When Trauma Tears The Fabric of Attachment: Discussion of "The Intergenerational Transmission of Holocaust Trauma: A Psychoanalytic Theory Revisited"

This discussion works to situate intergenerational transmission of Holocaust trauma literature within psychoanalysis and trauma studies, arguing that it is timely for a new appraisal of our psychoanalytic theories regarding these transmissions. I find Gomolin's re-interpretation narrow and unpersuasive, and her focus tends to disregard current literature in psychoanalysis. I make a case for a reappraisal that is saturated with theories and research from attachment theory, affect regulation, intersubjectivity, field theories, epi-genetics, and new evaluations of testimonial research. This interpenetration will offer us greater understanding to the complexity of trauma transmissions across many generations, cultures, traumas, and their historical context.