Freud in Dublin? The Formation of Psychoanalysis in Ireland, c.1928–1993

Abstract

On 26 June 1933, Samuel Beckett’s father, William, died of a heart attack, and during the following months, the 27-year-old writer began to suffer from panic attacks and depression. By the end of the year he was experiencing a range of physical problems including cysts and boils that did not respond to medication, and he woke frequently in the night with a pounding heart and drenched in sweat, an experience so disturbing that he was only able to sleep if his brother, Frank, slept in the same bed as him. The crisis became acute one winter afternoon, as Beckett explained: