"The Skin is the Cradle of the Soul": Didier Anzieu on the Skin-Ego, Boundaries, and Boundlessness.

Didier Anzieu's notion of the skin-ego builds on a long psychoanalytic tradition that began with Freud's idea that the ego is first and foremost a body ego, a projection in the psyche of the surface of the body, or, in other words, the idea that psychic phenomena are always embodied. An interface, a container for the ego, but also its origin: thus did Anzieu conceptualize the skin's psychic function. The baby's fantasy of having a common skin with the mother is the concrete starting point for a development that, through the prohibition on touching, leads to the experience of being a separate and individual person. Psychoanalytic work with severe mental disorders makes it necessary to investigate deficiencies in the skin-ego's containing function before the patient's psychic contents can be explored. In the psychoanalytic situation, the analyst's words replace tactile contact and thereby contribute to healing injuries to the skin-ego. The clinical implications of Anzieu's theoretical model are illustrated by examples from psychoanalyses of children and adults. The close connection between touch, psychic envelopes, and thinking opens a wider perspective on the necessity of setting limits to violence, against both nature and human beings.

O espaço entre: gênese intersubjetiva do eu e corporeidade em Anzieu e Merleau-Ponty / The space in between: the intersubjective genesis of ego and corporeity in Anzieu's and Merleau-Ponty's works / El espacio entre: la génesis intersubjetiva del yo y la corporeidad en los trabajos de Anzieu y Merleau-Ponty / L'espace entre: la genèse intersubjective du moi et la corporéité chez Anzieu et Merleau-Ponty

Neste artigo, os autores procuram compreender o papel da experiência corporal na constituição da subjetividade à luz dos conceitos de eu-pele e corpo próprio. Ao lançar mão das teorias de Anzieu e Merleau-Ponty a respeito da cor-poreidade, buscam resgatar seus aspectos essenciais e evidenciar a relação entre elas. Seu estudo do corpo próprio e do eu-pele mostrou que a dimensão da corporeidade, fundamental ao desenvolvimento psíquico, emocional, cognitivo e social, pressupõe a experiência do outro. Dessa forma, concluem que tanto Anzieu quanto Merleau-Ponty explicam a psicogênese pela ótica da intersubjetividade, que é marcada pela experiência sensível, compartilhada num espaço intercorporal e interpessoal, um mundo comum do qual podem emergir as subjetividades.

The purpose of this article is to understand the role our bodily experience plays in the constitution of subjectivity from the perspective of the concepts of skin-ego and body-subject. We intend to evoke the essential aspects of Anzieu's and Merleau-Ponty's theories about the body while we emphasize their similarities. Our study on body-subject and skin-ego has shown that corporeity, which is fundamental to our psychological, emotional, cognitive, and social development, presupposes another underlying factor: the experience of the other. We suggest as a conclusion that both Anzieu and Merleau-Ponty may explain psychogenesis from the perspective of intersubjectivity. As such, it is marked by our sensitive experience and it is shared in an interbody and interpersonal space, i.e., a common world from which subjectivities can emerge.

Este artículo tiene como objetivo comprender el papel de la experiencia corporal en la constitución de la subjetividad, basado en la teoría del yo-piel y del cuerpo proprio. Buscamos destacar los aspectos esenciales y mostrar la relación entre las teorías de Anzieu y Merleau-Ponty acerca de la corporeidad. Nuestro estudio sobre el cuerpo proprio y el yo-piel ha mostrado que la dimensión de la corporeidad, fundamental para nuestro desarrollo psíquico, emocional, cognitivo y social, presupone otra: la experiencia del otro. Por lo tanto, concluimos que tanto Anzieu como Merleau-Ponty explican la psicogénesis mediante la dimensión de la intersubjetividad, la cual está marcada por la experiencia sensible, compartida en un espacio intercorporal e interpersonal, un mundo común donde pueden surgir las subjetividades.

Cet article vise à comprendre le rôle de l'expérience corporelle dans la constitution de la subjectivité, à la lumière des concepts de moi-peau et corps propre. En nous appropriant les théories d'Anzieu et Merleau-Ponty concernant la corporéité, nous cherchons à racheter leurs aspects essentiels et à mettre en évidence le rapport entre elles. Notre étude du corps propre et du moi-peau a démontré que la dimension de la corporéité, fondamentale à notre développement psychique, émotionnel, cognitif et social, présuppose une autre: l'expérience de l'autre. De cette manière, nous arrivons à la conclusion qu'Anzieu, aussi bien que Merleau-Ponty, explique la psychogenèse par l'optique de l'intersubjectivité, laquelle est marquée par l'expérience sensible, partagée dans un espace intercorporel et interpersonnel, un monde commun d'où peuvent émerger les subjectivités.

Mrs. Monroe: refletindo sobre uma menina em busca de nome, afeto e reconhecimento / Mrs. Monroe: reflecting about a girl pursuit of name, affection and recognition

Este trabalho discute as repercussões dos acontecimentos do início da vida de Marylin Monroe para com a mulher que ela se tornou. Utilizou-se dados biográficos reunidos por Anne Plantagenet (1972) e Norman Mailer (1973) em seus livros, assim como o referencial teórico de diversos autores de psicanálise, como Winnicott, Fraiberg, Bowlby e Bick para a compreensão e discussão sobre a história de Marylin Monroe

This article discusses the impact of early events Marylin Monroe's life to the woman she became. Were used biographical data gathered by Anne Plantagenet (1972) and Norman Mailer (1973) in their books, as well as the theoretical framework of several authors of psychoanalysis, as Winnicott, Fraiberg, Bowlby and Bick, to the understanding and discussion of the history of Marylin Monroe

De-Privatizing Self-Harm: Remembering the Social Self in How to Forget.

This article reads Malu De Martino's 2010 film Como Esqueçer (How to Forget) as a case study in self-harm as a mode of expression and self-inquiry. Drawing on disability and queer theory, psychoanalysis, and sociology of medicine, the author argues that How to Forget charts a "crip" epistemology of self-harm and theorizes a "social self." That is to say, the film models an orientation towards self-harm that offers a coalitional and social therapeutic understanding. Based on this reading, the author suggests the application of practices of knowing-with, or knowing-in-relation as "cripistemology" to a broader therapeutic, research, and lay context.

Lost in (cyber)space: finding two adolescent boys hiding from their own humanity.

This article explores the intense psychological effects of compulsive Internet use, which has become increasingly common among adolescent boys and young men. Two cases are presented and discussed to illustrate some of the psychic distortions around thinking and feeling, as these occurred in the analysis of a mid-adolescent boy and of another patient in later adolescence. A kind of narcissistic omnipotence grounded in magical thinking appeared to take root in their minds, and it led to an avoidant pattern in relationships because of such strong wishes for both distance and control. A short review of the conceptual origins of magical thinking underscores its continued relevance because so many now engage with the Internet. In addition, Anzieu's idea of the 'skin ego' is applied to the clinical case material to provide a theoretical framework for the developmental challenges that can appear in adolescent boys who seek to use the Internet as a form of psychic container. Emerging problems that immersion in the Internet might bring into our practices, for example the depleting effects of massive projective identification, are considered and discussed, along with the obvious ways in which using the Internet can be beneficial for connecting with others, for creating new platforms of expression, and for education.

The psychic envelopes in psychoanalytic theories of infancy.

This paper aims to review the topic of psychic envelopes and to sketch the main outlines of this concept in infancy. We first explore the origins of the concept in Freud's "protective shield" and then its development in adult psychoanalysis before going on to see how this fits in infancy with post-Bionian psychoanalysis and development. Four central notions guide this review: (1) Freud's "protective shield" describes a barrier to protect the psychic apparatus against potentially overflowing trauma. It is a core notion which highlights a serious clinical challenge for patients for whom the shield is damaged or faulty: the risk of confusion of borders between the internal/external world, conscious/unconscious, mind/body, or self-conservation/sexuality. (2) Anzieu's "Skin-Ego" is defined by the different senses of the body. The different layers of experienced sensation, of this body-ego, go on to form the psychic envelope. This theory contributes to our understanding of how early trauma, due to the failures of maternal care, can continue to have an impact in adult life. (3) Bick's "psychic skin" establishes the concept in relation to infancy. The mother's containing functions allow a first psychic skin to develop, which then defines an infant's psychic space and affords the infant a degree of self-containment. Houzel then conceptualized this process as a stabilization of drive forces. (4) Stern's "narrative envelope" derives from the intersection between psychoanalysis and neuroscience. It gives us another way to conceptualize the development of pre-verbal communication. It may also pave the way for a finer distinction of different types of envelopes. Ultimately, in this review we find that psychic envelopes in infancy can be viewed from four different perspectives (economic, topographical, dynamic, and genetic) and recommend further investigation.

Emile, or on devastation: when virtual boundlessness meets inner emptiness.

The author's starting point is a psychoanalysis conducted with Emile, a teenager who was unable to form close relationships and was living in a virtual world, planning a school massacre. For him, virtual reality functioned as a bottomless container in which he was no longer a victim of bullying but rather a god. When the boundlessness of cyberspace encounters a "black hole" in the psyche, any fantasies can be put into virtual realization and actions. By recounting his wickedness, violence, destructiveness, and perversion, Emile could start restoring his self boundaries and create his own autobiographical narrative. Unable to sustain the pain of mourning his envelope of invulnerability and omnipotence, however, he prematurely terminated analysis.

Acontecimentos do corpo / notícias da alma / Events of the body / News of the soul / Eventos del cuerpo / Noticias del alma

A autora propõe uma reflexão teórica a respeito das vicissitudes da simbolização nas doenças psicossomáticas, usando dois casos de angioedema como questionamento diagnóstico e endereçamento da cura.

The author proposes a theoretic reflection on the fluctuations of symbolization in psychosomatic diseases, making use of two angioedema cases to present a diagnostic discussion and the choice of treatment.

La autora propone una reflexión teórica sobre las vicisitudes de la simbolización, en las enfermedades psicosomáticas, utilizando dos casos de angioedema como cuestionamiento diagnóstico y direccionamiento de la cura.