Freud and the Hammerschlag family: a formative relationship.
From his obituary of Samuel Hammerschlag, we know of Freud's great veneration for his teacher of Jewish religion. However, not only Hammerschlag himself but his whole family had a formative influence on young Freud, who was deeply impressed by their humanity. This paper describes Freud's relationships with all the family members. In particular, it shows how warmly he felt towards the only daughter, Anna Hammerschlag, who was his patient for a while and whom he chose as a godmother for his youngest daughter Anna. By virtue of the crucial role she played in Freud's 'specimen dream' of July 1895 ('Irma's injection'), she also became as it were the godmother of Freud's magnum opus, The Interpretation of Dreams. All the known extant letters from Freud to members of the Hammerschlag family are published here for the first time in English translation.
Fichtner
Gerhard
G
Institut für Ethik und Geschichte der Medizin, Goethestr. 6, D 72076 Tübingen, Germany. gerhard.fichtner@uni-tuebingen.de
D004325:Dreams; D005619:Freudian Theory / Q000266:history*; D049673:History, 20th Century; D007398:Interpersonal Relations