Introductory lectures on psycho-analysis: a course of twenty-eight lectures delivered at the University of Vienna

About this book

This work is a collection of twenty‑eight lectures that Freud gave at the University of Vienna between the winters of 1915 and 1917. The opening pages explain that earlier students of psycho‑analysis had to choose among scattered papers, overly condensed textbooks, or unreliable popular accounts, and that this volume was intended to fill that gap. The first two parts are explicitly designed for readers with no prior knowledge, covering everyday errors, dreams and their interpretation, while the third part moves into a more technical discussion of neurotic affections. The author’s preface makes clear that the book is not a complete textbook, but a staged introduction that progresses from basic concepts to the latest conclusions of the author, offering something for both novices and more advanced scholars.

Freud’s voice is that of a professor addressing a skeptical audience, combining careful exposition with a candid, sometimes admonishing tone. The style reflects early‑20th‑century academic lecture notes, dense yet conversational, and the translation strives for fidelity to the original German. Readers who appreciate historical perspectives on the development of psycho‑analysis, or who are studying the foundations of clinical psychology, will find this text rewarding. It is especially suited to those who enjoy primary sources that reveal the evolution of ideas rather than a polished, modern synthesis.

Opening lines

Among the many difficulties confronting those who wish to acquire a knowledge of psycho-analysis, not the least has been the absence of a suitable text-book with which they could begin their studies. They have hitherto had their choice among three classes of book, against each of which some objection could be urged from the point of view of the beginner. They could pick their way through the heterogeneous collection of papers, such as those published by Freud, Brill, Ferenczi, and myself, which were not arranged on any coherent plan and were also for the greater part addressed to those already having some knowledge of the subject. Or they could struggle with more systematic volumes, such as those by Hitschmann and Barbara Low, which suffer from condensation because of the difficulty of having to compress so much into a small space. …

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