François Perrier (psychoanalyst)
Encyclopedia
François Perrier was a French doctor, psychiatrist, and psychoanalyst.
Perrier played a prominent role in Lacanian and in post-Lacanian psychoanalysis.
As a Lacanian, he became one of the soi-disant 'musketeers of the future troika: Serge Leclaire
, Wladimir Granoff and François Perrier'.
Perrier has been called 'the wandering troubadour
of Lacanianism, naive and passionate, as whimsical as his master (whose genius he lacked), but a prodigious theorist of female sexuality, hysteria, and love'.
A man 'obsessed by his father complex
...his tormented love for a master', he might be said to have frittered his career away 'between presumptiousness and aimlessness'.
(S.F.P.) in 1953.
'From 1960 Perrier, Granoff, and Leclaire (nicknamed "the Troika") took part in various negotiations with the International Psychoanalytic Association (IPA), attempting to secure the integration of the SFP into the international movement'. After the failure of their efforts, it was at Perrier's house, in the presence of Jacques Lacan and Nathalie Zaltzman, his ex-wife, that the foundation of the Ecole Freudienne de Paris
took place in 1964.
Perrier was the first to resign from the board of the new institution, in 1966, over the question of training; and in 1969 'the terrible schism that saw the departure of Aulagnier, Perrier, Valabrega, and others...the third schism in the history of the French psychoanalytic movement' led to him taking part in the creation of a fourth group: the Organisation psychanalytique de langue francaise (OPFL)'.
The first president of the Fourth Group, Perrier resigned from it in 1981.
Perrier came to conclude that Jacques Lacan was 'a troublemaker of genius'; and that his followers were 'travellers in the realm of "Translacania" - as François Perrier once called it'.
called a hitherto unknown letter 'written by Perrier to Lacan in January 1965... a wonderful letter'.
'"You are in the process of destroying what you claim to found, whether it be a school or a treaty of trust with your friends... bringing out the fact that your own relationship to any collegiate body is that of a loner, one who excludes himself voluntarily and rejects all groups... The difficulty you have in relating to any independent group, especially if it consists of true friends, always brings you back to the special relationship, the two-man understanding dependent on complicity toward any third person. And so you always divide but never rule"'.
As Roudinesco comments, 'Although Perrier didn't offer any suggestions for remedying the crisis, he did paint a very true portrait of Lacan himself. And no doubt Lacan recognized the accuracy'.
On love and childhood, '"what kills childhood is knowledge", François Perrier writes; "what kills love is knowledge. Yet...there is no true love except in the aptitude of a subject, or two subjects, to return to childhood"'.
For 'François Perrier...female sexuality takes shelter in motherhood so as to live out its perversion
and madness, which could also be a chance to work them through'.
On perverse love, 'François Perrier takes up the traditional discussions in France and establishes a connection between erotomania
as it appears in Clérambault
's first observations and Lacan's much later contributions...[with] great sensitivity'.
Perrier, François; and Granoff, Vladimir. (1960). Le désir et le féminin. Paris: Aubier.
Perrier played a prominent role in Lacanian and in post-Lacanian psychoanalysis.
Career
Perrier studied medicine and psychiatry in Paris; and became a psychoanalyst after a first analysis with Maurice Bouvet, a second with Sasha Nacht, and a third with Jacques Lacan.As a Lacanian, he became one of the soi-disant 'musketeers of the future troika: Serge Leclaire
Serge Leclaire
Serge Leclaire was a French psychiatrist and psychoanalyst. Initially analyzed by Jacques Lacan, he 'became the first French "Lacanian".'.Subsequently he developed into 'one of the most respected and distinguished of all French analysts'.-Career:...
, Wladimir Granoff and François Perrier'.
Perrier has been called 'the wandering troubadour
Troubadour
A troubadour was a composer and performer of Old Occitan lyric poetry during the High Middle Ages . Since the word "troubadour" is etymologically masculine, a female troubadour is usually called a trobairitz....
of Lacanianism, naive and passionate, as whimsical as his master (whose genius he lacked), but a prodigious theorist of female sexuality, hysteria, and love'.
A man 'obsessed by his father complex
Father complex
Father complex in psychology is a complex - a group of unconscious associations, or a strong unconscious impulses - which specifically pertains to the image or archetype of the father...
...his tormented love for a master', he might be said to have frittered his career away 'between presumptiousness and aimlessness'.
Psychoanalytic politics
After belonging to the Société psychanalytique de Paris, Perrier took part in the creation of the Société Française de PsychanalyseSociété Française de Psychanalyse
The Société Française de Psychanalyse was a French psychoanalytic professional body formed in 1953, of which Jacques Lacan was a founding member....
(S.F.P.) in 1953.
'From 1960 Perrier, Granoff, and Leclaire (nicknamed "the Troika") took part in various negotiations with the International Psychoanalytic Association (IPA), attempting to secure the integration of the SFP into the international movement'. After the failure of their efforts, it was at Perrier's house, in the presence of Jacques Lacan and Nathalie Zaltzman, his ex-wife, that the foundation of the Ecole Freudienne de Paris
École Freudienne de Paris
The École Freudienne de Paris was a French psychoanalytic professional body formed in 1964, of which Jacques Lacan was a founding member....
took place in 1964.
Perrier was the first to resign from the board of the new institution, in 1966, over the question of training; and in 1969 'the terrible schism that saw the departure of Aulagnier, Perrier, Valabrega, and others...the third schism in the history of the French psychoanalytic movement' led to him taking part in the creation of a fourth group: the Organisation psychanalytique de langue francaise (OPFL)'.
The first president of the Fourth Group, Perrier resigned from it in 1981.
Perrier came to conclude that Jacques Lacan was 'a troublemaker of genius'; and that his followers were 'travellers in the realm of "Translacania" - as François Perrier once called it'.
Letter to Lacan
Élisabeth RoudinescoElisabeth Roudinesco
Élisabeth Roudinesco is a French academic historian and psychoanalyst. She is an independent guest researcher at University of Paris VII – Denis Diderot...
called a hitherto unknown letter 'written by Perrier to Lacan in January 1965... a wonderful letter'.
'"You are in the process of destroying what you claim to found, whether it be a school or a treaty of trust with your friends... bringing out the fact that your own relationship to any collegiate body is that of a loner, one who excludes himself voluntarily and rejects all groups... The difficulty you have in relating to any independent group, especially if it consists of true friends, always brings you back to the special relationship, the two-man understanding dependent on complicity toward any third person. And so you always divide but never rule"'.
As Roudinesco comments, 'Although Perrier didn't offer any suggestions for remedying the crisis, he did paint a very true portrait of Lacan himself. And no doubt Lacan recognized the accuracy'.
Work
'Perrier's vast body of work shows an analytic and original approach to the totality of clinical practice, whether it is a question of phobias (1956), erotomania (1966), schizophrenia and psychosis (from 1956), alcoholism, hysteria, or female sexuality. He also contributed to thinking about the training of analysts and training analysis (1969)'.On love and childhood, '"what kills childhood is knowledge", François Perrier writes; "what kills love is knowledge. Yet...there is no true love except in the aptitude of a subject, or two subjects, to return to childhood"'.
For 'François Perrier...female sexuality takes shelter in motherhood so as to live out its perversion
Perversion
Perversion is a concept describing those types of human behavior that are a serious deviation from what is considered to be orthodox or normal. Although it can refer to varying forms of deviation, it is most often used to describe sexual behaviors that are seen by an individual as abnormal,...
and madness, which could also be a chance to work them through'.
On perverse love, 'François Perrier takes up the traditional discussions in France and establishes a connection between erotomania
Erotomania
Erotomania is a type of delusion in which the affected person believes that another person, usually a stranger or famous person, is in love with him or her. The illness often occurs during psychosis, especially in patients with schizophrenia or bipolar mania...
as it appears in Clérambault
Gaëtan Gatian de Clerambault
Gaëtan Henri Alfred Edouard Léon Marie Gatian de Clérambault was a French psychiatrist.De Clérambault gained his thesis in 1899. In 1905 he became assistant physician at the special infirmary for the insane, Prefecture de Police. From 1920 he was head of this institution...
's first observations and Lacan's much later contributions...[with] great sensitivity'.
Writings
- L'Amour, Ed.: Hachette Pluriel, 1998, ISBN 2012789390
- La Chaussée d'Antin : Oeuvre psychanalytique I, Ed.: Albin Michel, 2008, ISBN 2226179178
- La Chaussée d'Antin : Oeuvre psychanalytique II, Ed.: Albin Michel, 2008, ISBN 222617916X
- Les corps malades du signifiant: séminaires 1971-1972. Paris: InterÉditions (1984)
- Double lecture: le transubjectal: séminaires 1973-1974. Paris: InterÉditions (1985)
Perrier, François; and Granoff, Vladimir. (1960). Le désir et le féminin. Paris: Aubier.