Rachel Blass presents “On the Kleinian view of narcissism: self-love, perfection and idealization as forces of destruction.” In this course we will examine the Kleinian approach to narcissism, focusing on the works of Melanie Klein, Joan Riviere and Herbert Rosenfeld. We will see how and why in this approach narcissism and the self-love, sense of perfection and tendency to idealize associated with it, are usually regarded as manifestations of destructive forces, pulling towards death of oneself and of the other. We will consider the clinical implications of this approach and the rich view of the person as essentially loving that underlies it.

CE Credits.