@article{Joannidis, author = {Joannidis, Christo}, title = {Triangularity in separation}, series = {International Forum of Psychoanalysis, Vol. 28 (No. 3, 2019), pp. 147-154.}, journal = {International Forum of Psychoanalysis, Vol. 28 (No. 3, 2019), pp. 147-154.}, abstract = {Traditional psychoanalytic literature tends to present issues of separation as a two-person dilemma. Current understanding, however, seems to challenge that view. The recent realization that there is no such thing as a baby, but only a mother-and-baby unit, has opened the way to the further understanding that there is no such thing as a mother-and-baby unit >extra-context<. In other words, there is always a father in the background - be he real or phantasized. Separation, therefore, cannot but be conceptualized as involving a triangle. It should never be forgotten that Oedipus's own life history starts with a separation initiated by a father and acquiesced with by a mother. The aim of this paper is to present some thoughts on the Oedipal (i.e., triangular) dimension of separation.}, language = {en} }