‘Fly Fishing’ by J. R. Hartley: an introduction to psychotherapy

Samuel M Stein

doi:10.1192/pb.17.12.735

Abstract

The author J. R. Hartley and his book on fly fishing do not exist in external reality. They are instead a product of the advertising fantasy world, dreamt up to promote the Yellow Pages. This advertisement was at its prime when I was trying to develop a suitable analogy for teaching medical students and junior doctors about psychotherapy and some of its techniques. When taking a short break in front of the television set, it suddenly struck me just how appropriate this advertisement was. J. R. Hartley himself lends credence to the analogy, while fly fishing as a sport provides an excellent comparison for the art of psychotherapy. Like the fictitious publication in the advert, psychotherapy and its techniques can prove exasperatingly elusive, as they constitute a series of shared internal beliefs and representations which exist largely within the collective mind. I therefore felt that this ambiguous character who is not part of the external real world, yet has a special inner meaning for a wide number of people, seemed like the ideal analogy for describing psychotherapeutic processes.

Highlights

It is more passive activity that is most reflective of the similarity between fly fishing and the practice of psychotherapy
As the fisherman uses the fly to lure the fish, so too do psychotherapists use their intuition, imagination and creativity to make repeated casts above the surface of the psyche, wait ing to see what rises to the bait
Intuitive understand ing and practical skills need to be combined with the ability to tolerate uncertainty, as both psycho therapist and fisherman often deal with half-seen and half-imagined visions which at times seem intensely real and at other times seem like no more than a reflection on the water

Summary

Introduction

(1992) Equality in a child and adolescent psy chiatry multidisciplinary team. ( 1986)The role, responsibilities and work of the child and adolescent psychiatrist. Â€” (1989) The responsibility of the child and adolescent psychiatrist in multidisciplinary teams.

Results

Conclusion