Fromm Forum (English edition / englische Ausgabe)
Issues include posthumously published papers by Fromm as well as papers on Fromm, preferably after their presentation at meetings or conferences organized by the International Erich Fromm Society
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- Articles (222)
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23
The Work of Benign Aggression and Negativity Within a Frommian Framework. My Clinical Journey
(2023)
17
Human Relationships and Mental Health. Insights and Findings from Erich Fromm’s time in Mexico
(2023)
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The Narcissistic Character [Reprint from R. Funk: Life itself is an art, New York 2019, pp. 110-129]
(2021)
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Erich Fromm was central to the Frankfurt Institute for Social Research under the direction of Max Horkheimer, but the works of each author, while handling at times similar issues, took different paths. The article’s aim is to analyze how Horkheimer’s anthropology, which would be of importance in Dialectic of Enlightenment, was built as the author critically embodied the core elements of his colleague’s social psychology in his essays. By doing so, Horkheimer could overcome some of the limitations of Fromm’s early work, as well as suggest new ways for critique.
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>The greater the satisfaction, the greater the disillusionment<. Interview with Luciano Aleotti
(1975)
e24/2020e
Abstract: In this paper, I discuss Fromm’s theories of individual and social change within the therapeutic context. I don’t know of any psychoanalyst who was able to integrate so-ciological thinking with clinical practice and conceptualization the way Fromm did in the early part of the century. On the surface, these two approaches seem incompatible – at least in their methodologies – yet they complemented each other, as Erich Fromm (1929a; 1944a) and Rainer Funk (2018) have demonstrated so clearly. My presentation today is an exercise in microanalysis rather than a broad theoretical discussion about psychic and social change. I want to show how Fromm’s theoretical framework and clinical experience have shaped my own work. First, I explore Fromm’s originality and discuss ways in which he has been personally marginalized and intellectually isolated as a pseudo-psychoanalyst. Then, I examine the overlap of psychoanalytic approaches as they related to the concept of social Third. Finally, I present fragments of a case to show how Fromm’s theoretical and clinical ideas have influenced my own work.
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e23/2019g
Concepts from Self-Determination theory are related to Fromm’s conceptualizations of existential human needs and human strengths. Empirical findings seem to support Fromm (1955a) in stating that socio-economic environments which embody particular values will influence psychological well-being, health and social relations of consumers. Further, empirical studies on effects of working in democratic enterprises and experiencing a sociomoral work climate upon employees’ attitudes and behaviors will be presented. All in all, the findings support Fromm’s vision of a humanization and democratization of work.
e23/2019l
Universality is being deconstructed within contemporary social struggles. Focusing on struggles around the discourse on refugees and the nation, and so-called >welcome culture< in the German context in particular, questions arise regarding the emancipatory potential of emerging narratives of a contested common ground (Hark et al. 2015). This article proposes Erich Fromm's understanding of >radical humanism< (1968a) and its line of argumentation towards >global solidarity< (Wilde 2013) instead of national >group narcissism< (Fromm 1964a) as a normative base to evaluate the emancipatory value of emerging narratives.
e23/2019o
This paper shows that Fromm's discussion is curiously connected to the tradition of American individualism. In Escape from Freedom, Fromm suggests that authoritarianism derives from aloneness as a result of modern individualism and entrusts his hope in democracy for spontaneous activity and solidarity. But why is spontaneous activity and solidarity hopeful in democracy? The interesting thing is, this conclusion is close to the discussion of Alexis de Tocqueville, who also regarded spontaneous relationships as an important foundation of democracy. Based on Tocqueville's insight, there is a tradition in sociology that argues for the relationship between democracy and individualism, such as David Riesman's The Lonely Crowd and Robert Bellah's Habits of the Heart. This paper attempts to show how Fromm was influenced by the tradition of American individualism and discusses Fromm's impact on later American individualism studies.
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e22/2018d
In this article we will explore the postmodern conception of the >death< of the subject and the fol-lowing postmodern philosophical premises: the critique of the master narratives, the critique of metaphysics, the deconstruction of foundationalism, and the critique of the Enlightenment notion of the autonomous and free subject. In the central part of the article we will explore the limitations of the postmodern philosophy and introduce Fromm’s notion of the birth of the self in the time-history continuum. Contrary to the postmodern philosophy, we will insist on Fromm’s non-essentialist notion of being as a paradox and on the notion of the human agency which is crucial for the psychoanalytic (therapeutic) work and a personal transformation.
e23/2019t
This paper explores Fromm’s dialectic analysis of power relations as it applies to the dynamics of change at the societal and personal levels. First, the paper discusses the use of empirical research—system justification theory—to test the impact of socio-psychological and structural resistances to change. Second, it looks at the concept of The Social Third to illustrate Fromm’s clinical approach around connectedness, subjectivity, narcissism, internalization of normative structures and the centrality of the concept of social character in shaping the dynamics of change.
e22/2018b
One of the perennial questions in Shakespeare studies concerns what Coleridge called the >motiveless malignity< of Iago. Instead of looking at Iago as an individual, however, I will argue that he is best understood as a representation of the >social character< of early modern bourgeois man. Iago’s denial of spiritual values and his mercenary nature can be understood in this light. Fromm’s theses concerning the interconnections among anal libido, the death instinct, malignant aggression, and necrophilia all find support in Shake-speare’s supreme villain.
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This paper presents Fromm’s (1900–1980) ap-proach to religion and religiosity, in light of Hermann Cohen (1842–1918) thought. Despite differences in their thought, Cohen and Fromm share some things in common. Their critique of culture is based on a unique definition of das Individuum, the human condition. They demon-strate a cautious approach to modernity and progress.
e23/2019s
The paper presents a study of the social character of 16 people with an adapted version of the social character questionnaires developed by Erich Fromm and Michael Maccoby (Fromm & Maccoby 1970b) and Rainer Funk and colleagues (Fromm-Gesellschaft 1995). The difficulties during the analysis of the responses are described and the main cultural differences that are responsible for these difficulties are analyzed.