Brothers and Sisters

Archetype and Reality. Growing up, we typically spend more time with our brothers and sisters than we do with our parents. In an age of divorce, mobility, and alienation, the sibling bond is often the only one that really lasts.

Given that brothers and sisters are such a fundamental aspect of human existence, it is remarkable that they have received so little in-depth attention in the field of psychology.

Henry Abramovitch’s Brothers and Sisters explores the tension between the myth and reality of brothers and sisters in a variety of cultures and through the poignant brother-sister stories in the Bible. Abramovitch looks at the developmental sequence in the sibling relationship as brothers or sisters struggle to find their place with each other, concluding with a very personal account of his own relationship with his brother and sister.