A Couple Sharing the Oasis: Love and Memory in the Novel The Unwritten Autobiography of Martha Freud by Teolinda Gersão

Abstract

This essay examines the book of Portuguese writer Teolinda Gersão (2004), unwritten autobiography of Martha Freud. In the work, she gives voice to the wife of the father of psychoanalytic theory, using Martha’s published letters. Incorporating evidence from the letters, it details the couple’s life, from their engagement to their marriage, their fruitful and laborious life in Vienna, their children, and their exile in London. These concerns are set against the backdrop of the European history between 1880 and 1940, highlighting the social position of the family and the woman. After her husband’s death, Martha writes her autobiography, recovering her personal life and Jewish roots.