The book by Mark Edmundson, The Death of Sigmund Freud, captivatingly recounts the troubled last years of Sigmund Freud's life in Vienna and London, while simultaneously detailing the rapid rise of Nazi domination in Europe.

The parallel lives of Freud and Hitler are narrated, two Austrians who each had the greatest impact on the world in their respective fields during the 20th century, an influence that continues to manifest in many ways in the current century.

This study can also be read as a concise yet sufficiently thorough introduction to psychoanalysis, which is the best theory we have regarding human subjectivity, focusing on the issue of authority on both individual and collective levels.

[Excerpt from the publisher's or edition's presentation text]