Normal Developments in Psychoanalysis

Reviews the book, Psychoanalytic Psychology of Normal Development, 1970-80: The Writings of Anna Freud, Vol. 8 by Anna Freud (1981). The first 148 pages of the book best fit the title, presenting ongoing contributions to the psychoanalytic psychology of child development. Anna Freud touches on the repetitious nature of earlier psychoanalytic discussions of aggression, then briskly leads the reader through the main defenses against aggressive urges, the tools of childhood aggression, and so forth. While agreeing with Anna Freud that the study of children is necessarily dynamic and developmental, the reader of this volume can only hope that psychoanalysts will take this point seriously and begin to learn what developmental psychology can teach them. Anna Freud's writing, unlike that of most European-trained analysts, is a model of simplicity, clarity, and modest grace. One can imagine Sigmund himself reading this book, the culmination of the life's work of a talented and dutiful daughter, and feeling that his heritage is in good hands. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)