The transference: distortion or plausible conjecture?

The paper begins with a description of two conceptions of the transference found in the literature: transference as distortion and transference as plausible conjecture based on the signals received by the analysand from the analyst. The plausibility of the transference phenomenon in the Freudian conception of the transference is then reviewed. The author continues by considering the analyst's function as bait and how it is related to the stripping down of reality practised by the analyst. A brief clinical vignette is given to illustrate these propositions. To conclude, there is a discussion of the paradox of the reality sense, the transference and interpretation, based on the ideas of Matte-Blanco, mental functioning being considered in terms of bi-logic.