Freud: The Spiritual Messenger in Love

Author: Wang Kun
Author Country: China
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2002-06-01
Features: Freud fell in love with the charming Martha at first sight, calling her a "fairy princess whose lips could bring roses and pearls." The burning passion of love led him to write passionate love letters to Martha. However, the financial struggles of married life made this neurologist work even harder—researching cocaine, studying male hysteria, and eventually delving into the in-depth research of psychoanalysis and the psychology of sexuality, which influenced the development of literature and art in the entire 20th century! This book tells the love story of Freud and Martha. The charming and lovely Martha, whom Freud fell in love with at first sight, called her a "fairy princess whose lips could bring roses and pearls." The fire of love burned in the young Freud's heart, and he wrote passionate love letters to Martha. His love for Martha and the hardships of married life also made this neurologist work even harder—researching cocaine, studying male hysteria, opening a clinic, and eventually turning to the in-depth study of psychoanalysis and the psychology of sexuality, becoming a master of psychoanalysis and influencing the development of literature and art in the entire 20th century.
Excerpt: Marriage—like exchanging an expired check
Freud left Paris and came to the Berlin Children's Neurological Hospital. He planned to stay there for a month and then go to Wan??? to meet Martha. The reunion of lovers after a long separation was longed for, especially since they had gone through so many complex trials on the path of love. During the days waiting for Freud, Martha longed for her wedding day and imagined the joy of a long-awaited reunion. The day before their meeting, she received flowers sent by Freud and, of course, the letters she had been looking forward to.
My dear darling:
There is nothing new today, and I am angry that I have not been able to visit you yet. Up to now, they (referring to Martha's relatives, who once said they would visit Freud in Berlin) have not come to see me either, and I suspect it was just empty talk. I still have to work for a week, and then I will have a few free days. Perhaps then my trip will not be in danger of a snowstorm. I am working diligently and methodically, bold yet cautious and prudent, to the point where I am starting to worry: without a single bit of excitement or adventure, what can I write to you? Only tell you about the letter from Herr Leichter (likely Professor Leichter, the brother-in-law of Hammer-Slag) from Braunschweig. He asked me to visit his sister and a relative of his in the Health Committee (the Health Committee, whose members are all practicing physicians in German medicine). It seems I will have to comply. In truth, I am very stingy with my time, and I have never been so willing to work as I am now. Charcot left me kind and encouraging memories, somewhat like the ten days I spent with you. I feel I have experienced a precious moment in my life that will never be forgotten. My interactions with colleagues have become more confident, harmonious, and effortless. Unfortunately, I cannot stay to attend the so-called vacation lectures that begin on the 22nd of this month. Oh, my little darling, you have one small shortcoming: you have never guessed the lottery numbers. I now feel that I can enjoy myself fully, and I will stay here for a few more weeks, then find an apartment in Vienna, so that we can still marry in the spring and you and I can practice the travel skills I have just learned in the past month. Unfortunately, this can only be a dream. Now I am getting annoyed at the many kisses I will receive tomorrow and the day after. Just wait, I will not spare you these two days. If you are naughty, I will stay longer—the round-trip ticket to Hamburg is valid for more than five days. I hope Aschil (the gardener in Wan???) will wish you a happy early Saturday morning. He will tell you when I will return. Even if I cannot go, I do not want anything to change. I want to know if you will be puzzling over who sent you flowers. Perhaps you will think it was Hugo Kardis (a friend of Martha's father, who once proposed to Martha), hoping for a happy ending to your relationship. To welcome the arrival of distinguished patients, I have decided to get my already messy French mustache trimmed at a barber shop. By the way, many people here are very envious of my mustache. Out of reasonable suspicion of the barbers in Berlin, I went to a barber shop that is frequented by the wealthy, the "Court Barber Shop" on, and spent an imperial mark. The barber (who looked like an imperial minister) was not very skilled. On Saturday or Sunday, I might go to the theater with anger and helplessness. On Sunday, no library will be open either, although translation is the best pastime on Saturday, I am becoming more and more clumsy. I don't know how to spell words, or where to put adverbial clauses, and the words I hear are neither German nor French. "If I were in France, it wouldn't be like this," I sighed as if I were Mary Stuart (Freud mistakenly believed this was what Mary Stuart said; in reality, it is from Schiller's play "Don Carlos"). One is indeed very skilled in the art of self-persuasion. If I had to go directly from Paris to Vienna, I think I would die of exhaustion along the way. Now, I do long to go to Vienna, especially to Dublin, to sit in the lovely library of Oberstein and complete my thesis.