Sex vs. Survival: The Life and Ideas of Sabina Spielrein by John Launer
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Why are we familiar with the writings of Freud, Jung, and Piaget, but not those of Sabina Spielrein (1885-1942), who worked closely with each of them in the formative years of their careers? Spielrein’s Russian family was Jewish in the Enlightenment mode—no religion but a large measure of culture. Biographer John Launer also finds convincing evidence of familial sexual abuse. In 1904, Sabina was brought for treatment to a clinic in Switzerland, where she became the patient, colleague, and probably the lover of Carl Jung. These were the early years of the psychoanalytic movement, when Jung and Freud were friends, developing their signature concepts and followers. Lost in her passion for Jung, young Spielrein turned to Freud for help, but he merely covered for Jung. Spielrein pulled herself together and worked on her own theories, focusing on the relationship between death and the drive to reproduce.
Source: Jewish Book Council
