The Ethical Implications of the Cultural Evolution of Childhood

Starting with the history of psychoanalysis, this book points out the forgotten female intrinsic side of our psyche, that was neglected but is mirrored in the cultural evolution of our species. This has strong ethical, social and political implications.

The separation between various traits in psychoanalysis, such as Freudian and Jungian theory, strengthens a reductive point of view of our psyche. Female psychoanalysts of the early 20th century such as Sabina Spielrein included a female perspective combining topics like conception, motherhood and pre- and perinatal experiences. Reconsidering the interconnection between biology and archetypes, Erich Neumann underlined the primal relationship as being the base of the archetypal history of culture.

New research in neurobiology, prenatal psychology, epigenetics and psychohistory confirms the importance of our very early biography, which is crucial for child psychotherapy research. The introduction of non-verbal expressive therapies such as sandplay, drawing, music and bodily experiencing, can often elicit implicit memory and its accompanying affects of unverbalized and unbearable experiences.

This book proposes insights into the double aspect of motherhood and the human physiological prematurity leading to a better understanding of the archetypal images of the death mother, the forsaken child, and the dictator.