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The invincible defeat of a violent innocent : entertaining paradox and paranoia in the therapy of a borderline patient

Includes bibliographical references (leaves 77-79).

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Cullinan, Mary Ann
Other Authors: Swartz, Sally
Format: Thesis
Language:English
Published: Department of Psychology 2014
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access_status_str Open Access
author Cullinan, Mary Ann
author2 Swartz, Sally
author_browse Cullinan, Mary Ann
Swartz, Sally
author_facet Swartz, Sally
Cullinan, Mary Ann
author_sort Cullinan, Mary Ann
collection Thesis
description Includes bibliographical references (leaves 77-79).
format Thesis
id oai:open.uct.ac.za:11427/7992
institution University of Cape Town (South Africa)
language eng
last_indexed 2026-06-10T12:31:28.055Z
license_str Not specified — see source repository
provenance_str_mv Harvested via OAI-PMH from UCTD — University of Cape Town Open Access Repository
publishDate 2014
publishDateRange 2014
publishDateSort 2014
publisher Department of Psychology
publisherStr Department of Psychology
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source_str UCTD — University of Cape Town Open Access Repository
spelling oai:open.uct.ac.za:11427/7992 The invincible defeat of a violent innocent : entertaining paradox and paranoia in the therapy of a borderline patient Cullinan, Mary Ann Swartz, Sally Clinical Psychology Includes bibliographical references (leaves 77-79). In this thesis I use the case study to understand and interpret the manifested transference-countertransference anxiety in the therapy as it was expressed largely through the patient's and the therapist's paranoia. The experience of the sense of aliveness and deadness in the therapeutic hour, and the function that this interactive space have played in pointing me to my patient's internal object world and her object relations are explored in terms of their usefulness in understanding the therapeutic impasse. I suggest that my patient's 'substitute formations' in the place of good object relating, reflected in the perverse pleasure she obtained from what has been termed 'violent innocence', for some time masked the lifelessness of the analysis. I think the denial of others' perceptions that violent innocence entails to intersubjective theories of mutual recognition, and trace the failure to successfully negotiate the 'crisis of recognition' in early childhood to the maintenance of a magical omnipotence in adult relating. I explore how the domination of intrapsychic contents negatively affects the successful development in the individual of empathy, concern and connected ness. I examine the way in which supportive therapeutic techniques in the therapy of patients with borderline attachment difficulties may well provide temporary adjustments, but run the risk of failing to provide for a higher level of psychic integration beyond support for the development of a false self. I look at the way in which the false self may emerge as a distortion of the 'dense logics of deception' that are paradoxically involved in the negotiation of a shared reality with others. 2014-10-02T13:21:09Z 2014-10-02T13:21:09Z 2004 Master Thesis Masters MA http://hdl.handle.net/11427/7992 eng application/pdf Department of Psychology Faculty of Humanities University of Cape Town
spellingShingle Clinical Psychology
Cullinan, Mary Ann
The invincible defeat of a violent innocent : entertaining paradox and paranoia in the therapy of a borderline patient
thesis_degree_str Master's
title The invincible defeat of a violent innocent : entertaining paradox and paranoia in the therapy of a borderline patient
title_full The invincible defeat of a violent innocent : entertaining paradox and paranoia in the therapy of a borderline patient
title_fullStr The invincible defeat of a violent innocent : entertaining paradox and paranoia in the therapy of a borderline patient
title_full_unstemmed The invincible defeat of a violent innocent : entertaining paradox and paranoia in the therapy of a borderline patient
title_short The invincible defeat of a violent innocent : entertaining paradox and paranoia in the therapy of a borderline patient
title_sort invincible defeat of a violent innocent entertaining paradox and paranoia in the therapy of a borderline patient
topic Clinical Psychology
url http://hdl.handle.net/11427/7992
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