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Stalker, Hacker, Voyeur, Spy: A Psychoanalytic Study of Erotomania, Voyeurism, Surveillance, and Invasions of Privacy

Author(s) : Helen K. Gediman

Reviews and Endorsements

‘In her latest book, psychoanalyst Helen K. Gediman bravely explores disparate forms of invasion of privacy. This is a phenomenon with vast psychological and social repercussions, and of momentous proportions in our age of cyberspace interactions and easily accessible multi-media communication. Making reference to the psychoanalytic idea of primal scene curiosity as a powerful metaphor, Gediman extends the concept of stalking to include different instances of its manifestation: from intrusive erotomanic voyeurism to government sanctioned surveillance activities. Convincingly supported by clinical vignettes and detailed descriptions of relevant films, Stalker, Hacker, Voyeur, Spy bridges the areas of sexuality and politics, revealing in the process significant similarities between the interpersonal and institutional dynamics of stalking. A fascinating and disturbing read.’
- Andrea Sabbadini, fellow of the British Psychoanalytical Society, and author of Boundaries and Bridges and Moving Images

‘Helen Gediman takes the reader on a journey through a world that has largely been neglected by psychoanalysts and other mental health professionals. The result is a compelling and absorbing read that is at once both scholarly and accessible to the lay reader. Her knowledge of film scholarship is just as impressive as her psychoanalytic expertise. The "snoops" that surround us are meticulously researched and brought to life in her lively prose. Readers will find themselves feeling a degree of identification with the voyeurs about whom Gediman writes as they become increasingly curious about this hidden world of the nosy and the obsessed. I highly recommend this book as a way of gaining a greater understanding about the disappearance of privacy in our transparent new world.'
- Glen O. Gabbard, MD, author of The Psychology of The Sopranos, and Boundaries and Boundary Violations in Psychoanalysis

‘Helen K. Gediman introduces us to the compelling voyeuristic and terrifying world of people invading the privacy of others. She alerts us to the ways that love, aggression, curiosity, and a quest for power unite to bring about threatening human interactions that are suffused with sadomasochism, and shows us how our advanced technologies are used in the service of this perversion, becoming its accomplice. The mental health field, film enthusiasts, and the general public will benefit from exploring this trenchant analysis.’
- Harriet I. Basseches, PhD, ABPP, FIPA, co-author of Battling the Life and Death Forces of Sadomasochism

‘Dr Gediman has written a groundbreaking book about a subject of critical importance to all of us. Hers is the first major psychoanalytic study of the phenomenon of stalking, a category of surveillance that implicates the entire spectrum of human motives. She spotlights its perverse roots by examining rich clinical and cinematic examples. This material is crucial to understanding the uses and abuses of personal information and as disturbing as the latest live news feeds. All this, she does in a book that manages to be both lucid and engrossing.’
- William Fried, PhD, author of Critical Flicker Fusion: Psychoanalysis at the Movies