Max Schur
Encyclopedia
Max Schur, M.D. was a doctor and friend of Sigmund Freud
. He assisted Freud in committing suicide
.
Ernest Jones
considered that 'Schur was a perfect choice for a doctor...his considerateness , his untiring patience, and his resourcefulness were unsurpassable'.
. He 'completed his high school education in Vienna after his family moved there in 1914 to escape the advancing Russian army. After attending medical school at the University of Vienna from 1915 to 1920, he had most of his postgraduate training at the Vienna Poliklinik. He remained there as an associate in internal medicine until he left Vienna in 1938'.
After attending Freud's "Introductory Lectures", Schur became interested in psychoanalysis, 'had a personal analysis with Ruth Mack Brunswick
from 1924 to 1932 and was accepted into the Vienna Psychoanalytic Society in 1932. It was this combination of psychoanalytic orientation and internal medicine that led to him becoming Freud's personal physician in 1929'.
Schur contributed knowledge to both fields - medicine and psychoanalysis - founded two psychosomatic clinics, and explored the connection between psyche and soma in many of his 37 papers as well as in his book Freud Living and Dying: Peter Gay
considered the latter 'invaluable for its private revelations and judicious, well-informed judgements'.
'. Schur followed Freud to London
in his escape from the Nazi Anschluss
.
At their initial meeting, Freud had asked Schur to '"Promise me also: when the time comes, you won't let them torment me unnecessarily"'. Ten years later, in 1939, as he approached death from his cancer, Freud reminded him of his promise, and 'Schur pressed his hand and promised he would give him adequate sedation'.
'In a period when paternalism was common, Schur modelled, through his treatment of Freud, a modern doctor-patient relationship based on veracity and respect for individual autonomy'.
', ultimately producing 'a psychosomatic, compromise-formed view of the affects, in line with the trend in ego psychology
'.
'Studying the development of the instinctual drives, Schur compared ethological and child developmental concepts, as can be seen in his critical discussion of Bowlby
's Grief and Mourning in Infancy (1960)': although always rooted in Freud's thinking, he 'argues firmly for a structured id and...felt that the idea of the repetition compulsion
as a regulatory principle was superfluous'.
In particular, Schur took issue with Freud's Beyond the Pleasure Principle
- with respect to which 'Schur, whom no one can accuse of reading Freud unsympathetically, said: "We can assume only that Freud's conclusions...are an example of ad hoc reasoning to prove a preformed hypothesis...so different from Freud's general scientific style'.
Sigmund Freud
Sigmund Freud , born Sigismund Schlomo Freud , was an Austrian neurologist who founded the discipline of psychoanalysis...
. He assisted Freud in committing suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
.
Ernest Jones
Ernest Jones
Alfred Ernest Jones was a British neurologist and psychoanalyst, and Sigmund Freud’s official biographer. Jones was the first English-speaking practitioner of psychoanalysis and became its leading exponent in the English-speaking world where, as President of both the British Psycho-Analytical...
considered that 'Schur was a perfect choice for a doctor...his considerateness , his untiring patience, and his resourcefulness were unsurpassable'.
Life
Schur was born in Stanislau in what is now UkraineUkraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
. He 'completed his high school education in Vienna after his family moved there in 1914 to escape the advancing Russian army. After attending medical school at the University of Vienna from 1915 to 1920, he had most of his postgraduate training at the Vienna Poliklinik. He remained there as an associate in internal medicine until he left Vienna in 1938'.
After attending Freud's "Introductory Lectures", Schur became interested in psychoanalysis, 'had a personal analysis with Ruth Mack Brunswick
Ruth Mack Brunswick
Ruth Jane Mack Brunswick , born Ruth Jane Mack, was an American psychiatrist. Mack was initially a student and later a close confidant of and collaborator with Sigmund Freud and was responsible for much of the fleshing out of Freudian theory.-External links and references:**...
from 1924 to 1932 and was accepted into the Vienna Psychoanalytic Society in 1932. It was this combination of psychoanalytic orientation and internal medicine that led to him becoming Freud's personal physician in 1929'.
Schur contributed knowledge to both fields - medicine and psychoanalysis - founded two psychosomatic clinics, and explored the connection between psyche and soma in many of his 37 papers as well as in his book Freud Living and Dying: Peter Gay
Peter Gay
Peter Gay is Sterling Professor of History Emeritus at Yale University and former director of the New York Public Library's Center for Scholars and Writers . Gay received the American Historical Association's Award for Scholarly Distinction in 2004...
considered the latter 'invaluable for its private revelations and judicious, well-informed judgements'.
Freud
During the last decade of Freud's life, 'Max Schur established himself as a figure almost as central to Freud as his daughter AnnaAnna Freud
Anna Freud was the sixth and last child of Sigmund and Martha Freud. Born in Vienna, she followed the path of her father and contributed to the newly born field of psychoanalysis...
'. Schur followed Freud to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
in his escape from the Nazi Anschluss
Anschluss
The Anschluss , also known as the ', was the occupation and annexation of Austria into Nazi Germany in 1938....
.
At their initial meeting, Freud had asked Schur to '"Promise me also: when the time comes, you won't let them torment me unnecessarily"'. Ten years later, in 1939, as he approached death from his cancer, Freud reminded him of his promise, and 'Schur pressed his hand and promised he would give him adequate sedation'.
'In a period when paternalism was common, Schur modelled, through his treatment of Freud, a modern doctor-patient relationship based on veracity and respect for individual autonomy'.
Affect
Schur made 'considerable efforts to link the somatic and the psychological aspects of the affectsAffect (psychology)
Affect refers to the experience of feeling or emotion. Affect is a key part of the process of an organism's interaction with stimuli. The word also refers sometimes to affect display, which is "a facial, vocal, or gestural behavior that serves as an indicator of affect" .The affective domain...
', ultimately producing 'a psychosomatic, compromise-formed view of the affects, in line with the trend in ego psychology
Ego psychology
Ego psychology is a school of psychoanalysis rooted in Sigmund Freud's structural id-ego-superego model of the mind.An individual interacts with the external world as well as responds to internal forces. Many psychoanalysts use a theoretical construct called the ego to explain how that is done...
'.
'Studying the development of the instinctual drives, Schur compared ethological and child developmental concepts, as can be seen in his critical discussion of Bowlby
John Bowlby
Edward John Mostyn "John" Bowlby was a British psychologist, psychiatrist and psychoanalyst, notable for his interest in child development and for his pioneering work in attachment theory.- Family background :...
's Grief and Mourning in Infancy (1960)': although always rooted in Freud's thinking, he 'argues firmly for a structured id and...felt that the idea of the repetition compulsion
Repetition compulsion
Repetition compulsion is a psychological phenomenon in which a person repeats a traumatic event or its circumstances over and over again. This includes reenacting the event or putting oneself in situations where the event is likely to happen again...
as a regulatory principle was superfluous'.
In particular, Schur took issue with Freud's Beyond the Pleasure Principle
Beyond the Pleasure Principle
"Beyond the Pleasure Principle" is an essay by Sigmund Freud. It marked a turning point and a major modification of his previous theoretical approach. Before this essay, Freud was understood to have placed the sexual instinct, Eros, or the libido, centre stage, in explaining the forces which drive...
- with respect to which 'Schur, whom no one can accuse of reading Freud unsympathetically, said: "We can assume only that Freud's conclusions...are an example of ad hoc reasoning to prove a preformed hypothesis...so different from Freud's general scientific style'.