mood in which each person situates themselves, identifies themselves by in some instances, creates for the other, and in Bollas's opinion is created by very early (sometimes infant) childhood experiences. I am someone who is three years into being an analysand, and I still struggle at times with the idea that the psychoanalytic project is all some sort of complicated quackery if not an egotistical indulgence, but books like this remind me analysis has promise for unresolved personality structures of all kinds, sick or healthy, and reading about types of analysis (because this book really was written more for clinicians than laypersons) reminds me of how varied but universal the human experience is. P.S. I love Christopher Bollas's VOICE. His vernacular is sometimes hilarious. I will be reading more of him.

[Lucid · Rating 5 out of 5]

I will write a more coherent review later, but this is a powerful, modest book that provides a wealth of insight into the methods and principles of object-relations psychoanalysis. It would be of interest to anyone in this kind of psychoanalysis and could interest even those who have never been in therapy. It does have its dry moments, but this is one of those rare, very dense and jargon-intensive books that is worth the effort required to read.

[Carol]

Fascinating thus far. Appreciate his examples from literature e.g. 'Moby Dick' and 'The Wind in the Willows'.

[Spag · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this book absolutely beautiful. It's complicated, especially I found in the chapter on countertransference, but it's extremely clear, and extremely humane and poetic. It's lovely, one of the best books I've read, I think.