Publications

Publication details [#3355]

Casonato, Marco M. 2001. Transference: Love, journeys, and psychoanalysis In Borbely, Antal F. Metaphor and psychoanalysis. In : 412–424. URL

Abstract

Transference, itself a metaphorical concept, operates through metaphor. Given the well-known transference motif of the patient's being "in love" with the analyst, our conventional metaphors for love inevitably underlie much psychoanalytic discourse about the patient-analyst relationship. This essay analyzes several such metaphors - e.g, love is magic, love is a collaborative work of art - and examines how they may function within a psychoanalysis. The essay also proposes a particularly detailed analysis of LOVE IS A JOURNEY and its psychoanalytic derivative, THERAPY IS A JOURNEY. These are deeply entrenched metaphors which allow us to reason about love and therapy on the basis of what we already know about journeys. Metaphorical references to journeying commonly occur in both the dreams and discourse of analytic patients, and they may be used to monitor the progress of an analysis and to identify issues in it that require attention. (Marco Casonato)