It must be noted, states Lewis, that just as Lucifer—a former archangel—perverted himself by pride

and fell into depravity, so too can love—commonly held to be the arch-emotion—become corrupt by
presuming itself to be what it is not.

Profound

Hi Sue,

I found Haule’s (1996) The Love Cure an extraordinary reading! His daring and honest exploration of
Eros’s involvement in and influence on the therapeutic relationship gave me extra insight into the
nature of love and passion I tend to experience (or generate?) in my work. Haule’s writing brought
Eros alive from antiquity and beautifully delineated his shape out from the background Fromm
(1956) and Lewis (1960) positioned him in their treatments of the topic of love. Thank you so much
for drawing my attention to this book!

Regarding the DB question: Do you believe that it is the client or the counsellor who ultimately
decides the outcome of therapy? I found Kottler’s (2003) writing not only an enjoyable read but
especially eye opening as well. Before reading his thorough and often personal in tone analysis of
how client and therapist influence each other during the course of the therapeutic relationship, I was
inclined to believe that it is the client who ultimately decides the outcome of the therapy. I’m not so
certain now. While I still believe this to be true – perhaps because my “experience and self-structure”
(Tolan, 2006, p. 2) have agreed on this point for some time – I learned to appreciate the amount of
invisible and often un-acknowledged work which goes into the counselling relationship from the
therapist part. Kottler’s words often prompted me to reminisce many of my past actions which might
have influenced the outcome of therapy for better or for worst. I find myself on a journey with
strangely familiar but ever changing question marks flittering around my head on the way. I like Toni’s
take on the question and her metaphor of the learning to drive. I think I can relate to her description.