Chicago Psychoanalytic Society

Co-Sponsored by the Institute for Clinical Social Work

Scientific Program: Tuesday, January 23, 2018 – 7:00 PM-8:50 PM

Location: Chicago Institute for Psychoanalysis — 122 S. Michigan Ave, Rm 1323

Admission is free

Topic: Why is Trump So Enjoyable?

Presenter: William Mazzarella, PhD

Discussant: Frank Summers, PhD

Presenter William Mazzarella, and Discussant Frank Summers at our

January 2018 Program: Why is Trump So Enjoyable?

In his talk, Dr. Mazzarella uses a psychoanalytic perspective to analyze Trump’s appeal for both his supporters and his critics.  He makes use especially of the concept of jouissance, which is of central importance in French psychoanalysis and refers to an extreme kind of pleasure that can be both intellectual and physical.

Presenter: William Mazzarella, PhD, is Chair of the Department of Anthropology and Neukom Family Professor of Anthropology at the University of Chicago.  His specialty is the political anthropology of mass publicity.  He makes use of psychoanalysis in his explorations of political phenomena.  He has published three books: Shoveling Smoke: Advertising and Globalization in Contemporary India (Duke, 2003), Censorium: Cinema and the Open Edge of Mass Publicity (Duke, 2013); AND The Mana of Mass Society (Chicago, 2017). He is especially well suited to try to make sense of one of the major political events of our time, the election of Donald Trump.

Discussant: Frank Summers, PhD, is a member of the faculty of the Chicago Institute for Psychoanalysis, Professor of Clinical Psychiatry and the Behavioral Sciences at Northwestern University, and former President of the Division of Psychoanalysis of the American Psychological Association.  His books include: Self Creation: Psychoanalytic Therapy and the Art of the Possible (Routledge, 2005) AND The Psychoanalytic Vision: The Experiencing Subject, Transcendence, and the Therapeutic Process (Routledge, 2013).

Educational objectives: 

After the presentation, the participant will be able to:

1. apply a psychoanalytic perspective to an understanding of Trump’s appeal, and
2. describe the concept of jouissance and use it in the political arena. 

Admission is free. No reservations are required.  Continuing Education Credits are offered exclusively to Society members in all membership categories.

January 2018 Program: Why is Trump So Enjoyable?

Accreditation Statement

Physicians: This activity has been planned and implemented in accordance with the accreditation requirements and policies of the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) through the joint providership of American Psychoanalytic Association and the Chicago Institute for Psychoanalysis. The American Psychoanalytic Association is accredited by the ACCME to provide continuing medical education for physicians.

The American Psychoanalytic Association designates this Live Activity for a maximum of 2.0 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity. 

Psychologists: The Chicago Institute for Psychoanalysis is approved as a continuing education sponsor for Psychologists by the State of Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation. The Institute designates this continuing education activity as earning 2.0 hours of Continuing Education for Psychologists. CE Sponsor License #268.000091.

Social Workers: The Chicago Institute for Psychoanalysis is approved as a continuing education sponsor for social workers by the Department of Professional Regulations of the State of Illinois. The Institute designates this continuing education activity as earning 2.0 hours of Continuing Education for Social Workers. CE Sponsor License #159.000122.

Professional Counselors: The Chicago Institute for Psychoanalysis is approved as a continuing education sponsor for Professional Counselors and Clinical Professional Counselors by the Department of Professional Regulations of the State of Illinois. The Institute designates this continuing educational activity as earning 2.0 hours Continuing Education credit. CE Sponsor License #197.000202.

Marriage and Family Therapists: The Chicago Institute for Psychoanalysis is approved as a continuing education sponsor for Marriage and Family Therapists by the Department of Professional Regulations of the State of Illinois. The Institute designates this continuing educational activity as earning 2.0 hours Continuing Education credit. CE Sponsor License #168.000204.

DISCLOSURE INFORMATION FOR ALL LEARNERS: None of the planners and presenters of this CME program have any relevant financial relationships to disclose.