Dominique Agostini : The Concepts of “the Ability to be Alone” (D.W. Winnicott) and “Sense of Loneliness” (M. Klein)

Through Klein and Winnicott’s studies of solitude, the author explores their divergences, especially concerning the role of the external object and the death drive. He highlights the extent to which these studies differ in tone. Winnicott conceives of the capacity to be alone as belonging to ecstasy. His rather optimistic conception reflects the joys of shared solitude. Klein, on the other hand, never swerves from a tone of desolation and nostalgia at the very heart of non-resignation and deep authenticity.