A TRIBUTE TO ANDRÉ GREEN

Andre Green’s legacy to modern science and civilization is original and important. He was one of the major thinkers of modern psychoanalysis. A deep connoisseur of Freud’s writings, he opened new paths of thought and remained an active interlocutor, either in direct dialogue or in theoretical conversation, with philosophers, psychologists, neuropsychologists, anthropologists and of course with the most influential psychoanalysts of his era. He published more than 30 books, translated into many languages and a multitude of articles in psychoanalytical journals all over the world.
One aspect of his work on applied psychoanalysis has produced studies on Greek tragedies and the work of artists and writers like Leonardo, Shakespeare, Conrad, Jorge Luis Borges and Henry James.
The main themes of Green’s work are affects, representation and language and a metapsychological theory of temporality. He introduced the concept of the ‘Work of the Negative’ into the field of psychoanalysis comprising the dead mother syndrome, death narcissism, blank psychosis, etc.
The collection of articles in the Hellenic Psycho-Analytical Society’s tribute to Andre Green touch upon some important aspects of his work: applied psychoanalysis, his clinical thinking, the vicissitudes of the concept of the negative, his dialogue with psychosomatics and the influence of the death drive in psychic functioning. The authors of this Monograph have known and worked with Andre Green in numerous encounters both in Paris and in Greece that he had visited many times, supporting the development of psychoanalytic training and honoring the Greek spirit and culture.