Prisoner of the systemic metaphor — honoring Gianfranco Cecchin

Abstract

In this essay I will first present a personal story from my first meeting with Gianfanco Cecchin and from an interview we did together; then I will present some of his ideas and try to show what he was struggling with theoretically when he tried to get out of the fundamentals of the Milan Systemic Group. My conclusion is that he never was able to leave the systemic metaphor and the metaphor of cybernetics; therefore he became its prisoner. Personal experiences It 1s with feelings of joy and with many good memories that I have revisited Gianfranco’s writings from the famous ‘Cunosity’ paper in 1987 to an interview in Human Systems 1996 on ‘the feelings of the consultant’ (Cecchin. & Cooklin, 1996). to find out what his basic concepts were that guided him in his artful work as a therapist and that also trapped him and made it difficult for him to re-position himself both as a therapist and as a teacher. He seemed to love his work; he loved the dramas that the families invited him to be a part of; he loved when he could say something surprising so that the conversation could continue. I first met Gianfranco in 1983 when he gave a two day seminar in Copenhagen and a one day workshop. where I had a consultation to a family. He interviewed the family for about an hour, then he talked to the other participants who had watched the interview at the TV-monitors while I was sitting with the family. It felt like waiting for hours. but it probably was only for about twenty minutes. When he came back he gave one of his ‘famous’ interventions that went something like this: “It 1s good that father and mother disagrees and are arguing because otherwise they would be too close and there wouldn't be space enough for the relationship between the young daughter and the mother — thank you for coming.” The family was very surprised — and furious. They didn’t like at all what they had heard and they didn’t at all feel it was helpful. But suddenly they got together towards Gianfranco and hi