As Hegel says in The Phenomenology of Spirit, 'truth cannot simply be stated as a conclusion, but the path that leads to it must be travelled step by step so that its power can manifest itself'.
This is how Jaqueline develops her book, Psicogenealogia della coppia (Psychogenealogy of the Couple), weaving, as she herself says, or rather, embroidering word by word, until the central theme emerges entirely from the fabric, or from the paper.
With generosity and expertise, she offers us the fruit of her professional life and personal research in this book, which is essential reading for those who, like her, scrutinise the dark and dangerous meanderings of the human mind with attention and perseverance; and to the layman, she offers the possibility of a profound journey of self-discovery and personal relationships.
A journey that begins with our ancestors, our grandparents, our parents, our love stories and family myths, our sense of belonging or alienation, our secrets and our couple conspiracies. The generational puzzle she invites us to piece together is revealed little by little, until the last two chapters, when she openly and transparently explains her personal method for professionals who wish to follow the same path.
A book that is difficult to put down, offering just the right amount of rich technical content that is easy and engaging to read, coated with myths, archetypes and clinical cases.
Stories from your life, reader, or mine, or the person you meet in the lift. Stories that are alive or 'ghosts', which gather under our pillows when we go to bed, appear in the bathroom mirror when we get up and sit with us at the coffee table.
Familiar plots, repeated from generation to generation, which must be exposed and worked through so that they cease to be unconscious causes of emotional paralysis and become catapults for our process of evolution and individuation.
As she herself states, this book is not intended to provide solutions or conclusions about psychological processes and their therapeutic approach. It should be understood as a starting point.
It is up to psychotherapists to accept or reject the challenge. It is up to lay people to begin or not begin their own journey.
So, let down your defences and enjoy the read!
Text: Rachel Baccarini
Writer and doctor