Donald Woods Winnicott, perhaps the greatest English psychoanalyst of the 20th century, began his career as a pediatrician, worked for years in pediatric hospitals, and quickly gained worldwide fame for his work with emotionally disturbed children. His ideas have precious brought light to a whole range of psychological and social issues closely linked to his clinical experience and practice. His almost uncanny ability to recreate with words the strange world of early childhood is reflected throughout his work.

This volume gathers some of his most important articles on topics ranging from the familiar fields of mental health, family, and juvenile delinquency to areas that are less frequently addressed, such as feminism and freedom, democracy, and war. He is presented throughout as characteristically un-dogmatic and deeply human, and above all with the conviction that the rational planning of life needs to take into account our unconscious needs and desires.