Barbara Low (29 July 1874 – 25 December 1955) was one of the first British
psychoanalysts
PsychoanalysisFrom Greek: and is a set of theories and techniques of research to discover unconscious processes and their influence on conscious thought, emotion and behaviour. Based on dream interpretation, psychoanalysis is also a talk ther ...
, and an early pioneer of analytic theory in England.
Training and contributions
Low was born in London and named Alice Leonora, the eleventh and last child of Therese ( Schacherl) and Maximillian Loewe, who moved to Britain following Loewe's part in the failed
1848 uprising in Hungary. Her family was
Jewish
Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...
. Her brothers,
Sidney James Mark Low and
Maurice Low, and her sister, Frances Helena Low, were journalists.
Low attended the
Frances Mary Buss
Frances Mary Buss (16 August 1827 – 24 December 1894) was a British headmistress and a pioneer of girls' education.
Life
The daughter of Robert William Buss, a painter and etcher, and his wife, Frances Fleetwood, Buss was one of six of their ...
School and graduated from
University College London
University College London (Trade name, branded as UCL) is a Public university, public research university in London, England. It is a Member institutions of the University of London, member institution of the Federal university, federal Uni ...
, before training as a teacher at the
Maria Grey Training College. She later went to
Berlin
Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...
for analysis with
Hanns Sachs
Hanns Sachs (; 10 January 1881, in Vienna – 10 January 1947, in Boston) was one of the earliest psychoanalysts, and a close personal friend of Sigmund Freud. He became a member of Freud's Secret Committee of six in 1912, Freud describing him as ...
, and became a founder member of the
British Psychoanalytical Society
The British Psychoanalytical Society was founded by Ernest Jones as the London Psychoanalytical Society on 30 October 1913. It is one of several organisations in Britain training psychoanalysts.
The society has been home to a number of psych ...
. She remained active in the society, serving as librarian, and encouraging wider public involvement for the society during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. Having led the welcoming committee for Austrian analysts in 1938, Low supported
Anna Freud
Anna Freud CBE ( ; ; 3 December 1895 – 9 October 1982) was a British psychoanalyst of Austrian Jewish descent. She was born in Vienna, the sixth and youngest child of Sigmund Freud and Martha Bernays. She followed the path of her father a ...
and
Edward Glover in the wartime
controversial discussions
The controversial discussions were a protracted series of meetings of the British Psychoanalytical Society which took place between October 1942 and February 1944 between the Viennese school and the supporters of Melanie Klein. They led to a tripar ...
.
In her 1920 book ''Psycho-Analysis. A Brief Account of the Freudian Theory'', she introduced the concept of the
Nirvana principle[ = ] ()
for indicating the organism's tendency to keep stimuli to a minimum level. The term was taken up immediately by
Freud
Sigmund Freud ( ; ; born Sigismund Schlomo Freud; 6 May 1856 – 23 September 1939) was an Austrian neurologist and the founder of psychoanalysis, a clinical method for evaluating and treating pathologies seen as originating from conflicts in t ...
in ''
Beyond the Pleasure Principle
''Beyond the Pleasure Principle'' () is a 1920 essay by Sigmund Freud. It marks a major turning point in the formulation of his drive theory, where Freud had previously attributed self-preservation in human behavior to the drives of Eros and the ...
''.
[Sigmund Freud, ]
Beyond the Pleasure Principle
''.[
]
See also
References
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Low, Barbara
1874 births
1955 deaths
British Jews
British psychoanalysts
Freudian psychology
Analysands of Hanns Sachs
Alumni of University College London