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This Thesis Has Been Submitted in Fulfilment of the Requirements for a Postgraduate Degree (E.G This thesis has been submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for a postgraduate degree (e.g. PhD, MPhil, DClinPsychol) at the University of Edinburgh. Please note the following terms and conditions of use: This work is protected by copyright and other intellectual property rights, which are retained by the thesis author, unless otherwise stated. A copy can be downloaded for personal non-commercial research or study, without prior permission or charge. This thesis cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining permission in writing from the author. The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the author. When referring to this work, full bibliographic details including the author, title, awarding institution and date of the thesis must be given. From Instinct to Self: A Psychoanalytic Exploration into a Fairbairnian Understanding of Depression through a Dialogue with My Imaginary Virginia Woolf A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Psychotherapy and Counselling By: Ni-ni FANG S1111019 Doctor of Psychotherapy and Counselling University of Edinburgh 2016 Declaration This is to certify that that the work contained within has been composed by me and is entirely my own work. No part of this thesis has been submitted for any other degree or professional qualification. Signed: 1 Abstract This thesis explores a psychoanalytic understanding of depression from the perspective of Fairbairn’s object relations theory, something Fairbairn did not himself undertake. Highlighting the historical and political contexts of the development of psychoanalysis in Fairbairn’s time, I underline the marginalization of Fairbairn’s theory, which I attribute primarily to his lifelong endeavour to challenge the orthodoxy of the time: instinct theory. I chart a theoretical trajectory from the instinct theory (Freud, Klein) to object relations theory (Fairbairn), to contextualise my argument for the potential of Fairbairn’s theory. My argument aligns with Rubens’ (1994, 1998) view that an extension of Fairbairn’s theory beyond what Fairbairn himself originally proposed on the subject of depression is not only advantageous but also necessary. The Fairbairnian understanding of depression at the heart of this inquiry is illustrated through my personal engagement with psychoanalytic theory and framed by my subjective experiences and interpretations. Contending that theory requires personal voices to make sense and be relevant, I engage creatively and personally using the method of letter-writing to an imaginary companion - Virginia Woolf. The Virginia Woolf I construct and with whom I engaged in the research process is based on factual information about Virginia Woolf along with her published texts. In this process I blur the boundary between the real Woolf and my imaginary Woolf. Troubling the edge of reality and fantasy, I use the Woolf of my imagination to stage a process of getting to know Woolf personally, working to develop a trusting relationship and engaging her in a conversation about theory. My letters to Virginia Woolf trace an unfolding dialogue in 2 which we tell and hear each other’s most intimate stories, once unthinkable and unsayable. The letters trace the transformation of my own understanding of the nature of depression, and through them I seek to establish a line of theoretical argument about depression running through the claims of Freud and Klein before turning to the Fairbairnian version of object relations theory. In so doing this thesis complicates psychoanalytic knowledge of the nature of depression, and argues that, framed in Fairbairn’s system, depression can be understood as an actively organised psychic manoeuvre to defend against changes to the endopsychic structure. In other words, and as elaborated through the letters constructed in this thesis, I argue that depression can be understood as a defence against the disintegration of a particular sense of self sponsored by internal object relationships. 3 Acknowledgements The completion of this thesis would have been impossible without several relationships, personally and professionally. My first thanks go to my principal supervisor, Liz Bondi, for her tireless support, knowledge, and encouragement throughout the writing of this thesis. Every meeting was an invitation to think independently and play creatively as I needed, whilst her consistent presence grounded me whenever I found myself lost. I could not have asked for a better supervisor. I am also greatly indebted to my second supervisor Seamus Prior, for the insightful critiques he so generously offered me, and his unfailing faith in me, which induced hopes in me with which I was able to survive the challenging moments of self-doubts, fears, and disorientation in the final stage of my thesis. I would like to thank Lindy Barbour who, together with Seamus, deepened my psychodynamic exploration of myself through the interpersonal dialogue they facilitated throughout the course “From Two Person to Three Person to the Group: A Psychodynamic Perspective”. The course had been a significant learning journey for me in establishing myself as a psychodynamic thinker. I am grateful to Rose Cameron, a warm and invigorating presence during my training to become a psychotherapist, and who, in the Interpersonal Learning Group, always gave me space to experience voicing and hearing myself. I am also tremendously grateful for the editorial support she has provided for this thesis. I am also grateful to Tessa Wyatt, my art teacher and a dear friend, who indulged me with a generous provision of paints and brushes and who was never worried about me making a mess. She has been an essential part of my emotional support throughout the working on this thesis. My deepest debt, and the one I fear I could never acknowledge enough, is to my fiancé William Kerr, whose love has been my best ally in all difficulties. Our relationship has been my secure base from which I gathered enough robustness to venture into the most unsettling questions about love and hate, and to practice loving and hating ever so fearlessly. Without his love this thesis could not have survived its infantile stage. Finally, my most grateful acknowledgement is made to my mother, Hui-Li, for being who she is and enriching my life since my very first breath. 4 TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract ........................................................................................................................................... 2 Acknowledgements ......................................................................................................................... 4 Chapter 1 – Introduction ................................................................................................................ 6 Chapter 2 – Constructing a Psychoanalytic Dialogue with My Imaginary Virginia Woolf ......... 15 Performing Psychoanalytic theory .................................................................................... 15 The Wounded Storyteller, and Story-listener .................................................................... 19 Sketch of The Past ............................................................................................................. 29 Ethical Considerations ...................................................................................................... 30 Chapter 3 – Depression Within Psychoanalytic Perspectives: From Freud, Klein to Fairbairn ........................................................................................................................................ 32 Depression in a Freudian system ....................................................................................... 33 Depression in a Kleinian system ....................................................................................... 43 Depression in a Fairbairnian system ................................................................................. 49 Chapter 4 – Virginia Woolf and Depression ................................................................................. 63 Virginia Woolf and Depression ........................................................................................ 63 Woolf in The Context of Psychoanalysis .......................................................................... 71 Chapter 5 – Letters to My Imaginary Virginia Woolf .................................................................. 78 Letter 1 – ‘For They Know Not What They Have Lost’ ................................................... 80 Letter 2 – ‘For We Think Back Through Our Mother’ ..................................................... 99 Letter 3 – ‘Thinking Back Through My Mother’ ............................................................ 117 Letter 4 – ‘From Instinct to Self’ .................................................................................... 126 Chapter 6 – From Freud to Klein to Fairbairn, a Conclusion .................................................... 148 References .................................................................................................................................. 164 Appendix Who is Virginia Woolf? A Short Biography ................................................................. 172 5 Chapter One, an Introduction This doctoral thesis is rooted in psychoanalytic thinking. It is about theories that enable a close understanding of depression with an unconscious
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