Ubertragung, metaphor, and transference in psychoanalytic psychotherapy

It is suggested that Ubertragung, when translated into simple English as "carrying or bearing something from one place to another," can include not only the technical, important concept embodied in the Latinate word transference but also the broader concept embodied in the Greek term metaphor. Also reviewed are the psychological strengths of metaphor, such as its capacity for ambiguity, as an intermediate area of experience, as well as its structure, consisting of signified, signifier, and the work involved to create signifiers. Third, other words of voyage related to Ubertragung are discussed. Finally, disturbances of metaphor in the patient and distortions of metaphor by the therapist are examined.