Second Wednesday of the Month - September, 2025 - May, 2026 | 7:00 - 8:30pm (ET) | Fully Online Workshop
Description:
In the latter half of the 20 th century, philosophers in the continental tradition (Sartre, Ricœur, Foucault, etc.) began to recognize the import of Freud’s psychoanalytic theory, not merely as a theory of the mind, but for the contributions it made to the worlds of phenomenology, aesthetics, epistemology, and ethics. Reading Freud as a modern philosopher and heir to Kant, yet one with deeply held romantic affinities and a profound interest in ancient philosophies and cultures, these thinkers began to wrestle with the complexities of his ideas from a philosophical, rather than purely psychological perspective. Meeting from 7 to 830 pm EST on the second Wednesday of each month from September to May, participants in this learning group will follow the lead of these philosophical forerunners, engaging in close textual readings of the most theoretical works of Freud and examining them from a philosophical lens, with the hope that a deep dive into psychoanalytic theory will enrich their therapeutic practice
Learning Objectives:
At the conclusion of this workshop, attendees will be able to:
- Session 1: 9/10 – Three Essays – The Sexual Aberrations
- Compare Freud’s approach to interpreting neurosis to today’s diagnostic manual approach.
- Identify the philosophical anthropology that underlies Freud’s interpretation of sexuality.
- Explain how Freud’s insights are still applicable today.
- Session 2: 10/9 – Three Essays – Infantile Sexuality
- Describe the Oedipus complex and how it relates to infantile sexuality.
- Explain Freud’s stages of sexual development.
- Explain how Freud thinks infantile sexuality relates to the perversions.
- Session 3: 11/12 – Creative Writing, Shakespeare, and Dostoevsky
- Identify the role of sublimation in artistic creation.
- Explain Freud’s interpretation of Dostoevsky and how it relates to his Oedipal theory.
- Describe the Freud’s psychoanalytic approach to literary interpretation.
- Session 4: 12/10 – Beyond the Pleasure Principle
- Describe the pleasure principle and what psychological phenomena transcend it.
- Contrast Freud’s understanding of eros with that of classical Greek philosophy.
- Assess from a clinical perspective how the death drive effects human behavior.
- Session 5: 1/14 - The Ego and the Id
- Describe the philosophical and psychological import of this text.
- Explain the relation Freud’s tripartite psyche to classic philosophical interpretations of the soul.
- Explain how Freud sees the inner workings of the psyche accounting for the oddity of human behavior.
- Session 6: 2/22 - The Future of an Illusion
- Compare Freud’s interpretation of religion with prominent ideas in the philosophy of religion.
- Identify the role illusions play in the development of psychic life.
- Explain Freud’s critiques of the religious ethos and also his defenses of its supreme value.
- Session 7: 3/11 - Civilization and Its Discontents
- Assess Freud’s critiques of civilized life.
- Identify how neuroses develop as a result of societies repressions.
- Explain the role sublimation plays in all human affairs.
- Session 8: 4/8 – Civilization and Its Discontents
- Assess Freud’s defense of civilization in spite of his critiques.
- Identify the relation of repression to sublimation.
- Explain how Freud’s insights into social restraints explain today’s social discontents.
- Session 9: 5/13 – Moses and Monotheism
- Compare Freud’s understanding of religion in Future of an Illusion with the notions he puts forth here.
- Contrast Freud’s reading of scripture with contemporary philosophies of religion.
- Explain what Freud’s final text reveals about the psychoanalytic approach the broader social and cultural issues.
Timeline and Requirements:
The course will take place on the second Wednesday of the month, September, 2025 - May, 2026 This workshop is presenter-led and is a fully online experience. This will be conducted synchronously online via Zoom from 7:00pm - 8:00pm (ET).
CE Pending:
Application for CEs is being submitted for LMHC, APA, and LI/LCSW. We will update this section as soon as we hear back from the credentialing bodies.
Once approved, this course will offer 13.5 CEs.
Participants must attend the lecture in full and complete the post event survey to be eligible to receive CEs.
This lecture does not offer CEs for other clinicians not listed above.
Fees & Policies:
Payment is due by credit card at registration. Refunds will be granted only up until registration closes at 5pm on September 10th. No refunds will be granted for errors on the participant's part (such as incorrect name/email upon registration, login failure, scheduling conflicts, etc.).
