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All auctions / Books, Maps & Manuscripts / Thomas Mann writes a testimonial for Theodor Reik, the great psychoanalyst

Princeton: 6 October, 1938. Single sheet of Harbor Bond typing paper, 8 1/2 x 11 inches (21 x 28 cm), a single page typed with Mann's ink signature at the foot. A remarkable testimonial prepared by Mann for the great psychoanalyst Theodor Reik, who (like Mann himself) had recently fled Europe following the Nazi annexation of Austria in 1938, and was facing an uncertain new life in America. Mann, despite the modest protestations in his letter, was deeply interested and knowledgeable in psychoanalytical matters, using (for example) Freud's to support his position on the retributive nature of capital punishment in his 1926 article . Reik, a pupil and protégé of Freud, was a lay analyst (a discipline that Freud promoted), and would, through his National Psychological Association for Psychoanalysis, promote lay analysis in the United States in the decades to come. A remarkable testimonial prepared by Mann for the great psychoanalyst Theodor Reik, who (like Mann himself) had recently fled Europe following the Nazi annexation of Austria in 1938, and was facing an uncertain new life in America. Mann, despite the modest protestations in his letter, was deeply interested and knowledgeable in psychoanalytical matters, using (for example) Freud's to support his position on the retributive nature of capital punishment in his 1926 article . Reik, a pupil and protégé of Freud, was a lay analyst (a discipline that Freud promoted), and would, through his National Psychological Association for Psychoanalysis, promote lay analysis in the United States in the decades to come. A remarkable testimonial prepared by Mann for the great psychoanalyst Theodor Reik, who (like Mann himself) had recently fled Europe following the Nazi annexation of Austria in 1938, and was facing an uncertain new life in America. Mann, despite the modest protestations in his letter, was deeply interested and knowledgeable in psychoanalytical matters, using (for example) Freud's to support his position on the retributive nature of capital punishment in his 1926 article . Reik, a pupil and protégé of Freud, was a lay analyst (a discipline that Freud promoted), and would, through his National Psychological Association for Psychoanalysis, promote lay analysis in the United States in the decades to come. In Mann's original German the text reads: "Thomas Ma Princeton, N.J./6. October 1938 Seitdem ich die psychoanalythische Literaur einigermassen verrolge, rechne ich Doktor Theodor Reik zu den hervorragendsten Autoren auf diesem Gebiet. Er ist, wie ich weiss, ein Lieblingsschüler des Begründers dieser Wissenschaft, Sigmund Freud, und hat sich namentlich auf dem Gebiet religions-psychologischer und kultischer Forschung ausgezeichnet. Ich bin überzeugt, dass er bei Vorlesungen, die er in Amerika zu halten wünscht, höchst Anregendes und Belehrendes produzieren würde, sei es, dass es sich um einzelne öffentliche Vorträge oder um eine fortlaufende Tätigkeit im Rahmen einer Universität handeln würde. Ich glaube, dass die wissenschaftliche Mitarbeit Dr. Reiks jedem Institut zur Ehre und zum Vorteil gereichen würde." In rough translation: "Since I am somewhat acquainted with psychoanalytic literature, I consider Dr. Theodor Reik to be among the outstanding authors in this field. He is, as I know, a favorite student of the founder of this science, Sigmund Freud, and has distinguished himself particularly in the areas of religious psychology and cultic research. I am convinced that he would produce highly stimulating and instructive lectures in America, whether they were individual public talks or ongoing work within a university setting. I believe that Dr. Reik's scholarly collaboration would be an honor and an asset to any institution." Princeton: 6 October, 1938. Single sheet of Harbor Bond typing paper, 8 1/2 x 11 inches (21 x 28 cm), a single page typed with Mann's ink signature at the foot. A remarkable testimonial prepared by Mann for the great psychoanalyst Theodor Reik, who (like Mann himself) had recently fled Europe following the Nazi annexation of Austria in 1938, and was facing an uncertain new life in America. Mann, despite the modest protestations in his letter, was deeply interested and knowledgeable in psychoanalytical matters, using (for example) Freud's to support his position on the retributive nature of capital punishment in his 1926 article . Reik, a pupil and protégé of Freud, was a lay analyst (a discipline that Freud promoted), and would, through his National Psychological Association for Psychoanalysis, promote lay analysis in the United States in the decades to come. A remarkable testimonial prepared by Mann for the great psychoanalyst Theodor Reik, who (like Mann himself) had recently fled Europe following the Nazi annexation of Austria in 1938, and was facing an uncertain new life in America. Mann, despite the modest protestations in his letter, was deeply interested and knowledgeable in psychoanalytical matters, using (for example) Freud's to support his position on the retributive nature of capital punishment in his 1926 article . Reik, a pupil and protégé of Freud, was a lay analyst (a discipline that Freud promoted), and would, through his National Psychological Association for Psychoanalysis, promote lay analysis in the United States in the decades to come. A remarkable testimonial prepared by Mann for the great psychoanalyst Theodor Reik, who (like Mann himself) had recently fled Europe following the Nazi annexation of Austria in 1938, and was facing an uncertain new life in America. Mann, despite the modest protestations in his letter, was deeply interested and knowledgeable in psychoanalytical matters, using (for example) Freud's to support his position on the retributive nature of capital punishment in his 1926 article . Reik, a pupil and protégé of Freud, was a lay analyst (a discipline that Freud promoted), and would, through his National Psychological Association for Psychoanalysis, promote lay analysis in the United States in the decades to come. In Mann's original German the text reads: "Thomas Ma Princeton, N.J./6. October 1938 Seitdem ich die psychoanalythische Literaur einigermassen verrolge, rechne ich Doktor Theodor Reik zu den hervorragendsten Autoren auf diesem Gebiet. Er ist, wie ich weiss, ein Lieblingsschüler des Begründers dieser Wissenschaft, Sigmund Freud, und hat sich namentlich auf dem Gebiet religions-psychologischer und kultischer Forschung ausgezeichnet. Ich bin überzeugt, dass er bei Vorlesungen, die er in Amerika zu halten wünscht, höchst Anregendes und Belehrendes produzieren würde, sei es, dass es sich um einzelne öffentliche Vorträge oder um eine fortlaufende Tätigkeit im Rahmen einer Universität handeln würde. Ich glaube, dass die wissenschaftliche Mitarbeit Dr. Reiks jedem Institut zur Ehre und zum Vorteil gereichen würde." In rough translation: "Since I am somewhat acquainted with psychoanalytic literature, I consider Dr. Theodor Reik to be among the outstanding authors in this field. He is, as I know, a favorite student of the founder of this science, Sigmund Freud, and has distinguished himself particularly in the areas of religious psychology and cultic research. I am convinced that he would produce highly stimulating and instructive lectures in America, whether they were individual public talks or ongoing work within a university setting. I believe that Dr. Reik's scholarly collaboration would be an honor and an asset to any institution."
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OCT 8 | 3:00 PM

OCT 8 | 3:00 PM

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Thomas Mann writes a testimonial for Theodor Reik, the great psychoanalyst
04/16/2026
£756.92
Est: £753.75
Thomas Mann writes a testimonial for Theodor Reik, the great psychoanalyst
04/16/2026
£756.92
Est: £757.55
OCT 17 | 10:00 PM