Playing & reality in psychodynamic practice

Playing and Reality was originally published over 50 years ago. It will need little, if any, introduction to most readers of the Journal. Aseminal collection of papers, written in Winnicott’s elegant style and idiomatic prose, it contains some of the most profound propositions concerning human nature, infant development and psychodynamic clinical practice that have been written. In the first paper that appears in the volume Transitional objects and Transitional phenomena Winnicott comments, ‘It is assumed that the task of reality acceptance is never completed, that no human being is free from the strain of relating inner and outer reality, and that relief from this strain is provided by an intermediate area of experience (c.f. Riviere, 1936), which is not challenged (arts, religion etc.). This intermediate area is in direct continuity with the play area of the small child who is “lost” in play’ (Winnicott, 2005, p. 18). He adds ‘This intermediate area of experience, unchallenged in respect of its belonging to inner or external (shared) reality, constitutes the greater part of the infant’s experience, and throughout life is retained in the intense experiencing that belongs to the arts and to religion and to imaginative living, and to creative scientific work’ (2005:19). At a time when so much cultural experience is subject to humiliating and even punitive challenge, often in social media in one way or another, Winnicott’s words would seem to merit renewed consideration as a basis for an enlightened and humane engagement with the arts, religion and the sciences and their enjoyment. On reading the contents of this issue of the Journal I was reminded of these words of Winnicott, of the interplay of Playing and Reality, and the resonances that they have in each of the contributions to the issue. It is noteworthy and relevant to this issue of the Journal that Winnicott included creative scientific work as well as religion within the intermediate area of experience. For two of the articles in this issue are qualitative scientific studies and a third one addresses the relationship between psychodynamic practice and the Muslim religion. The paradox that scientific work can creatively and playfully occupy an intermediate area of experience whilst at the same time addressing stark realities has recently been captured in the film Oppenheimer about the scientist who led the Manhattan Project which resulted in the first atomic bomb. In the New Mexico desert, a whole town Los Almos was built for a community of scientists who lived and worked and played together for 3 years, engaging in Psychodynamic Practice, 2023 Vol. 29, No. 4, 321–327, https://doi.org/10.1080/14753634.2023.2259750