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SYMBOLIZATION Tri-Regional Entry Inter-Regional Editorial Board: Louis Brunet (North America), Dimitris-James Jackson (Europe) and Martha Isabel Jordán-Quintero (Latin America)
Inter-Regional Coordinating Chair: Eva D. Papiasvili
I. INTRODUCTION AND INTRODUCTORY DEFINITION
Most broadly defined , Symbolization is based on a universal representational capacity of the human mind whereby one element is used to stand for (represent) another (or others) (Auchincloss and Samberg 2012). Traditionally, psychoanalysis concerned itself primarily with unconscious symbolic processes , which are a function of the primary process and are closely connected with the primary process mechanisms of condensation and displacement. Psychoanalytic symbols have perceptual and sensory roots, always refer to the body ego, infantile instinctual aims and objects, erogenous zones and functions. They are formed by dispacement from the body or object to a more neutral object of perception. Primary process psychoanalytic symbols, aimed at wish fullfillment are to be differentiated from the Secondary process symbolism of language, intended for adaptation and communication; possible intermediary areas include folklore, arts and literature (Blum 1978). For those internationally recognized contemporary North American psychoanalytic dictionaries that stress the connection between the symbolization and representation , a symbol is an indirect complex representation that refers potentially to infinite class of referents linked by emotional meaning (Auchincloss and Samberg 2012; More and Fine 1990). Close connection between the symbolization and representation is particularly evident in Auchincloss and Samberg’s (2012) “Psychoanalytic Terms and Concepts”, which, under the entry ‘Symbolism / Symbolization / Representation define Symbolic Representation as a universal process or capacity of the human mind whereby one element is used to stand for another. The products of such processes are known as symbols. Similarly, Moore, B. and Fine, B. (1990) in their preceding edition of “Psychoanalytic Terms and Concepts” defined symbolism as ‘…a form of indirect representation, and symbolization as a uniquely human process in which one mental representation stands for another, denoting its meaning not by exact resemblance but by vague suggestion or by some accidental or conventional relation.’ Other contemporary North American dictionaries (Akhtar 2009) that focus primarily on the notion of symbolism (Akhtar 2009) stress that it stands for representing a body part (e. g.,
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