Freud in the Antipodes: A Cultural History of Psychoanalysis
Grant number: DP0344438
Abstract
This project will challenge the argument that Australian intellectuals, more concerned with nationalism and social progress, have resisted ideas about inner life. It will also test the hypothesis that in emphasising the confessional, psychoanalysis took root during the early twentieth century when the boundaries between private and public spheres were becoming increasingly blurred. The outcome will be the first study to explore ideas about intimate life in Australia within the context of psychoanalysis. It will make a ground-breaking contribution to cultural history by offering a new understanding of Australian national identity, which insists on the importance of emotions.