The article to be presented is based on Mary Pyle’s paper ‘From Security Blanket to Literature – a case study’, given at The Child and the Book conference in Wroclaw in 2016. That paper was based on the work of D W Winnicott, in particular his account of transitional phenomena.
Speaker, Dr Mary Pyle:
Mary’s primary degree was in English Literature which she subsequently taught to university entrance level. Later she trained in psychoanalysis which she has practised and taught for many years. She was one of a group that established the independent/middle school training in psychoanalytic psychotherapy in Dublin. Now, partially retired, she has returned to English literature and was recently conferred with a doctorate degree from TCD on ‘Harry Potter and the Unconscious Dimension’ (2022). Her thesis examined the phenomenal success of the J K Rowling series of books, its appeal to readers of all ages, and why the novels have given rise to academic books, papers, and conferences as well as many fan clubs.