Paradoxes of the Object

Abstract

This paper discusses the difficulties met in constructing a general definition of the object in psychoanalysis. The different theoretical frames, the theory of the libido, the structure or the more modern relational theories, contribute with partial, but complementary, insights. However, taking as a starting point the classical theories, Freud or Klein, a special stress has been placed on the immediate emotional experience. At present, many psychoanalysts share the idea that psychic change is only possible if the focus of the analytic experience is placed in the present of the relationship. This general coincidence does not assume similar theoretical or technical positions; therefore this paper revises briefly some of the differences that can be pointed out between different forms of approximation to the universal phenomenon of the here and now. As an illustration of the evolution of the concept of object, it is briefly described how the object of the projective identification, its characteristics and functions, has changed since its theoretical-clinical discovery in Klein´s work, where its pathological qualities are underscored, to the contributions of Segal, Bion or Rosenfeld, who have stressed its essential communicative function in the process of symbolization and in the development of thought.