Three Essays on the Theory of Sexuality
Freud’s Three Essays on the Theory of Sexuality (1905) is one of the foundational texts of psychoanalysis. Challenging conventional understandings of sexuality, Freud here introduced ideas that would profoundly reshape how we think about desire, satisfaction, childhood, sexual development, and psychic suffering.
In this reading group, we will work slowly and deliberately through Freud’s text, paying close attention to the development of his arguments and the questions they raise.
This is not a taught course, but a collaborative undertaking in which participants are invited to contribute to the work of reading and interpretation. Rather than approaching the text from the standpoint of an already established body of psychoanalytic knowledge, we will work from the text itself, allowing its concepts, difficulties, and implications to emerge through collective inquiry and discussion.
The group is conceived in part as preparation for The Analytic Forum’s forthcoming course on perversion, although attendance at that course is by no means required. Depending on our progress, we may also explore additional writings by Freud on the theme of perversion.
The reading group is free and open to all. No prior knowledge of psychoanalysis is required.
Practical Information
This group will initially run for six sessions, from November 14 to December 19, 2026.
The group will meet on Saturdays at 12:30pm Pacific Time. Meetings will last up to 90 minutes.
Meetings will take place via Zoom. Video participation is optional. Sessions will not be recorded.
Participation in the ACSG does not confer any official certification or licensure. It is undertaken for participants’ own learning and development.
Please register using the form below. A Zoom link will be distributed to registered participants prior to the first meeting.
Reading
Freud, S. (1905). Three Essays on the Theory of Sexuality. In The Standard Edition of the Complete Psychological Works of Sigmund Freud, Volume VII (1901–1905), pp. 123–246. London: Hogarth Press.
Participants are encouraged to use the Standard Edition translation, although other editions are also welcome. Free versions of the text can sometimes be found online.
Group Facilitator
Daniel McCrary, LICSW, is a psychotherapist and clinical social worker with a sustained investment in psychoanalytic reading and study. Their theoretical interests are informed by ongoing Lacanian supervision and close engagement with the work of Sigmund Freud, Jacques Lacan, and other classical and contemporary psychoanalytic thinkers. Since 2024, they have facilitated a private reading group devoted to the work of Hortense J. Spillers, with particular attention to psychoanalysis, subjectivity, race, sexuality, and the politics of language. Their approach to reading emphasizes textual rigor, conceptual inquiry, and the questions that emerge through collective study.
Register to participate