Book Review: Therapy and the Counter-Tradition: The edge of philosophy

Therapy and the Counter-Tradition: The edge of philosophy

Manu Bazzano & Julie Webb (eds) (2016). Oxford: Routledge.

Therapy and the Counter-Tradition: The Edge of Philosophy is about philosophy and therapy within the counter-tradition. Tradition, or otherwise known as rationalism, is about the world being an orderly cosmos that can be explained by science, laws and reason. At times the tradition speaks the language of secular rationalism, at times it speaks of religious or spiritual rationalism. The book doesn't explain further yet gives the general sense of what is meant by the tradition and the counter-tradition. The sense I get is that the counter-tradition isn't rational, governed by laws, and isn't seeking an ultimate truth or a way of being. The book is a collection of papers all of which are giving a taste of this. The writers are contemporary psychotherapists, philosophers and writers who are exploring the counter-tradition and at the same time how philosophical ideas within counter-tradition may inform psychotherapy.

The writers are putting forward a counter argument to the ideas that non-philosophically informed therapists have as the ideas are rooted in philosophy rather than science or psychology for instance. Yet it is also putting forward an argument for those who, like me, do have a training in existential philosophy and psychotherapy, as it's countering the thinking of 'this is how one should live according to these philosophical ideas'. The writers seem to be writing from a position of responding creatively from philosophy as one may do with literature and art. This is how it adds a fresh perspective on the ongoing dialogue between philosophy and psychotherapy. It certainly doesn't regurgitate the same ideas in similar books on philosophy and psychotherapy. The book does encourage the reader to consider philosophy as having a real implication on our selves as human beings as well as our work as psychotherapists. It does this in a way that doesn't tell you explicitly how to do this. I found that this taps into an important yet unexplored arena. In a sense this book goes to the heart of what it means to be a psychotherapist, as well as human 'wholeness', despite the increased need for rationality, regulation and diagnosis. In fact, it seems clear that the writers don't feel they belong in this world of rationality, regulation and diagnosis.

The writers are writing from personal experience, their own personal knowledge of how philosophy has inspired and influenced their lives. There is a sense of how the current way philosophy and psychotherapy is going has rattled their cages. Especially how philosophy isn't given the credence it should have within psychotherapy and psychology education. I am surprised that it doesn't acknowledge the psychotherapy training schools which do bring philosophy and lived experience to the forefront of the training. The personal stance of the book makes it engaging for me as I tend to learn from experience and examples rather than from theory. I appreciate that the book is not written in the style of a text book, which makes it more authentic rather than didactic. However, it is an academic book, it should be put onto course reading lists and I would recommend having some prior knowledge of therapy and philosophy before attempting this book. It's certainly not an introduction to philosophy and psychotherapy.

These writers have backgrounds in religion, music, as well as academia and existential psychotherapy. The authors are discussing philosophers such as Nietzsche, Kierkegaard, Sartre, Rousseau, Camus, Deleuze, Wittgenstein and Merleau-Ponty. This book starts with the sentence 'I really don't see what trainees can learn from Nietzsche' (p 1) and immediately sets the tone of the book as the book seems to want to prove that trainees and psychotherapists can learn from these philosophers. The book is divided into four parts. Part 1 looks at the threshold of experience. It begins by explaining that we experience the threshold when we openly question ourselves. Some of the accounts in this section can be read as a poetic response to the threshold of experience. Bazzano's (p 9) chapter on the self in Nietzsche's psychology is at times hard to grasp. He speaks of the important influence that Nietzsche has on our view of the self and how he is at times critical of how different schools of thought have embraced Nietzsche. John Lippitt's (p 24) chapter on Kierkegaard shows how therapists have much to learn from the philosophy of Kierkegaard. This chapter is more comprehensible and connects to my experience of being a therapist. It speaks about the story of the lily and the bird, which is a beautiful metaphor for gratitude and patience. Diana Voller's (p 34) chapter on John Keats and negative capability proposes that the therapist's capacity to be in uncertainty is an important but previously under-represented aspect of practice, because of both its elusive nature and its connections to the therapist's permeable sense of self. Diana Voller attempts to describe the 'negative capability' process with a view to making it a more explicitly appreciated aspect of the therapeutic process. Using poetry as a way to do this makes for a fascinating read. I certainly think that using poetry and literature to enable us to understand the process of what it means to be a human could be a book in it's own right!

Part 2 looks at ethics and politics. These chapters are articulating a sense of not being at home within the institutions of philosophy and psychotherapy in their respective current containers, and instead reinforce our desire to persist in our own being; desire a kind of vitality that only exists because of, and is dependent upon, rupture and conflict (p 65). Julie Webb, in her chapter Desire and Judith Butler (p 67) asks the question, 'To what extent is therapy a quest for mutual recognition?' She brings the self and the Other into the forefront. Her chapter is full of engaging vignettes and is well written and is embedded in the experience of being a therapist and being a 'self'. Richard Pearce in his tribute to Jean-Paul Sartre (p 76) describes his own inner conflicts, Sartrean philosophy, and the political dimension. He acknowledges the concerns that people bring to psychotherapy are very much relevant to what Sartre describes in his philosophy. I appreciate how he highlights the point that what is important is our understanding of the core aspects of how the human exists in the world. He also suggests that the underlying philosophical framework that Sartre elucidates shows the practice of psychotherapy to be a political act. 'A Metaphysical Rebellion, Camus and Psychotherapy' by James Belassie (p 98) is one of my favourite chapters as I enjoyed how he compares the DSM V to Camus' philosophy around suicide. It's an important point to be made, how facing suicidal feelings is a real response to existence rather than a pathology that needs to be cured. It's refreshing to read about suicide in this way. Especially as I have experienced health care professionals treating suicidal thoughts as a pathology rather than as a real response to living; I find this frustrating.

Part three looks at self, other, world. This is my favourite section of the book. Comprising of short engaging chapters that seem to be about having a healthy degree of scepticism towards contemporary therapeutic discourse, which unanimously emphasizes the relational and dialogical dimensions of human experience and underlines their significance in the therapy room. The forthcoming chapters do challenge this discourse. It starts with Manu Bazzano (p 109). He writes about the French philosopher Deleuze and therapy. I was initially unfamiliar with Deleuze and interested in who and how this may be relevant to my work as a therapist. Bazzano describes his route into Deleuze, his context in which he writes, being a Zen practitioner and a psychotherapist trained in the existential and Person Centred Approach. He is inspired by and critical of Zen philosophy, PCA and the existential philosophy, and disappointed by the way these three have been assimilated into contemporary culture. He talks about how Deleuze helps him with this and then helpfully he grounds his point into an example from therapeutic practice, which is always welcomed! I also enjoyed Paul Gordon's chapter entitled 'A Poetry of Human Relations – Merleau-Ponty and psychotherapy' (p 117). He writes beautifully about Merleau Ponty, showing how his philosophy is very much part of the counter-tradition.

Part four approaches therapy, language and metaphysics. Julie Webb explores Wittgenstein (p 147). This chapter is one of my favourites in the book. Webb, a therapist and trainer in the humanistic tradition, considers the humanistic approach to therapy as a kind of anti-therapy, against the current tendency that sees therapy as treating the human condition as a series of problems to be solved rather than as a life to be experienced. The way she writes about Wittgenstein, making his philosophy relevant to

Cristalle Hayes