IN SEARCH OF THE DEPRESSIVE POSITION IN THE PARANOID REALITY OF WAR. XENOPHOBIC ANXIETY IN THE ATMOSPHERE OF THE THERAPEUTIC SESSION
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.32782/upj/2026-4-1-2Keywords:
xenophobic anxiety, schizo-paranoid position, depressive position, early Oedipal complex, neutrality, othernessAbstract
In psychoanalytic literature, few texts are devoted to the problem of xenophobia. In the emotional reality of war, the attitude towards the Stranger or the Other is not only an interesting theoretical topic, but also a relevant practical problem. This text is an attempt to comprehend the influence of the external social atmosphere on psychotherapeutic practice, as well as to reflect on the “allergic” attitude to differences that is present in the social atmosphere due to the war. Such basic psychoanalytic virtues as neutrality, abstinence and the ability to free association are under pressure from both external threats and internal bias. We designate this perception of the world as the paranoid-schizoid position, which Melanie Klein described in 1946. In recently published materials from her personal archive, as Claudia Frank (Frank, 2020) notes, during World War II she (Klein) regularly considered, especially in transference and countertransference, the political situation and the “Hitler within us”, and also demonstrated how in politically critical and emergency situations internal fears and destructive identifications are connected to external events. Since 2014, after the annexation of Crimea, I have personally been looking for answers to the question: how to maintain a depressive position in the paranoid reality of war? This text provides an opportunity to share my reflections and together seek an answer to this difficult question.
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