« Il m'a été, dès le début, antipathique et cette aversion a augmenté avec les années ».

Freud ne mâche pas ses mots : il déteste le 28e président des États-Unis, Thomas Woodrow Wilson (1856-1924), père de la Société des Nations, prix Nobel de la paix, l'homme des « 14 points » à la base du traité de Versailles, ce Wilson qui, pendant ses deux mandats, de 1913 à 1921, apparut aussi aux limites de la folie, idéaliste pitoyable, menteur instable, dévot aliéné se sentant en communication directe avec Dieu.

Rédigé à quatre mains entre 1930 et 1932 avec le diplomate et ami William C. Bullitt (1891-1967), représentant personnel de Wilson et conseiller de Roosevelt, ce livre étonnant, qui ne sera publié qu'en 1966, près de trente ans après la mort de Freud, relie la psychanalyse, l'histoire et la politique. Il pose aussi une question que n'eût pas reniée La Boétie : en se choisissant de tels chefs, que veut un peuple ?

Le Président T.W. Wilson

Pendant huit ans, les Etats-Unis ont-ils été dirigés par un malade mental, idéaliste pitoyable, menteur instable, dévot aliéné, pire, criminel fanatique ? Telle est l'interrogation de ce portrait psychologique de ce président américain.

Le Président Wilson

Bullitt had been psychoanalyzed by Sigmund Freud in Vienna in the 1920s. Patient & analyst became such good friends they decided to write a book together, a psychobiographical study of Woodrow Wilson. This was quite exceptional, as Freud rarely cooperated with other authors. The book, first published in Europe in the 1930s did not appear until 1967 in the U.S. When it did, many psychoanalysts doubted that Freud had had much to do with it. Recent research indicates, however, that Freud was an active co-writer. The book nevertheless received an almost unanimously hostile reception, renowned historian A. J. P. Taylor calling it a "disgrace," & concluding with the question: "How did anyone ever manage to take Freud seriously?" Freud's view of Wilson was that of a naive American politician whose foreign policy ideas were driven by religious fanaticism. Bullitt had been dismissed by Wilson late in the battle for the League of Nations. Bullitt never forgave the slight. It is not clear how much of the book was really written by Bullitt, as he was skilled in several languages, while Freud wrote only in German had died by the time it was published. Several references attributed to Freud are uniquely American, such as his introduction in which he compared Wilson's naiveté to Christian Science.

Le Président Thomas Woodrow Wilson. Portrait psychologique

Bullitt was psychoanalyzed by Freud in Vienna in the 20s. Patient & analyst became good friends, deciding to write a book together, a psychobiographical study of Woodrow Wilson. This was exceptional, as Freud rarely cooperated with other authors. The book, 1st published in Europe in the 30s did not appear until '66 in the USA. When it did, many psychoanalysts doubted that Freud had had much to do with it. However, recent research indicates he was an active cowriter. The book received an almost unanimously hostile reception, historian A.J.P. Taylor calling it a "disgrace," & concluding with the question: "How did anyone ever manage to take Freud seriously?" Freud's view of Wilson was that of a naive American politician whose foreign policy ideas were driven by religious fanaticism. Bullitt had been dismissed by Wilson late in the battle for the League of Nations. He never forgave the slight. It isn't clear how much of the book was really written by Bullitt, as he was skilled in several languages, while Freud wrote only in German & had died by time of publication. Some references attributed to Freud are uniquely American, such as his introduction in which he compared Wilson's naiveté to Christian Science.

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