Winnicott and the capacity to beleve

摘要

Like Freud's, winnicott's writing displays an enormous interest in words, in their histories as well as their current usage. The author discusses his use of two words, 'capacity' and 'belief', combined in the phrase 'capacity to believe'. What Winnicott has to say about this capacity sheds light on the nature of both religious and cultural experience generally. The paper's argument has two strands that are woven together throughout. The first is winnicott's concern for words and how a knowledge of their roots can enrich their current meaning.