Celibacy

Celibacy is described as a witness to the inner sanctum, the holy, empty space in human life. By making this space visible, the celibate man or woman affirms and proclaims that all human intimacy finds its deepest meaning and fulfillment when experienced and lived as a participation in intimacy with God himself. The author explores this meaning of the celibate life by discussing the world in which the celibate lives, the nature of the witness the celibate offers the world, and the way of life through which this witness is affirmed and enhanced.Henri Nouwen is Professor of Pastoral Theology at Yale Divinity School, 409 Prospect Street, New Haven, Connecticut 06510. His article was first presented as a lecture at the North American College in Rome, Italy on February 10, 1978.     

Book reviews

Contemporary psychology Experiments: Adaptations for Laboratory. By John Jung and Joan Bailey. London and New York: Wiley. 1966 Pp. xiii + 155. 238.

A Textbook of Psychology. Second Edition. By D.O. Hebb. Philadelphia and London: W.B. Saunders & Co. 1966. Pp xvi + 353. Pound2.

Behaviour Therapy Techniques: A Guide to the Treatment of Neuroses. By Josweph Wolpe and Arnold A. Lazarus. Oxford and London: Pergamon Press. 1966. Pp. ix + 198. 21s.

Motivated Learning: a Developmental Study from Birth to the Senium. By Miriam E. Hebron. London: Methuen. Methuen's Manuals of Modern Psychology. 1966. Pp. 264. 35s.

Human Brain and Psychological Processes. By A.R. Luria. Translated by Basil Haigh. New York and London: Harper & Row. 1966. Pp.xix + 587. £5 $14.50.

Higher Cortical Functions in Man. By A. R. Luria. Translated by Basil Haigh. London: Tavistock Publications. 1966. Pp xvi + 513. £6 6s.

Productive Thinking. By Max Wertheimer. Edited by Michael Wertheimer. social science Paperbacks. London: Tavistock Publications. 1966. Pp xvi + 302. 30s.

Problem Solving: Research Method and Theory. Edited by B. Kleinmuntz. London and New York: Wiley. 1966. Pp. ix + 406. 53s.

Human Conceptual Behavior. By Lyle E. Bourne, Jr. Boston: Allyn and Bacon. 1966. Pp. viii + 139. $2.50.

Attraction and Hostility. An Experimental Analysis of Interpersonal and Self Evaluation. By albert Peptone. London: Tavistock Publications. 1966. Pp. ix + 234. 30s.

Ability Structure and subgroups in Mental Retardation. By John Clausen. London: Macmillan. Washington: spartan Books. 1966. Pp. viii + 208. 80s.

The Biologiv Basis of Schizophrenia. By Jon L. Karlsson. springfield. Illionois: Thomas. 1966. Pp.xi + 77. $4.75.

Psychology for Psychiatrists. By C.G. Costello. London: Commonwealth and Unversity Library, pergamon Press. 1966. Pp. 328. 25s.

Science and theory of Psychoanalysis. Edited by Irwin G. Sarason. London: Van Nostrand. Insight Book No. 26. 1965. Pp xiii + 205. 14s.

Aspects of Learning and Memory. Edited by D. Richter. London: heinemann. 1966. Pp. x + 185. 35s.

The Spiral After-Effect. By Harry C. Holland. London: pergamon. 1965. Pp.xii + 99. 35s.

Dynamics of Response. By J.M. Notterman and D.E. Mintz. London and New York: Wiley. 1965. Pp. 277. 70s.

Contrary Imaginations: A Psychological Study of the English Schoolboy. By Liam Hudson. London: Methuen. 1966. Pp. vii + 181. 25s.

The Structure of Association in Language and Thought. By James A. Deese. London: Oxford University Press: Johns Hopkin Press. 1960. Pp. xiii + 216. 52s.

A source Book in the History of Psychology. Edited by R. J. Herrnstein and E.J. boring. London: Oxford University Press; Harvard University Press. 1965. Pp. xvii + 636. £5.     

‘No Man is an Island’: Effects of social seclusion on social dream content and REM sleep

Based on the Social Simulation Theory of dreaming (SST), we studied the effects of voluntary social seclusion on dream content and sleep structure. Specifically, we studied the Compensation Hypothesis, which predicts social dream contents to increase during social seclusion, the Sociality Bias – a ratio between dream and wake interactions – and the Strengthening Hypothesis, which predicts an increase in familiar dream characters during seclusion. Additionally, we assessed changes in the proportion of REM sleep. Sleep data and dream reports from 18 participants were collected preceding (n = 94), during (n = 90) and after (n = 119) a seclusion retreat. Data were analysed using linear mixed-effects models. We failed to support the Compensation Hypothesis, with dreams evidencing fewer social interactions during seclusion. The Strengthening Hypothesis was supported, with more familiar characters present in seclusion dreams. Dream social interactions maintained the Sociality Bias even under seclusion. Additionally, REM sleep increased during seclusion, coinciding with previous literature and tentatively supporting the proposed attachment function for social REM sleep.     

Quine’s Substitutional Definition of Logical Truth and the Philosophical Significance of the Löwenheim-Hilbert-Bernays Theorem

The Löwenheim-Hilbert-Bernays theorem states that, for an arithmetical first-order language L, if S is a satisfiable schema, then substitution of open sentences of L for the predicate letters of S results in true sentences of L. For two reasons, this theorem is relevant to issues relative to Quine’s substitutional definition of logical truth. First, it makes it possible for Quine to reply to widespread objections raised against his account (the lexicon-dependence problem and the cardinality-dependence problem). These objections purport to show that Quine’s account overgenerates: it would count as logically true sentences which intuitively or model-theoretically are not so. Second, since this theorem is a crucial premise in Quine’s proof of the equivalence between his substitutional account and the model-theoretic one, it enables him to show that, from a metamathematical point of view, there is no need to favour the model-theoretic account over one in terms of substitutions. The purpose of that essay is thus to explore the philosophical bearings of the Löwenheim-Hilbert-Bernays theorem on Quine’s definition of logical truth. This neglected aspect of Quine’s argumentation in favour of a substitutional definition is shown to be part of a struggle against the model-theoretic prejudice in logic. Such an exploration leads to reassess Quine’s peculiar position in the history of logic.     

On Society's Crimes Against Itself

Because the effects of crimes committed by society against the individual impact on the individual's psychic life, psychoanalysis offers a unique means of reflecting the effects of these crimes to society. Furthermore, psychoanalysis is in the position to contribute to society's understanding of the causes as well as the effects of these crimes for both victims and perpetrators. This article introduces a view of some of the intrapsychic consequences of being a refugee, an exile, a victim of persecution and of political torture and is intended to serve as an introduction to the studies reported in this volume.