The Architecture of Domination: Reflections on Conducting the Symposium Large Group in Dublin

Abstract

Reflections on the Large Group at the 14th Group-Analytic Symposium in Dublin: Despair, Dialogue and Desire: The Transformative Power of the Analytic Group in the Movement from Despair to Desire through Dialogue. 567 people from 39 countries came to Dublin. As the largest and probably the most diverse group ever to participate in a group-analytic symposium, the large group inevitably forced a shift in consciousness. Not only was the group challenged to accommodate an expanded picture of the group-analytic society and of the world society we live in, but it was also faced with a new variation in the form of the conducting team. Three people working together replaced the usual single conductor or pair. Göran Ahlin from Stockholm, who was initially invited to take on this role, decided to follow his long-held vision of conducting a large group with a small group by asking David O’Brien from Dublin and me to join him. Despite the unprecedented number of people, we met on a flat floor sitting in 10 concentric circles, arranged like a gigantic wheel. This configuration, although presenting the whole community with extreme difficulties in hearing and seeing each other, also presented us with a rare opportunity: to make sense of the hidden forces that reinforce the political, social, environmental and economic status quo at a moment when the world is on the edge of a profound shift reminiscent of the Industrial Revolution. This article is offered as a reflection to inform our experiences in future symposia. It is written from my perspective as one of the three conductors and as a woman. Working as a threesome was intensely rewarding. We spent many hours together before, during and after the symposium preparing for and metabolizing the material. Our explicit group-analytic intention was to refrain from leading but to encourage leadership from within the group. Keeping to this stance was challenging in an environment where it was difficult to discover who was responsible for conducting. This situation, in all its frustration, exposed a logic that demonstrated the importance of encouraging a joint thinking space that is rare in the face of chaos. Working together enabled each of us to overcome feelings of demoralization and powerlessness to survive the experience and to keep thinking creatively.