Jan Abram, PhD
The surviving Object
October 18-19, 2025
ZOOM
Jan Abram is a training and supervising analyst of the British Psychoanalytical Society in private practice London. She is visiting professor at the University College London and President of the European Psychoanalytical Federation. She has published many books notably: The Language of Winni cott (1996 1st edition; 2007 2nd edition), judged Outstanding Academic Book of the Year (1997); Donald Winnicott Today (2013); The Clinical Paradigms of Melanie Klein and Don al d Winnicott (2018) and The Clinical Paradigms of Donald Winnicott and Wilfred Bion (2023) (with co-author R.D.Hinshelwood).
Seminar Title: The surviving Object
Seminar Description: The work of Donald Winnicott (1896 – 1971) will be the foundational psychoanalytic clinical paradigm. Since publishing The Language of Winnicott: a dictionary of Winnicott’s use of words in 1996, Jan Abram has advanced many of his concepts in her subsequent publications with clinical illustrations notably in her book The Surviving Object. Following the Friday evening lecture, the seminars will explore some key advances related to Abram’s central proposal of the dual concept of a surviving and non surviving object (Abram 2022)
Readings
Abram, J. (1996; 2007 2nd edition) The Language of Winnicott: a dictionary of Winnicott’s use of words (Classic Books PEP)
Abram, J. (2013) Donald Winnicott Today New Library of Psychoanalysis Routledge Abram, J. (2022) The Surviving Object: psychoanalytic clinical essays on psychic survival -of -the-object New Library of Psychoanalysis, Routledge
Saturday 18th October 2025 – All readings are chapters in The Surviving Object Seminar 1
9 am – 10.45am
Why Winnicott? – Reading: Chapters 1 & 2
The main aim of this seminar is to reflect on the key concepts ‘violation of the self’ as seen in Chapter 1 through the analyst’s countertransference. With reference to the case of Jill, we will also reflect on Abram’s advance of the intrapsychic subjective surviving object.
Seminar 2
11.15 am – 1pm
The non surviving object – Reading: Chapter 3
The main aim of this seminar is to discuss the notion of non survival of the object and how this is manifested in the consulting room. By examining the case study of K. we will explore the meaning of acting out and working through in the transference-countertransference matrix of the analysing situation.
Seminar 3
2.30pm – 4.30pm
The fear of WOMAN – Reading: Chapter 4
Dependency is a fact of human development. The denial of this fact leads to the fear of WOMAN. This fear is at the root of misogyny in every human being. Its power will be contingent on early psychic development.
Sunday 19th October 2025
Seminar 4
9am – 10.45 am
Does Winnicott’s work include Freudian infantile sexuality? – Chapter 4
While Winnicott evolved advances from the classical Freudian theory did he negate some of the fundamental concepts such as infantile sexuality? In this seminar we will examine how the Oedipal dimension manifests in the consulting room in the case of Lisa.
Seminar 5
11.15 am – 1pm
Fear of Breakdown – Chapter 8
In Winnicott’s late work the psychology of madness and the fear of breakdown were connected. We will examine the clinical work in Chapter 8 to reflect on the meaning of madness in the countertransference. For the final half an hour we will spend some time going over the 10 learning objectives of the 5 seminars.