Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
Bestselling author and Berkeley professor of thirty years Frederick Crews has always considered himself a skeptic. Forty years ago he thought he had found a tradition of thought -- Freudian psychoanalytic theory -- that had skepticism built into it. He gradually realized, however, that true skepticism is an attitude of continual questioning. The more closely Crews examined the logical structure and institutional history of psychoanalysis, the more clearly he realized that Freud's system of thought lacked empirical rigor. Indeed, he came to see Freudian theory as the very model of a modern pseudoscience.
Follies of the Wise contains Crews's best writing of the past fifteen years, including such controversial and widely quoted pieces as The Unknown Freud and The Revenge of the Repressed, essays whose effects still reverberate today. In addition, his topics range from Intelligent Design creationism to theosophy, from psychological testing to UFO zaniness, from American Buddhism to the current state of literary criticism. A single theme animates his bracing and witty discussions: the temptation to reach for deep wisdom without attending to the little voice that asks, Could I, by any chance, be deceiving myself here?
Synopsis
True skepticism is an attitude of constant questioning, a mode of thinking Frederick Crews held so dear he applied it to Freudian psychoanalytic theory, an intellectual tradition he initially believed to be empirically sound. But as his examination of the logical structure and institutional history of psychoanalysis revealed ever more cracks in the field's empirical framework, Crews broke with Freudian theory, eventually labeling it the very model of a modern pseudoscience.
This collection features essays chronicling his rejection of Freudian psychoanalysis and our recent recovered memory movement, including such controversial and widely quoted pieces as The Unknown Freud” and The Revenge of the Repressed.” Crews also tackles new subjects as diverse as UFO abduction reports, American Buddhism, contemporary literary criticism, and theosophy. A single theme animates these bracing and witty discussions: the temptation to reach for facile wisdom without attending to the little voice that asks, How might I be deceiving myself here?”