Book Excerpt! Fear of Breakdown: Politics and Psychoanalysis, By Noëlle McAfee

“In exploring the fear of breakdown that underlies human existence, Noëlle McAfee creates a genuine intellectual breakthrough—her book is a stunningly original exploration of the political significance of mourning. This is one of the most thrilling books I have read in years.”

~Mari Ruti, author of Penis Envy and Other Bad Feelings: The Emotional Costs of Everyday Life

The divisive state of politics has caused some to fear the future, Noëlle McAfee states in the introduction to Fear of Breakdown: Politics and Psychoanalysis, winner of the 2020 Courage to Dream Book Prize from the American Psychoanalytic Association. In this work, McAfee uses psychoanalytic theory to explore the subterranean anxieties behind current crises and the ways in which democratic practices can help work through seemingly intractable political conflicts. Read the introduction this award-winning book to make more sense of the rapidly changing and contentious political system.