Governing love: on the tactical control of countertransference in the psychoanalytic community

This paper interrogtes the poroblematics of ‘love’ as they relate to psychoanalysis. We have restricted our investigation to psychonalytic texts which address the ‘theory of practices’ as the ideal to which pratice aspires. ‘Loves’ in psychoanalysis acts as a focus for pracices of incitmen and regulation. The psyhoanalytic setting and method incites (transferences) ‘love’ in the patient and (countertransference) ‘love’ in the analyst, feelings which are the subjected to a variety of govermenal procedures so as transform abnormal ‘love’into healthier ‘love’. The power relatios ad modes of governmen in this srategic process are analysed. It is our contetion that psychoanlytic commuity treats ‘love’ as a contagion from which it has attempted to immunize itself through the tactiical control of countertransference. Therapy, seen in this way, is precisely a form of government of self and other.