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Fam Proc 12:101-105, 1973

BOOK REVIEWS
Soul Murder: Persecution in the Family, by Morton Schatzman, Random House, 1973, $6.95.
Ronnie Laing has had a son. R. D. Laing's "Divided Self" is the bible in understanding schizophrenia and therefore, all
psychopathology. The psychological analysis of personality by study of the individual's autobiography or writings has been
a gradually more and more popular avocation for psychiatrists. The most notable recent one is "Ghandi's Truth" by Erik
Erickson. Now for the first time we have a study of two generations integrating the psychopathology of the parent and the
son.
Laing's extrapolation from the study of the individual suffering from "schizophrenia" to understanding his family was a
courageous quantum jump, as for example in "Knots" and "Politics of the Family." Schatzman, here, makes a major
contribution to the origin of individual psychopathology and an outstanding contribution to the three-dimensional systems
theory understanding of the family as an etiologic factor in psychological suffering.
The memoirs of Schreber were used by Freud for an extensive evaluation of that young man's pathology and for a
research effort to understand paranoid delusions. This author has put together the son's memoirs with very extensive writing
done by his father, Daniel Schreber, M.D., who was an outstanding educator of that time (1808-1861).
The author has not only presented a beautifully authenticated two-generational family history and highlighted the causal
aspects of that time-line but has set the model for a long series of such studies. May they come soon! His courage is
evidenced by the way he takes issue with the psychoanalytic movement and its ponderous evolution into the twentieth
century. He was even meticulous enough to include many samples of his data so one can make his own extrapolations. The
data is so fascinating that we found ourselves yearning to dig into the data behind this book in our own field. It's like Catch
22you can't get it out of your head.
As though explicating the serial causality of the father-son dynamics was not enough, Dr. Schatzman moves on to define
identical patterns of unquestioned authority protected by hypnotically induced scotomata as espoused by Hitler and by
Soviet Russia. Although he gently alludes to American psychiatry and the Viet Nam war he leaves for us the implications of
our goose-step educational routine and the media hypnosis.
Schatzman in a few pages in his epilogue alludes to profound implications in current psychotherapy, child-rearing,
education, and even our entire political structure. The epilogue in fact might be likened to Alexander Flemming's short note
at the end of his paper about the implication of his findings that the mold Penicillin might have relevance for the treatment
of disease.
Behavior Therapyespecially in childrenand the wide application of behavior modification in education would seem
to have the potential to create a phenomenology in the "therapeutized" similar to that produced by Dr. Schreber, the father,
in his son Daniel Paul. The elder Schreber, an eminent physician and pedagog, developed a means of systematic
punishments and rewards coupled with a "double bind" method for invalidating the child's feelings which was quite
effective in modifying behaviors in a positive direction as well as extinquishing unacceptable thoughts and other
"undesirable" behaviors. His methods, much followed in Germany during the late nineteenth and early twentieth century
and still taught by certain religious cults, were first tried out by Dr. Schreber on his own children.
Daniel Paul Schreber developed a paranoid psychosis including the delusion that he was being controlled by outside
forces. Rays from God were projected into his "inner nervous system" by passing his sense organs and he was punished by
these rays. Schatzman points out quite adeptly how the delusion comes directlyoften word for wordfrom the father's
written ideas about childrearing.
Might notif Schatzman's conclusions are valida child raised under a systematized double bind plan of punishments
and rewards where "the question of freedom never arises," where "undesirable" motives, desires and wishes are
extinguishedmight not that child perceive himself, like Daniel Paul Schreber, as being controlled by outside forcesa
divine plan, enforced with hallucinated flavor of M & M's coupled with the sound of a counter adding up the frequencies of
various behaviors.
The argument of the behavior shapersthat we are being shaped any way and therefore why not systematize itdoes
not deal with the question of phenomenology. The "delusion" of being controlled would only have a phenomenological
basis if the control were systematized and consistent. It may just be that the lack of consistency in our environmentof our
double-binding mother nature conditionerprotects us from developing a paranoid view of the world. Thank God mother
nature is an inconsistent whore!
The question of CNS invalidation also is critical. Dr. Schreber, the father, "influenced" the child not to hold a grudge, to
shake hands, apologize and forgive his punisher lest he lose father's love. Dr. Schreber said, "If one were to omit
the(apology)altogether, one would permit the punished child the right of anger against the punisher which is not

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consistent with an intelligent pedagogic approach." (p. 135).

A modern behaviorist approach might be somewhat different. The object would be to extinguish an anger response by
ignoring the behaviorthe expression of anger! This would have the same effect as Dr. Schreber's approachthe
invalidation of the emotional response. The modern behavioral approach elects to ignore the presence of affect.
The implications of Schatzman's book are overwhelming. There are significant ramifications regarding our treatment of
paranoia as clinicians. What is probably most important is how paranoia as a social phenomenon can be conceptualized and
dealt withhow we can avoid the mistakes of the elder Dr. Schreber and the pain and tragedy of the younger. Finally, don't
tell us we're paranoid, we apologize for bringing the whole thing up. Please don't slap us again.
CARL A. WHITAKER
CHARLES T. MEYER

FROM ARGENTINA WITH LOVE

A bibliography on family in Spanish
The following is a complete inventory of original articles and books related to the subject of family processes, family
treatment and family research, published in Argentina up to mid-1972. They constitute, we may add, the vast majority of the
bibliography on the subject published in Spanish (in addition to those books originally published in English and translated
subsequently into Spanish).

1. Bauleo, A., (1970) Grupo, ideologia y familia (Group, Ideology and Family) Buenos Aires, Kargieman.
2. Berenstein, I., C., Ague and E., Dio, (1964) "Observaciones sobre el manejo intragrupal de cuatro familias de
pacientes esquizofrenicos" (Observations on the conjoint treatment of four families of schizophrenic patients),
Acta Psiquiat. Psicol. Arg., 10, 92.
3. Berenstein, I., (1968) "El grupo familiarproceso terapeutico y encuadre" (The family grouptherapeutic
process and framework), Acta Psiquiat. Psicol. Amer. Lat., 14, 238.
4. Berenstein, I., (1968) "Consideraciones sobre la psicoterapia de la pareja conyugal" (Comments on the
psychotherapy of the marital couple), Acta Psiquiat. Psicol. Amer. Lat., 14, 301.
5. Berenstein, I., E., Kalina, E. C. Liendo, E., Pavlovsky and J., Szpilka, Psicoterapia de pareja y grupo familiar
con orientacion psicoanalitica. (Psychoanalytically-oriented Psychotherapy of Couples and Family Groups)
Buenos Aires, Galerna, 1970.
6. Bleger, J. and Bleger, L., "Grupo familiar, psicologia y psicopatologia" (Family group: psychology and
psychopathology). Chapter in: M. Langer, L. Grinberg and E. Rodrigue, eds.: El grupo psicologico. Buenos Aires,
Nova, 1959.
7. Bleger, J., (1966) "Grupo familiar y psichohigiene" (Family group and psychohygiene). Chapter in J. Bleger:
Psicohigiene y psicologia institucional. Buenos Aires, Paidos.
8. Bleichmar, H. B., (1970) "El sistema familiarteoria de la tecnica de psicoterapia" (The family system: theory of
psychotherapeutic technique), Acta Psiquiat. Psicol. Amer. Lat., 16, 148.
9. Grinberg, L. and E., Rodrigue, (1960) "Un grupo especial: la pareja" (A special group: the couple). Chapter in:
Actas del Primer Congreso Latinoamericano de Psicoterapia de Grupo, Buenos Aires.
10. Harari, R., (1970) "La familia y el paciente con cancer" (The family and the patient with cancer), Rev. Arg.
Psicol., 6, 38.
11. Kalina, E., (1968) "Psicoterapia psicoanalitica de pareja. Su enfoque como psicoterapia breve" (Psychoanalytic
psychotherapy of the couple: its approach as brief therapy), Acta Psiquiat. Psicol. Amer. Lat., 14, 311.
12. Knobel, M., (1972) Infancia, Adolescencia y Familia (Childhood, Adolescence and Family). Buenos Aires,
Granica.
13. Liberman, D., (1956) "Identificacion proyectiva y conflicto matrimonial" (Projective identification and marital
conflict), Rev. de Psicoanal., 12, 1.
14. Liendo, M. C. G., (1968) "La pareja heterosexual y el modelo continente-contenido" (The heterosexual couple and
the container-contained model), Acta Psiquiat. Psicol. Amer. Lat., 14, 342.
15. Matrajt, M., M., Arbetman, L., Guzman and F., Dimant, (1968) "Familias de psicopatasanalisis multivariado"
(Families of psychopathsmultivariate analysis), Acta Psiquiat. Psicol. Amer. Lat., 14, 366.
16. Mom, J. and J. J. Morgan, (1960) "Psicodinamismos de un grupo familiar" (Psychodynamics of a family group)
Chapter in: Actas del Primer Congreso Latinoamericano de Psioterapia de Grupo. Buenos Aires.
17. Pichon-Riviere, E. J., (1960) "Empleo del Tofranil en psicoterapia individual y grupal" (Usage of Tofranil in
individual and [family] group therapy) Acta Neuropsiquiat. Arg., 6.

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18. Pichon-Riviere, E. J., (1971) "Psicoterapia colectiva" (Conjoint psychotherapy), "Grupos familiares: un enfoque
operativo" (Family groups: an operational approach), "Tratamientos de grupos familiares" (Treatment of family
groups). Chapters in E. J. Pichon-Riviere: Del psicoanalisis a la psicologia social, Vol. 2. Buenos Aires,
Galerna.
19. Rolla, E., (1963) "El grupo familiar" (The family group), "El grupo matrimonial" (The marital group). Chapters in
E. Rolla: Psicoterapia individual y grupal. Buenos Aires, Ediciones 3.
20. Sluzki, C. E., (1961) "Informe acerca de la metodologia empleada en una investigacion psicosocial acerca del
grupo familiar del alcoholico" (Report on the methodology of a psychosocial research about the family group of
the alcoholic) Rev. Psiquiat. Neurol. Neurocir. Rosario, 1961, Special Number (Proceedings of the 5th Argentine
Conference on Psychiatric Services).
21. Sluzki, C. E., (1963) "El grupo familiar del paciente internado" (The in-patient's family group), Acta Psiquiat.
Psicol. Arg., 9, 304.
22. Sluzki, C. E. and J., Beavin, (1965) "Simetria y complementaridad: una definicion operacional y una tipologia de
diadas." (Symmetry and complementarity: an operational definition and a typology of dyads), Acta Psiquiat.
Psicol. Amer. Lat., 11, 321.
23. Sluzki, C. E., J., Beavin, A., Tarnopolsky and E., Veron, (1967) "Transacciones descalificadoras: investigaciones
sobre el doble-vinculo" (Transactional disqualifications: research on the double-bind), Acta Psiquiat. Psicol.
Amer. Lat., 1966, 12: 359 (A modified English version of this paper appeared in Arch. Gen. Psychiat., 16, 494.
24. Sluzki, C. E., (1967) "El grupo familiar del alcoholico" (The family group of the alcoholic), Chapter in: A.
Horowitz, J. Marconi and G. Adis Castro, eds.: Epidemiologia del Alcoholismo en America Latina. Buenos Aires,
ACTA.
25. Sluzki, C. E. and H. B. Bleichmar, (1968) "El enfoque interaccional en terapia de parejas" (The interactional
approach to the treatment of couples), Acta Psiquiat. Psicol. Amer. Lat., 14, 325.
26. Sluzki, C. E., (1968) "Sintomas e interaccion familiar." (Symptoms and family interaction), Interam. J. Psychol.,
II, 4.
27. Sluzki, C. E., A., Tarnopolsky, E., Veron, S. G. Kaufman and D., Valdemarin, (1969) "Interaccion familiar y
esquizofrenia: I. Simetria/complementaridad" (Family interaction and schizophrenia: I. The variable
symmetry/complementarity), Acta Psiquiat. Psicol. Amer. Lat., 15, 309.
28. Sluzki, C. E., I., Berenstein, H. B. Bleichmar and I., Maldonado, (1970) eds.: Patologia y terapeutica del grupo
familiar. (Pathology and therapy of the family group). Buenos Aires, ACTA.
29. Sojit, C. M., (1968) "Interaccion diadica en una situacion de doble vinculo" (Dyadic interaction in a double-bind
situation), Acta Psiquiat. Psicol. Amer. Lat., 14, 352.
30. Sojit, C. M., (1970) "El grupo familiar del paciente esquizofrenico" (The family group of the schizophrenic
patient), Rev. Arg. Psicol., 4, 78.
31. Sojit, C. M., (1970) "La hipotesis del doble-vinculo y los padres de esquizofrenicos" (The double-bind hypothesis
and the parents of schizophrenics), Acta Psiquiat. Psicol. Amer. Lat., 16, 327.
32. Stancato, B. M., (1970) "Familia y marginalidad en el Gran Buenos Aires: una aproximacion psicologica" (Family
and marginality in the Greater Buenos Aires: a psychological approach), Rev. Arg. Psicol., 5, 63.
33. Szpilka, J. and F., Moccio, (1960) "Psicoterapia de grupos familiares" (Psychotherapy of family groups), Acta
Neuropsiquiat. Arg., 6, 363.
34. Szpilka, J., (1962) "Psicodinamica familiar y enfermedad mental" (Family psychodynamics and mental illness),
Acta Neuropsiquiat. Arg., 8, 37.
35. Taragano, F., (1964) "Grupo operativo del hombre de edad provecta enfermo con su grupo familiar" (Operative
group of the sick aged man and his family group), Acta Psiquiat. Psicol. Amer. Lat., 10, 47.
36. Vidal, G., G., Prece and M., Smulever, (1969) "Convivencia y transtornos mentales" (Household size and
arrangements and mental illness), Acta Psiquiat. Psicol. Amer. Lat., 15, 55.
37. Yampey, N., (1962) "Asistencia psicoterapeutica a la familia del ni¤o enfermo" (Psychotherapeutic care of the
family of the sick child), Acta Neuropsiquiat. Arg., 8, 105.
38. Yampey, N. and E., Rosnati, (1963) "Perfil de la familia sana o normal" (Profile of the healthy or normal family),
Acta Psiquiat. Psicol. Amer. Lat., 9, 323.
39. Yampey, N., (1966) "Familia, escuela y salud mental." (Family, school and mental health), Acta Psiquiat. Psicol.
Amer. Lat., 12, 153.

Readers interested in obtaining reprints of articles listed above may request the author's address from the journal in
which the publication appeared. The address of Acta Psiquiatrica y Psicologica de America Latina (previously Acta
Neuropsiquiatrica Argentina) is Malabia 2274, Buenos Aires, Argentina, and that of Revista Argentina de Psicologica is
Juncal 2379, Buenos Aires, Argentina.

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CARLOS E. SLUZKI
VICTOR KORMAN