[Karl Abraham, Freud's scapegoat and, guide to understanding the truth]

The history of the relationship between Freud and Abraham is characterized by the presence of third parties. There was always another, more favored one of Freud's disciples between Freud and Abraham. The first of these, from 1907 to 1912, was C.G. Jung. The second, fifteen years later, was Otto Rank. (I will omit Ferenczi, because his relationship with Freud only entered its dramatic final stage after Abraham's death.) Both Jung and Rank eventually showed signs of deviating from Freud's theories, and Abraham, as the guardian of those teachings, called attention to this. As a result, complicated triangles arose between Freud, Abraham and the favored son of the moment. Because of Freud's preference for these psychoanalytic sons, a preference of which he himself was not consciously aware, he resisted Abraham's attacks on them and felt them to be unfounded and destructive. Confusing cause with effect he blamed Abraham for the danger to the psychoanalytic movement which ensued from three conflicts. Freud loved and protected the apostates and made the defender of his theories into a scapegoat. When, however, the apostasy eventually became apparent, Freud renounced whoever was concerned and rehabilitated Abraham. However, until the final separation from the love object, Freud wavered between rejection and affection, hope and disappointment. Then, feeling deceived and betrayed, Freud's love turned to hate.