The Compulsion to Create: Women Writers and Their Demon Lovers

'The Compulsion to Create is a superb account of distinguished female writers (Plath, Nin, the Brontes, Dickinson, and Sitwell) from a psychoanalytic object relations perspective. The artists discussed often suffered tragic fates including suicide, fatal illness, lifelong withdrawal from people, or alienation from the world. At this current time in the American psychoanalytic dialogue, there is a tendency to idealize the creative process and to discuss it only in terms of 'healthy narcissism.' While presenting a sympathetic and respectful attitude toward the creative process, Kavaler-Adler nevertheless does not idealize it and is forthright in discussing the problems the artist may encounter.'

— Jeffrey Seinfeld, Ph.D.