Creative Intertwining in the Work of W.R. Bion and Samuel Beckett

The Scientific Program Committee

is pleased to present

“Creative Intertwining in the Work of W.R Bion
and Samuel Beckett”

Seminar led by Joseph Aguayo, PhD
and Nuar Alsadir, PhD, LP

Saturday, November 21, 2026
10:00am – 12:30pm ET 
via Zoom and In-Person: 1651 3rd Avenue, Suite 205, NYC
2.5 CEUs Available

Joseph Aguayo and Nuar Alsadir present an immersive exploration of the historical, personal, and clinical encounter between Wilfred Bion and Samuel Beckett. Before the live symposium, registered attendees will receive an exclusive 45-minute preparatory video from Dr. Aguayo detailing Bion’s life and formative years leading up to his work at the Tavistock Clinic. Building on this background, Aguayo’s live presentation, “Who was Wilfred Bion before he became W.R. Bion?”, will examine the crucial psychological milestones of Bion’s early decades. His paper highlights the trauma of Bion’s service in World War I and his dissatisfaction with his first analyst, J.R. Hadfield, offering essential insight into Bion’s state of mind when he took Beckett into treatment. Dr. Alsadir will then expand upon her recently published New Yorker article, “Samuel Beckett on the Couch,” to explore Beckett’s personal experience of treatment. Alsadir will discuss the author’s reflections on working with Bion and his creative development at the time, as well as the broader historical context of his work with Bion. Together, these presentations offer a rare, close look at these two monumental figures, both in the very early stages of their careers.

Aguayo’s video and Alsadir’s article will be sent to registered participants prior to the event, and attendees are encouraged to review both materials to enrich their experience of the program.

Presenters:
Joseph Aguayo, PhD is a Training and Supervising Analyst at the Psychoanalytic Center of California and a Guest Member of the British Psychoanalytical Society. With PhDs in both Clinical Psychology and European History from UCLA, Dr. Aguayo has edited and written:  W. R. Bion’s Clinical Seminars in Los Angeles, (with B. Malin, 2013); Bion in Buenos Aires, (with L. Pistener de Cortinas and A. Regeczkey, 2017); Introducing the Clinical Work of W.R. Bion, (2023); and Bion in the Consulting Room:  An Implicit Method Clinical Inquiry, (2024) (with Hinshelwood, Dermen and Abel-Hirsch).  His next publication in February 2027:  Winnicott in America, (Oxford Univ. Press) an edited collection of papers on Winnicott lecture visits to the United States in the 1960s.

Dr. Nuar Alsadir, Ph.D., L.P., is a psychoanalyst, poet, and nonfiction writer. She is the author of the nonfiction book Animal Joy: A Book of Laughter and Resuscitation, which was one of TIME’s 100 must-read books of 2022 and a best book of 2022 from Publishers Weekly, and two poetry books, Fourth Person Singular, a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award for Poetry and the Forward Prize for Best Collection in England and in Ireland, and More Shadow Than Bird. Dr. Alsadir’s writing has appeared in numerous publications, including The New Yorker, The Best American Essays, The New York Times Magazine, The Paris Review, The Yale Review, and Granta, Dr. Alsadir received training from New York Psychoanalytic Society and Institute, IPTAR, and the Melanie Klein Trust. She lives in New York City, where she works as a psychoanalyst in private practice and teaches in the graduate creative writing MFA program at New York University.

Program Fee:
General In-Person $100 / General via Zoom: $95
CFS Members In-Person: $85 / CFS Members via Zoom: $80
Candidates/Students In-Person: $35 / Candidates/Students via Zoom: $30

CFS Scientific Program Committee:
Cornelius Dufallo (Chair) • Baiyu Chen • Umi Chong • Jennifer Grant • Michael Krass • Kristin Lee • Jessica Reik • Janet Schiff

Learning Objectives:
At the end of this seminar, participants will be able to:
1. Describe W.R. Bion’s relationship to his mother.
2. Describe Bion’s psychological state in the aftermath of World War I.
3. Describe the nature of Bion’s dissatisfaction with his first psychotherapist, J.R. Hadfield in the 1930s.
4. Evaluate Samuel Beckett’s clinical experience of psychoanalysis with Bion, examining how his reflections on treatment informed his creative development and literary voice.
5. Analyze the clinical dynamics and historical context of the Bion-Beckett encounter, identifying how early-career practitioner factors and patient presentation intersect within the therapeutic process.

References:

Abel-Hirsch, N. (2025) On Bion’s Technique. Fort Da 31:5-26

Aguayo, J. (2026) W. R. Bion’s Case of the Imaginary Twin: An Implicit Method of Clinical Inquiry. The Psychoanalytic Quarterly, 95:7-34.

Alsadir, N. Samuel Beckett on the Couch | The New Yorker, December 3, 2025.

Anzieu, D. (1989) Beckett and Bion. The International Review of Psychoanalysis 16:163-169

Hinshelwood, R. (2025) Bion and the Theatre of the Absurd. Free Associations 26:86-88

Vermote, R. (2019). Reading Bion. (London: Routledge). Bion’s relationship with Beckett is discussed on pp. 63-69.

Continuing Education Credits:

NY Social Workers: The PTI-CFS is recognized by the NYS Education Department’s State Board for Social Work as an approved provider of continuing education for licensed social workers #0087

NY Psychoanalysts: The PTI-CFS is recognized by the NYS Education Department’s State Board for Mental Health Practitioners as an approved provider of continuing education for licensed psychoanalysts #P-0021.

NY Licensed Psychologists: The PTI-CFS is recognized by the NYS Education Department’s State Board for Psychology as an approved provide of continuing education for Licensed Psychologists #PSY-0017.

Psychologists: The Contemporary Freudian Society is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. The CFS maintains responsibility for this program and its content. (DC, MD and VA Psychologist licensing boards accept CE credits provided by an APA approved Sponsor. All other psychologists should check with their licensing boards.)

DC, MD and VA Social Workers: The Social Work Boards of the District of Columbia, Maryland and Virginia will grant continuing education credits to social workers attending a program offered by an APA authorized sponsor.

CE credits will only be granted to participants with documented attendance of the entire program and completed online evaluation form. No partial credit will be offered. It is the responsibility of the participants seeking CE credits to comply with these requirements. Upon completion of this program and online evaluation form, participants will be granted CE credits.

Important Disclosure Information:
None of the planners and presenters of this program have any relevant financial relationships to disclose.