Greed Developmental, Cultural, and Clinical Realms

Though references to it are scattered in the writings of Klein and Winnicott, the topic of greed has drawn meagre attention from contemporary psychoanalysts. This book fills that lacuna. Noting that the inconsolable, relentless, and coercive dimensions of such hunger have profoundly destructive impact upon the self and its objects, Greed: Developmental, Cultural, and Clinical Realms sheds light on the emotion's myriad manifestations as well as its camouflage by the ego's defensive operations. Issues of childhood deprivation, adolescent novelty-seeking, and clinging to the object-world toward the end of life are examined. The avarice that prevails in today's business world is discussed, as is the deleterious impact of greed upon marital relations. More to the clinician's interest, the book highlights the various ways in which greed makes its appearance during treatment, taking into account the tabooed topic of the analyst's own greed for money, prestige, and intellectual prowess. A remarkable contribution, indeed!

Introduction , Developmental Realm , The development of greed in childhood , Anticipatory greed and compensatory greed as developmental steps during adolescence , Primal greed, developmental greed, and terminal greed , Cultural Realm , Greed in the life of William Shakespeare and generosity in the life of Edward De Vere, aka "Shakespeare" , Corporate greed and the new class system , Greed in Hollywood movies , Clinical Realm , Meanings, manifestations, and management of greed , Greed in the context of marriage and other close relationships , Greed, greediness, and greedy patients , The analyst's greed

Salman Akhtar