The unbearable lightness of being: Authenticity and the search for the real.

Abstract

In this article I review some of the ways in which the themes of authenticity, spontaneity and improvisation have become important values in the writing of many contemporary psychoanalysts. I examine the emergence of this trend in the context of historical and cultural changes in the construction of the self, and the fragmentation of traditional beliefs and social structures linking the individual to the collective. I also explore the relationship between the principle of authenticity and various dimensions including autonomy, mutuality, intersubjectivity, and the ethical realm. In addition I explore the perceived tensions between traditional social forms and the experience of authenticity, and examine the implications of the questions raised in this essay for our conception of the nature of psychoanalytic practice.

Authentic Voices in Supervision

“…Throughout the development of psychoanalysis, writers have incorporated into their theories the notion of authenticity and its expression in different and sometimes overlapping phenomena such as being natural, real, and faithful to one's self, knowing one's own inner experience and letting it guide one's choices (Safran, 2017). Corbett (2014) suggests that authenticity is often linked with spontaneous and free self‐expression in psychoanalysis.…”

“…These writers characterize authenticity as unconventional modes of self‐expression, sometimes difficult to attain, but rewarding for personal development, always contingent on specific contexts (Thompson, 2006). Relationalists also argued that authenticity should be defined in dialogical terms, linked with ethical principles, as causing people to feel gradually more real (Safran, 2017) and ‘less shaped by the configurations and limited options’ of various relational contexts (Mitchell,1988, p. 295). They also believed that therapists who aim to strengthen patients’ expression of authenticity need to commit themselves to authentic expressions, which help each patient to ‘find his or her own self’ and to ‘be able to exist and to feel real’ (Winnicott 1971, p. 117).…”

Jeremy Safran: a hero's journey

“…He – both in verbal discussion and in his published work – started from a different take on what the core, of the issues were. Two examples of his approach are his pieces The unbearable lightness of being: Authenticity and the search for the real and Psychotherapy integration: A postmodern critique (Safran, 2017 ; Safran & Messer, 2015 ). In both cases he identifies issues at the center of the prior discourse that others have missed or overlooked without ever explicitly formulating his case as a critique but, by putting the matter into a different, more comprehensive context, he challenges profoundly the more traditional views.…”

“…He brings attention to the neglected ethical dimension of being real , the interactive nature of one’s sense of identity, and the moral implications of the value placed on becoming genuine and authentic. The re-considering of these neglected dimensions of the values attributed to authenticity challenge and elevate the discourse on the subject, not only within the psychoanalytic community (the paper was published in Psychoanalytic Psychology – Safran, 2017 ) but equally relevant to therapist of all orientation.…”

Özgünlük ile Olumlu Mizah Kullanımı İlişkisinde Bilişsel Esneklik ve Psikolojik Kırılganlığın Aracılığı

“…Similar line of reasoning authenticity describes the overlap between ideal and actual selves (Barnett & Deutsch, 2016;Wood, Linley, Maltby, Baliousis, & Joseph, 2008). Authenticity reflects consistency among behavior, emotion, and intentions as well as openness to experience, selfawareness and belief in actualization their full potential (Medlock, 2012), and also choosing one's own life, being honest, natural and real to one's self (Safran, 2017).…”