Austen Riggs Center

The Friday Night Guest Lecture Series for 2020-21, presented by the Erikson Institute for Education and Research of the Austen Riggs Center, is moving to a virtual (Zoom) space. While we will miss being able to convene these lectures in person, we are excited to be able to offer them to a broader group of mental health professionals than can easily travel to our campus in Stockbridge.  

There are three lectures planned for the fall – all of which are held via Zoom from 6:30-8:00 p.m. (Eastern Time), designed for mental health professionals, offered free of charge, and provide 1.0 continuing education credit (see registration pages for specific guild information). Advance registration is required for all lectures.  

SEPTEMBER 11, 2020 

“Finding a Place to Stand: The Connection between Institutional Membership and Citizenship” 
Edward R. Shapiro, MD 
Using stories from institutions and their members, and from his study of the experience of citizens, Dr. Shapiro will outline an interpretive method that offers a pathway for Individuals to find a place to stand with others as citizens. >>Read more and register  

OCTOBER 30, 2020 

“Beyond the Politics of Castration: The Election, the Pandemic, and the Transformative Strange” 
Jill Gentile, PhD 
This talk explores the significance of sexual difference for a psychoanalytic “democratic position” and its potential contributions to radical equality and collective renewal. >>Read more and register 

NOVEMBER 20, 2020 

“Race and Psychic Pleasure: Freud, Lacan, and the Politics of Race” 
Sheldon George, PhD 
Our political and social moment seems destabilized by an increased emphasis on racial difference. But psychoanalysis has long ignored the stabilizing role aggression toward racial others has played in structuring society. >>Read more and register 

We hope to “virtually” see you at these and other upcoming events.