Charles Frederick Rycroft (/ˈraɪkrɒft/; 9 September 1914 – 24 May 1998) was a British psychiatrist and psychoanalyst. He studied medicine at University College London, and worked briefly as a psychiatrist for the Maudsley Hospital. For most of his career he had a private psychiatric practice in London. He was the author of a number of notable books, including A Critical Dictionary of Psychoanalysis (1968), The Innocence of Dreams (1979) and Psychoanalysis and Beyond (1985).[1]
Rycroft was the second eldest son of Sir Richard Rycroft 5th Baronet (1859–1925) (see Rycroft Baronets) and Emily Mary Lowry-Corry ( see 2nd Earl Belmore). He grew up in Dummer, Hampshire, where his family owned most of the village and his father was "the local representative of both Church and State".[2] He had one elder brother, Henry Richard Rycroft DSC OBE RN (1911–1985), and two younger sisters: Alice Juliana Rosamond Rycroft (1915–2006) and Eleanor Mary Rycroft (1918–2000). He also had two elder half-brothers, Nelson and Richard Michael, and a third, Veloyne, who died in infancy.
He was a critic of contemporary psychoanalysis, believing it to be rigid and formulaic. He believed that the ideal of rationality proposed by modern psychiatry alienated the adult from his or her creative inner processes. His work with dream analysis stressed the positive aspects of imagination, and thought imagination could be beneficial to psychic development. In 1968 he resigned from the British Psychoanalytical Society, feeling that "the real power in the Society belonged to people of whose values I did not approve...their ways of conducting business and engaging in controversy were entirely alien to me".[4]
Rycroft wrote a number of works, of which the best known book is A Critical Dictionary of Psychoanalysis. He wrote extensively in a wide range of magazines, including The Observer and The New York Review of Books.
^ abcJeremy Holmes, "Obituary: Dr Charles Rycroft", The Independent, 6 June 1998.
^ Rycroft, Charles (1985). Psychoanalysis and Beyond. Chatto & Windus., p. 200
^ Fuller, Peter (1985). Introduction to Psychoanalysis and Beyond. Chatto & Windus., p. 18-21
^ Rycroft, Charles (1985). Psychoanalysis and Beyond. Chatto & Windus., p206
Cassullo G., L'uomo dietro al lettino. Charles Rycroft e la psicoanalisi indipendente britannica. Frenis Zero, Lecce 2015
External links
May 21, 2023
charles, rycroft, this, article, about, psychoanalyst, businessman, businessman, charles, frederick, rycroft, september, 1914, 1998, british, psychiatrist, psychoanalyst, studied, medicine, university, college, london, worked, briefly, psychiatrist, maudsley, . This article is about the psychoanalyst For the businessman see Charles Rycroft businessman Charles Frederick Rycroft ˈ r aɪ k r ɒ f t 9 September 1914 24 May 1998 was a British psychiatrist and psychoanalyst He studied medicine at University College London and worked briefly as a psychiatrist for the Maudsley Hospital For most of his career he had a private psychiatric practice in London He was the author of a number of notable books including A Critical Dictionary of Psychoanalysis 1968 The Innocence of Dreams 1979 and Psychoanalysis and Beyond 1985 1 Contents 1 Background 1 1 Early life 1 2 Education 2 Career 3 Publications 4 References 5 External linksBackground EditEarly life Edit Rycroft was the second eldest son of Sir Richard Rycroft 5th Baronet 1859 1925 see Rycroft Baronets and Emily Mary Lowry Corry see 2nd Earl Belmore He grew up in Dummer Hampshire where his family owned most of the village and his father was the local representative of both Church and State 2 He had one elder brother Henry Richard Rycroft DSC OBE RN 1911 1985 and two younger sisters Alice Juliana Rosamond Rycroft 1915 2006 and Eleanor Mary Rycroft 1918 2000 He also had two elder half brothers Nelson and Richard Michael and a third Veloyne who died in infancy Education Edit He was educated at Wellington College and then studied economics and history at Trinity College Cambridge He became interested in psychoanalysis and on applying to Ernest Jones was encouraged to study medicine He studied at University College London and training at the Maudsley Hospital He underwent analysis firstly with Ella Freeman Sharpe and after her death with Sylvia Payne inspiring a joke about the sharps and pains of analytic training 1 Career EditRycroft practised as a psychoanalyst from 1947 but became disillusioned because of the rivalry between the Kleinian and Freudian factions 1 He was influenced by W R D Fairbairn and D W Winnicott from the Middle Group in developing his own views 3 He was a critic of contemporary psychoanalysis believing it to be rigid and formulaic He believed that the ideal of rationality proposed by modern psychiatry alienated the adult from his or her creative inner processes His work with dream analysis stressed the positive aspects of imagination and thought imagination could be beneficial to psychic development In 1968 he resigned from the British Psychoanalytical Society feeling that the real power in the Society belonged to people of whose values I did not approve their ways of conducting business and engaging in controversy were entirely alien to me 4 Rycroft was a consultant psychoanalyst at the Tavistock Clinic from 1956 until 1968 and for a period of time was an assistant editor of the International Journal of Psychoanalysis and a training analyst with Scottish psychologist R D Laing He was elected a Fellow of the Royal College of Psychiatrists in 1973 Rycroft wrote a number of works of which the best known book is A Critical Dictionary of Psychoanalysis He wrote extensively in a wide range of magazines including The Observer and The New York Review of Books Publications EditCritical Dictionary of Psychoanalysis 1968 Imagination and Reality Anxiety and Neurosis Reich Fontana Modern Masters 1971 The Innocence of Dreams 1979 Psychoanalysis and Beyond 1985 ViewpointsReferences Edit a b c Jeremy Holmes Obituary Dr Charles Rycroft The Independent 6 June 1998 Rycroft Charles 1985 Psychoanalysis and Beyond Chatto amp Windus p 200 Fuller Peter 1985 Introduction to Psychoanalysis and Beyond Chatto amp Windus p 18 21 Rycroft Charles 1985 Psychoanalysis and Beyond Chatto amp Windus p206 Cassullo G L uomo dietro al lettino Charles Rycroft e la psicoanalisi indipendente britannica Frenis Zero Lecce 2015External links EditThe Legacy of Charles Rycroft Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Charles Rycroft amp oldid 1078523673, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
