Allen Wheelis

Allen Wheelis (October 23, 1915 – June 14, 2007) was a psychoanalyst and writer who lived in San Francisco, CA. He achieved renown and success with his psychoanalytic practice, which spanned five decades despite the fact that he expressed ambivalence and doubt about the field and his own work in it.[1] He wrote prolifically, authoring 14 books including novels and memoirs, as well as several pieces for Commentary, the New Yorker, and various professional journals.[2]

Many of Wheelis's writings were acclaimed by critics. His writings were typified by a profound philosophical pessimism, and "drew heavily from his experiences as both a doctor and a man hobbled by neuroses." However, his wife Ilse Wheelis is not alone in pointing out that though Wheelis "had a pessimistic outlook on the human condition . . . he also celebrated it. He believed people could find happiness."[2]

Wheelis died on June 14, 2007 at the age of 91 in a San Francisco hospital after receiving back surgery.[2]

Education

Wheelis graduated from the College of Physicians and Surgeons at Columbia University in 1943, and was certified in Psychology. He served in the U.S. Navy as a medical officer in the South Pacific from 1943 to 1946. After World War II, he studied at the Menninger Foundation in Topeka, Kansas, and worked at the Austen Riggs Center in Stockbridge, Massachusetts. He underwent further training at the New York Psychoanalytic Institute before moving in 1954 to San Francisco, where he remained in private practice until his death.[2]

Influence

A story that appeared in Wheelis's nonfiction book The Illusionless Man: Fantasies and Meditations on Disillusionment, published in 1966, was the basis of John Korty's film The Crazy-Quilt.

Wheelis's essay "Spirit" was included in Douglas Hofstadter and Daniel Dennett's 1981 collection The Mind's I: Fantasies and Reflections on Self and Soul.

Bibliography

References

  1. ↑ Merkin, Daphne (December 30, 2007). "A Neurotic's Neurotic". The New York Times. Retrieved 11 April 2014.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Squatriglia, Chuck. "Dr. Allen Wheelis -- acclaimed writer". SFGate. Retrieved 11 April 2014.
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