FAIRBAIRN RESOURCE
The online resource for works of and inspired by the psychoanalyst Ronald Fairbairn.
Written and curated by Eleanore Armstrong-Perlman
Who was Ronald Fairbairn?
William Ronald Dodds Fairbairn was born in Edinburgh on 11th August 1889, the only child of Thomas and Cecilia Fairbairn.
He studied Divinity and Hellenic Greek at Edinburgh University, and in Kiel, Strasbourg and Manchester. He was from a religious family, and retained his own Christian faith throughout his life. Apart from his time studying overseas, and the years he spent fighting in the First World War, Fairbairn always lived and worked in Edinburgh. He is now widely known as the ‘father of object relations’, due to his important innovations and developments in that branch of psychoanalytic theory. He also wrote creatively and influentially about art, education, religion, politics and social issues. Throughout Fairbairn’s theoretical work, relatedness and relationships remain at the centre of human psychology and experience. Many consider his contributions to psychoanalysis to be profound and of immeasurable influence, particularly upon theoretical and clinical developments of recent decades. Full text at http://psychoanalysis.org.uk/our-authors-and-theorists/ronald-fairbairn
Welcome to the site
I created this site as a hub of papers I have worked on over the years to offer a resource for future Fairbairn scholars. It has since expanded to feature other pieces which are inspired by or touched my life.
The Blog section contains the first 5 drafts of my unpublished book.
As you will see, I am passionate about Fairbairn and have championed his works for decades throughout my career.
I hope you enjoy the site and I will add more as it grows.
Yours,
Eleanore.