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Related Experiment Videos

Rescue fantasies and the secret benefactor.

R D Gillman1

  • 1Baltimore-Washington Institute for Psychoanalysis.

The Psychoanalytic Study of the Child
|January 1, 1992
PubMed
Summary

Rescue fantasies evolve from early psychoanalytic concepts to complex, reparative mechanisms addressing trauma and narcissistic injury. These fantasies, including the secret benefactor myth, have significant implications for understanding the analyst's countertransference.

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Area of Science:

  • Psychoanalytic theory
  • Psychodynamic psychology

Background:

  • Explores the historical development of rescue fantasies from Freudian concepts.
  • Examines the evolution of rescue fantasies across different relationships (mother, father, siblings, children).

Observation:

  • Presents clinical vignettes with children and adults illustrating rescue fantasies.
  • Highlights reparative rescue fantasies in response to trauma and narcissistic hurt.
  • Describes the contemporary 'secret benefactor' family romance myth.

Findings:

  • Analyzes the narcissistic-masochistic and Oedipal meanings of the secret benefactor fantasy.
  • Demonstrates the application of these concepts to countertransference in psychoanalytic practice.

Implications:

  • Offers insights into the complex dynamics of rescue fantasies in clinical work.
  • Provides a framework for understanding and managing countertransference enactments related to rescue fantasies.

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