About this event

Who is Killing What or Whom? Some Notes on the Internal Phenomenology of Suicide - Dr David Bell

The psychiatric literature on suicide tends to focus on the external world of the suicidal patient and this, though valuable, is not sufficient for  understanding and manag­ing the individual case.  This paper aims both to explore the ‘internal phenomenology’ of the suicidal act and to show how this deeper understanding is essential for proper management of the individual case. The body that is attacked in a suicidal act is a body that has become identified with a psychic object that cannot be tolerated.

In the lecture I will explore the psychoanalytic understanding of suicide starting with the work of Freud and then its development by Klein. I will offer  case examples to il­lustrate the theory and also to show how this deeper   understanding of the individual case has immediate implications for rational management. I will give particular emphasis to the functioning of a  primitive cruel superego, showing how this comes to operate not only at the individual level,but also at the level of the institution. Finally, I will suggest that  the psychoanalytic  perspective has implications for Mental Health Policy.

Dr David Bell retired from the Tavistock in 2021. At the Tavistock, he developed and led the Fitzjohns Unit a specialist service for the most complex and severe adult cases referred to the Tavistock. He is a past President of the British Psychoanalytical Society. He lectures and publishes on a wide range of subjects including the work of Freud, Klein and Bion, and psychoanalytic  understanding of severe psychological disorder. For his entire professional career he has deeply involved himself in interdisciplinary studies – psychoanalysis and literature, philosophy and socio-political theory and has lectured and written extensively in those areas. He  has been deeply involved in the current debate over gender dysphoria in children and adolescents, trying to maintain thoughtful and psychoanalytic perspective in a highly toxic and politicised climate. He has published papers and given many lectures on this subject.

Books include: Reason and Passion, Psychoanalysis and Culture: a Kleinian Perspective, Living on the Border, Turning the Tide (on the work of the Fitzjohns Unit) and one small book, Paranoia. During his Professorial Fellowship at Birkbeck College (2012–13) he focused on different forms of degradation of knowledge and thinking. He is a leading psychiatric expert in immigration/asylum/human rights. His most recent paper discusses, from a psychoanalytic perspective, the catastrophe in Gaza.

© Image: Matthew Kolakowski, 'Storm Inside' 2010

REFUND POLICY: Tickets are fully refundable until 14 days before the lecture, after which time no refunds will be issued.

Concession tickets are available, for students, BPAS candidates and NHS trainees and nurses. Please email [email protected] if you are unsure if you qualify for a concession ticket.

Views and opinions expressed by speakers are their own and do not represent the views or opinions of the Institute, event organisers or other speakers. We expect delegates to respect the confidentiality of clinical material discussed in our events. The content must not be recorded, conveyed or disseminated in any format and participants must not share access to the event with non-registered participants.

Event prices