Het Narcisme. De psychoanalytische theorie en haar lotgevallen

Inspired by the book of Chr. Lasch, The Culture of Narcissism (1978), the history of the concept is investigated. Narcissism is introduced by Freud in order to designate the peculiar psychological structure preserving a human being from the danger of psychosis. According to Freud narcissism and identification are closely related to each other. Due to the rise of Ego-Psychology, this part of Freudian theory has disappeared from the American psychoanalysis as the ego is supposed to exist from the onset. Even Kohut recaptures only a part of the original theory. In France, however, due to the influence of Lacan, the original Freudian view leads to further investigation into the status of the human subject. The article concludes with some remarks on how to act in front of cultural trends stirring up human narcissism.