Discussion of W.I. Grossman’s and D.M. Kaplan’s: Three Commentaries on Gender in Freud’s Thought …

February 10, 1987. Discussion of William I. Grossman and Donald M. Kaplan’s: “Three Commentaries on Gender in Freud’s Thought: A Prologue on the Psychoanalytic Theory of Sexuality” at the New York Psychoanalytic Institute.

Dr. Grossman and Dr. Kaplan presented a prologue to [their] paper . . . on sexuality as exemplified by female sexuality in psychoanalytic thought. They believe that being aware of Freud’s three ways of talking about sex and gender—his “three commentaries”—is a helpful prelude to understanding his ideas. With respect to female psychology, some of Freud’s ideas were not technical. That is, the justification for what he wrote had nothing to do with the psychoanalytic method. His observations of allegedly female and male traits are examples of this, and form what the authors call the first commentary. In a psychoanalytic perspective, a trait is only of preliminary interest, because a trait fails to convey anything dynamic that is of differing significance . . . (1989). from the abstract in Psychoanalytic Quarterly, 58:179-180.

The full article is published in the book the book: Fantasy, Myth and Reality. Essays in Honor of Jacob A. Arlow Edited by H.P. Blum, Y. Kramer, A.K. Richards and A.D. Richards. Madison, CT: International Universities Press. 1988. pp. 538.

Click Below to Listen to Introduction by Aaron Esman and opening remarks by WIlliam I. Grossman

Click Below to Listen to: Donald M. Kaplan’s opening remarks.


Click Below to Listen to: Susan Sherkow’s Discussion

Click Below to Listen to: Hartvig Dahl’s Discussion

Click Below to Listen to: Roy Schafer’s Discussion

Click Below to Listen to: Open Discussion with Aaron Esman, Dr. Weiderman, and a response by William I. Grossman.

Click Below to Listen to: Open discusssion Part 2, with Arnold Rothstein and a response by Donald M. Kaplan

Click Below to Listen to: Open discussion with William I. Grossman, Frank Baudry, and a French Psychoanalyst

Click Below to Listen to: Donald M. Kaplan and William I. Grossman’s Closing Remarks