The field of psychology is perhaps one of the most important fields which have enhanced civilization. The society heavily depends on the psychologists especially on the issue of social order which arguably is one of the most important aspects in the society. Over time psychologists have developed theories which have been found to have great applicability in the society.
In this article, the works of Sigmund Freud on the origin and development of psychoanalysis will be examined. Sigmund Freud has made great contribution to the world of psychology and this article will make an attempt to show that significance.
The article will also cite a number of authors who feel that Sigmund has made significant contribution as well as those who feel that the contribution is not that much significant. An overview of the work of Sigmund is given with the important concepts being brought out. I chose to examine the article by Sigmund Freud because I admire the views that Freud presented. I find most of reasoning to be quite practical in life.
Overview
Sigmund Freud’s views on psychology have been considered as “indispensable starting point for any serious student of psychoanalysis or psychotherapy” (Holt and Freud 4). It has further been claimed that “Freud has much to teach the contemporary reader and that the latter’s task is unnecessarily difficult” (Holt and Freud 4). Freud has been referred to as the founder of psychoanalytic theory (Cherry 1) though others have viewed his views to be quite irrelevant (Holt and Freud 4).
Personally going through the article I find the theories proposed by Freud and the illustrations given to be quite relevant. Freud came up with his theory of personality through his numerous observations that he made on his patients. From these observations, he divided the mind into two: the conscious and the unconscious mind (Thurschwell 5). I must say that I identify with the reasoning of Freud on the two divisions of the mind:
The conscious mind includes everything that we are aware of. This is the aspect of our mental processing that we can think and talk about rationally. A part of this includes our memory, which is not always part of consciousness but can be retrieved easily at any time and brought into our awareness. Freud called this ordinary memory the preconscious. (Cherry 1)
The second division, the unconscious mind, is very significant as most of the ideas that Freud developed were based on the unconscious mind:
The unconscious mind is a reservoir of feelings, thoughts, urges, and memories that outside of our conscious awareness. Most of the contents of the unconscious are unacceptable or unpleasant, such as feelings of pain, anxiety, or conflict. According to Freud, the unconscious continues to influence our behavior and experience, even though we are unaware of these underlying influences. (Cherry 1)
Freud in his determination to find a cure for seemingly abnormal behavior among adults made attempts to dig deep into the root of the cause of such problems. In his observations he found out that when people display some behaviors which are not considered normal it is usually due to some occurrence in their past life, to put it in his own words, “hysterical patients suffer from symptoms which are the remnants of traumatic experiences” (Freud 1).
I find this very practical in real life, is not what Freud was trying to explain an issue of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder? No one can deny that after a person is exposed to traumatizing experience he/she is likely to have develop some funny or rather abnormal behaviors.
Freud made observations that hysterical patients are treated by being exposed to the conditions which had caused the traumatizing event: Freud drew up this conclusion after making several observations on hysterical patients. As a matter of fact exposure of a PTSD patient to the causal agent is one of the treatment means used in modern day clinical counseling. I therefore feel that Freud was quite accurate in his observation though his work has not been generally acknowledged.
Freud’s way of treating patients follows the path of exposing the patient to the causal effect. One way he did this was by talking to the patient when not in the normal state.
Freud acknowledged the fact that the patients tend to deny the state of condition by pushing the bad memories to the unconscious mind or rather by suppressing them such that one needs to assure them that they can remember the thoughts for them to remember the thoughts. Suppressing bad memories is an activity that takes place in anybody’s mind or rather at least to me it does happen.
One author who has greatly admired the work of Sigmund Freud is Catherine Reef. Reef has argued that the findings of Freud have had great influence upon the modern society as their applicability is widely relevant: “Freudian psychology has changed the way people do things, from creating literature and art to bringing up their children” (Reef 5).
The ideas of psychoanalysis especially the way that Freud attaches everything to sexuality has not obtained a common accepted among many scholars especially the modern day ones. Some of the ideas which have strongly been brought under criticism are:
Other studies indicate that Freud was wrong in thinking that girls do not value being girls and are not aware for a long time that Freud was wrong in thinking that girls do not value being girls and are not aware for a long time of their sexual organs; that girls want babies only as substitutes for a penis; that children begin to understand themselves as boys or girls only after observing genital difference; that the male superego is stronger than the female’s and that it derives primarily from fear of castration. (Winer and Anderson 72)
Winer and Anderson however have pointed out that it is Freud who proposed that children are often more observant than it is often thought, “children observe more than we think they do” (72).
Arguing from the view of Kant, it can be said that some of the ideas that Freud put across are both of priori and posteriori knowledge. For instance, the fact that a person will tend to resist a traumatic memory can be said to be of prior in nature but other issues such as girls hating who they are may need to be proved thus being posterior in nature.
Conclusion
Sigmund Freud laid a foundation for psychoanalysis. Though some of his conclusions have been severely criticized, it has generally been agreed that his work forms a very basic foundation in the field of psychoanalysis. Freud gave significant insight into the nature of the mind making a significant contribution to the society even at the current time in various fields including literature and art. Sigmund Freud was a great psychologist.
Works Cited
Cherry, Kendra. The conscious and Unconscious mind. Psychology, 2011. Web.
Holt, Robert and Freud Sigmund. Freud reappraised: a fresh look at psychoanalytic theory. New York: Guilford Press, 1989. Print.
Reef, Catherine. Sigmund Freud: pioneer of the mind. New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2001. Print.
Thurschwell, Pamela. Sigmund Freud. New York: Taylor & Francis, 2008. Print.
Winer, Jerome and Anderson, James. Sigmund Freud and his impact on the modern world. New York: Routledge, 2001. Print.
In the “Etiology of Hysteria” Sigmund Freud based his argument on the Seduction Theory. In this theory, he argued that only early childhood sexual molestation could cause hysteria. Hysteria is a condition in which the subconscious mind attempts to reduce stress.
It results from a weak biological and neurological body system. Therefore, hysteria is hereditary most of the times. Hysteria has a trigger effect caused by traumatic events like an accident or a molestation ordeal (Gay and Freud 96).
A case study of Desire and Discontent
At first, Freud attributed hysteria with “real experiences”. These real experiences at childhood appeared during adulthood causing hysteria. However, after a year Freud abandoned this Theory of Seduction. Together with other neurologists, they came up with the Psychoanalytic Theory.
In this theory, nurture but not nature was the main cause of hysteria. Through the study of people suffering from mental disturbances, hysteria symptoms included constant seizures, paralysis, hallucinations and amnesia. Hysteria was a social but not a physical condition. (Gay and Freud 99)
In his “Letters to Fleiss” Freud turned to Biology and Pathology to unlock the jinx of hysteria. Hysteria is a condition of the mind that consists of mental processes, which are unreal. These processes include memory, affection and motivation.
In the Psychoanalytic Theory, unconscious processes take place in the form of slips of the mind, dreams and visions (Gay and Freud 114) along with forgotten memories that still linger in the mind and implicit knowledge (things learnt before).
Three main reasons as to why Freud rejected his earlier theory are lack of therapeutic success, unlikely number of perverts in the population of Vienna and the nature of the unconscious mind. Freud was a neurologist. He used to treat patients suffering from mental and psychological diseases. He had a peculiar interest in women and most of his patients were women.
In the given case, he discussed two of his patients, namely Dora and Anna using therapeutic treatment. Patients put through therapy sessions discussed their personal lives (Gay and Freud 115). After studying the social and sexual behaviors of Dora and Anna, Freud related them to their hysterical conditions. He tried to bring the patient’s mind to the original event without them knowing (unlocking the unconscious mind).
He viewed women as the passive gender followed by hysterical condition. He concluded that hysteria was a condition of the mind which only occurred in women.
Dora eventually abandoned treatment; on the other hand, Anna’s condition was diagnosed as epilepsy, but not hysteria. Freud’s understanding of women was limited and biased hence the failure of his therapeutic treatment. He argued that women were psychologically and emotionally weak and they could not handle stress.
Traumatic events had a triggering force to hysteria as argued by Freud. People do not easily forget something that happened to them or took place in their presence. In future, these vivid memories are always present in a person’s mind and a slight provocation similar to the previous experience can cause hysteria (Gay and Freud 115).
The second reason for Freud to abandon his Seduction Theory was the unlikely number of perverts in the population of Vienna. Men are active partners in sex who enjoy it unlike women who are passive partners and are likely to detest sexual molestation.
With time, men become obsessed with sex and seek to satisfy this desire at any available opportunity which is clear in cases of sexual molestation of both children and women by men. Based on his Seduction Theory, Freud was unable to cope with the numerous cases of sexual abuse on women in Vienna at that time. Eventually, he had to come up with a better and efficient mode of treatment for his increasing female patients.
The third reason for Freud to abandon his earlier Seduction Theory was his extensive studies on the nature of the unconscious mind. He mostly based his findings on the assessment and treatment of mentally disturbed patients through the Psychoanalytic Theory.
He treated his patients by trying to unmask their unconscious minds. He defined the unconscious mind as the component of the mind that is beyond our own awareness. It is the complete opposite of the conscious mind. Freud strongly believed that the unconscious mind is powerful and influential in shaping a person’s behavior and his or her decisions (Gay and Freud 116).
Most of the times, the memories brought or aroused by the unconscious mind are unpleasant and unacceptable. It is less complex, flexible and action-oriented than the conscious mind.
Thus, it is dormant or sleeping possessing inner forces that drive our behavior and reactions. Freud’s study on the unconscious mind revolved around abnormal thoughts and behavior. Finally, Freud concluded that the unconscious mind had an overwhelming influence on mental processes.
Conclusion
The unconscious mind has a major effect on our mental processes. It determines our behavior and character, therefore, it is active. Hysteria is a social and not a physical condition. Some of Freud’s theories are still being used today in the field of neurology.
Works Cited
Gay, Peter and Freud, Sigmund. The Freud Reader, New York, W.W. Norton, 1995. Reprint.
Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) is one of the most controversial figures of the twentieth century. He is, undoubtedly, one of the most criticized scientists. At that, he had a great impact on the development of the western society. Of course, it is possible to criticize his ideas, it is possible to call them unscientific.
Nonetheless, it is simply impossible to ignore Freud and his ideas. Thus, On Dreams (1914) is one of the most popular books of this controversial author. The book was written after the success of another work The Interpretation of Dreams (1900). In his book On Dreams Freud revealed his ideas on dreams to make them understandable for non-professionals. Of course, the book can also be interesting for psychiatrists, scientists, neurologists, etc.
It is possible to state that the book is a result of Freud’s self-analysis, his private practice and his theoretical orientation. Notably, Freud was influenced by the work of Jean-Martin Charcot who paid a lot of attention to hypnosis. Sigmund Freud got inspired by the ideas of unconscious mind. However, soon he adopted another method.
Freud’s friend and mentor Joseph Breuer had a very specific approach. He did not rely on hypnosis, but he used conversations to help his patients. The case of Anna O. made him as well as Freud understand that talking to patients and making them recall some events and dreams can be very effective, even more effective than hypnosis.
Such ideas became the basis for Freud’s numerous works, and especially his book On Dreams. It is possible to state that this book is one of the most well-known books by the author. The book is worth reading as it makes the world of psychopathology more understandable.
There are quite many books written by Freud. However, the book under consideration occupies a very special place as it is on the border between the world of scientists and the rest of the world. The book helps people learn more about one of the most influential theoretical approaches in psychopathology.
In his book On Dreams Freud reveals the major mechanisms of dreams. Thus, one of the central ideas of the book is that the dream is “the guardian of sleep” (Freud, 2010, p. 38). The scientist notes that sleep is one of the most important physiological processes, which helps the human organism to accumulate energy to start a new day.
Freud (2010) also notes that people can be easily distracted from sleep by various stimuli: light, sounds, physical needs, etc. Nonetheless, dreams keep people sleeping as they transform the stimuli into a more appropriate form, i.e. the form of visions which keep people in the unconscious state.
The scientist also expresses his ideas on the dream work (Freud, 2010). The researcher defines four major stages of the dream work. Freud (2010, p. 28) defines the dream work as “the transference of dream thought to dream content”. First, the researcher dwells upon condensation, i.e. combination of two or more thoughts, concepts or ideas. Freud explains that dreams are constituted by these concepts taken from the real life experiences.
Displacement is the second stage of the dream work. According to Freud (2010) specific intentions, desires or thoughts are transferred into quite different concepts. These concepts are often unrelated to the particular object or idea.
The third stage of the dream work can be referred to as symbolism. The author claims that the concepts created are then transformed into certain situations or images which the individual have experienced. At this point, it is possible to note that Freud pays special attention to sexual symbols. More so, the researcher insists that the majority of desires and ideas experienced during a day (during a lifetime) which are then reflected in dreams are of sexual character.
Finally, the fourth stage of the dream work is secondary revision. During this stage the concepts and symbols are transformed into some meaningful scenarios which are similar to those experienced in a day life. Thus, people often see particular scenes from their everyday lives in their dreams.
The researcher also notes that dreams can reveal some concepts which negatively effect people’s mood and even people’s lives. Freud (2010) mentions that dreams are constituted by the concepts which have certain importance for people. Often people ignore or even fail to perceive their intentions and desires which can result in various complexes and anxiety. The researcher claims that making people aware of their real intentions and desires can help them avoid anxiety.
It is necessary to note that the book under consideration contains various interesting ideas which can be helpful for both psychologists and non-psychologists. Freud (2010) analyses mechanisms associated with dreams. Admittedly, the four stages of the dream work are worth consideration. It is impossible to deny that the mechanisms are described in detail. It is impossible to deny that dreams are connected with people’s experiences. It is impossible to deny that dreams are often symbolic.
Nonetheless, some stages are quite groundless. For instance, such stage as displacement is somehow overlooked. Thus, concepts do not necessarily transform into unrelated images. More likely, dreams reflect people’s experiences. Sometimes images and symbols can be combined. This is why real intentions can be difficult to identify. However, there is certain meaning in every dream.
Another important shortcoming of the book (as well as Freud’s ideas) is that the researcher pays too much attention to sexuality. The author claims that
no other class of instincts has required so vast a suppression at the behest of civilization as the sexual, whilst their mastery by the highest psychical processes are in most persons soonest of all relinquished. (Freud, 2010, p. 41)
Notably, people may suppress some sexual desires. However, people are not fixated on sexual issues. It is possible to admit that in the end of the nineteenth century the society was somewhat different from the contemporary world. Thus, people did suppress various ideas, inclinations and desires as societal conventions were too strong. People were ashamed of many things which are now perceived as normal and acceptable. Of course, nowadays people may freely talk of many things, which prevents them from developing various complexes.
However, Freud overestimated the role of sexuality in the lives of people who lived in the end of the twentieth century. He largely based his assumptions on his own experiences and memories. It goes without saying that it is really unscientific to rely on such scarce data. He tried to see sexuality in every symbol in every memory and vision.
As far as the book itself is concerned, it is possible to note that it is written concisely. It has specific chapters which deal with specific topics and themes. It is easy to follow the author’s ideas. He uses simple terms to explain his ideas and assumptions. The book is targeted at the public.
The author reached his aim as even non-psychologist will be able to understand everything perfectly well. Freud (2010) provides particular examples to illustrate his theoretical approach. He depicts his dreams and experiences. He also mentions his patients’ dreams and ideas.
As far as I am concerned, I loved the book. Even though I do not agree with some ideas articulated, I think the book under consideration is worth reading. One of the major features of the book I like most is its clearness. I believe it is important to be able to explain some difficult concepts in simple terms. Of course, I learnt a lot about dreams and the nature of people’s dreams. Now I can be more attentive to my dreams and my thoughts.
I would definitely recommend the book to everyone. It can be interesting for psychologists, neurologists, etc. In fact, it can be interesting to all people irrespective of their jobs.
In the first place, it can enrich people’s knowledge about the nature of dreams. It can also be some kind of a frame to start with. In a way, this can be a kind of a self-help book as it helps people understand themselves. Of course, those interested in psychology will find it interesting as well as it is impossible to be a professional in the field without being aware of some basic concepts articulated by Freud.
Finally, I would like to note that the present project was very helpful as I found out more about people’s dreams. Now I know more about a scientist who was bold enough to reveal his revolutionary ideas. I have always known that psychology is a very important discipline which can help people become successful. Now I am sure that psychology can help people succeed in every part of their lives.
Reference List
Freud, S. (2010). On dreams. New York, NY: Cosimo, Inc.
Metapsychology is a term coined by Freud Sigmund to denote his approach to mental functioning based on an experience of psychoanalysis which had spanned a period of over 30 years (Lacan, 1973). As Freud personally put it, metapsychology is the observation of psychological phenomena what metaphysics is to that of the physical world. Thus, Freud moved from a clinical and descriptive stage to one of abstract approach; he advanced models concerning the manner in which the mind of human functions and how they were generally intended to be applicable. For instance, the idea of drive or instinct was introduced by Freud in order to describe what nudges human beings to eat and to procreate (Freud, 1905).
Freud termed what urges human beings to eat as self-preservation instincts and what impels them to procreate as sexual instincts. Given that instincts are naturally abstract ideas, they are not met as such, rather perceived indirectly through the effects to which they result or the means by which they are represented (Bower, 2005). Therefore, sexual instincts can be viewed in a number of different ways; the urge generated by an erotic desire to the opposite sex, the terms applied to express such desire, or the scenario of a dream (Lacan, 1973). Freud’s thinking underwent gradual evolution that led him to propose a synthesis of the manner in which the human mind functions under both normal and pathological conditions. This was his first structural approach based on the distinction between unconscious, pre-conscious and conscious (Freud, 1905). The approach runs opposite to Freud’s first model of instinctual drives based on pleasure/unpleasurable notions. This paper tries to relate between theory and practice of Freud’s psychoanalysis by explaining; the main goals of Freud’s psychoanalysis theory and practice, Freud in Beyond the pleasure principle, the models of the human mind, the relationship in terms of structure and personal development, the object and relations identification, anxiety and defense mechanisms, relationship in terms of sexuality, and relationship in psychoanalytic contribution to psychiatry.
Relationship of Theory and Practice of Freudian Psychoanalysis
Psychoanalysis theory and practice development was driven by two main aims. First, it was to understand why and how people developed psychological symptoms and how to assist people to free themselves from psychological symptoms. The purpose of Freud’s psychoanalysis theory and practice was to assist patients to satisfy their potential and become free to love and to work (Bower, 2005). Psychoanalysis is a term used to refer to; an approach of personality and psychopathology, a technique of investigating the mind, and a theory of treatment. Freud was the inventor of psychoanalysis and the father of modern psychotherapy. The primary goal of Freud’s psychoanalysis theory was to develop an approach to the human mind and the second was to relate psychoanalysis theory as a therapeutic modality.
As a comprehensive approach to personality and psychopathology, psychoanalysis has had an impeccable impact on thought and culture in the 20th century (Corey, 2009). It is an impact that is unrivaled by any other conception of personality in terms of theory and practice. In practice, the theory of psychoanalysis addresses the broader domain of normal personality function and personality development besides aiming at understanding and explaining the nature of adult psychopathology (Freud, 1905). In this sense, psychoanalysis theory is regarded as general psychology. As such, psychoanalysis ranges from biological and photobiological explanations of key aspects of mental life, such as; cognition, affect, and motivation to sociocultural, to historical theorizing about the origins of society and the family (Gurman, 2003).
Sigmund Freud’s in Beyond the Pleasure Principle
Freud’s concept is beyond the pleasure theory expounds on the notion of pleasure, tries to explain why UCS is guided by pleasure, reality, the purpose of repression, the notion of the death drive, and the purpose of the model of the mind. In Beyond the Pleasure Principle, second paragraph, Freud brought to the surface a new hypothesis and a new usage of binding. He stated that:
…the least rigid hypothesis, it seems to me, will be the best. We have decided to relate pleasure and un-pleasure to the quantity of excitation that is present in the mind but is not in any way ‘bound’; and to relate them in such a manner that un-pleasure corresponds to an increase in the quantity of excitation and pleasure to a diminution (7-8).
In this assertion, Freud retains the notion that most intense pleasures are those of unbound energies but also agrees that effects occur when energies are bound. Much of this theory is concerned with the concept of a compulsion to repeat and the related death instinct, which together make what lies “beyond the pleasure principle” (22). These aspects are assumed to be antagonistic to the pleasure principle and Eros: “there really does exist in the mind a compulsion to repeat which overrides the pleasure principle” (22).
Models of the Mind
In Freud’s psychoanalytic theory, the conceptualization of the human mind was based on conscious mental processes, such as consciousness of the mind, thoughts, and feelings with the ability to recall them; and the unconscious mental processes that include thoughts and feelings that are outside awareness and are not remembered (Freud, 1905). According to Freud believe, the unconscious part of the human mind is only rarely recognized by the conscious, as in remembered dreams. Freud applied the preconscious to describe unconscious material that is capable of being absorbed in consciousness (Freud, 1905).
Freud (1920) reiterates how the pleasure principle can attain its characteristic predominance;
..it will perhaps not be thought too rush to suppose that the impulse arising from the instincts do not belong to the type of bound nervous processes but of freely mobile processes which press towards discharge…
Since all instinctual impulses have the unconscious systems as their point of impact, it is hardly an innovation to say that they obey the primary process (34-35).
Freud (1920) goes further to describe what Freud has in mind:
We have found that one of the most important functions of the mental apparatus is to bind the instinctual impulses which impinge on it, to replace the primary process prevailing in them by the secondary process and convert their freely mobile cathectic energy into a mainly quiescent cathexis. While this transformation is taking place no attention can be paid to the development of un-pleasure; but…the transformation occurs on behalf of the pleasure principle; the binding is a preparatory act which introduces and assures the dominance of the pleasure principle…The binding of an instinctual impulse would be a preliminary function designed to prepare the excitation for its final elimination in the pleasure of discharge (62).
In this formulation, Freud provides binding a basic task of mastering unruly and dangerous forces and makes them manageable so that the pleasure principle can commence operation (Freud, 1920).
The Structure of Personality and its Development
Freud’s personality structure was made up of the id, ego, and superego. The id was conceptualized by desires that were conceived unconscious, primitive instincts, and unstructured drives, including sexual and aggressive tendencies that arose from the body. The ego, on the other hand, explained particular mental processes associated with perception, memory, and motor control together with specific defense mechanisms (Boyd, 2007). As a personality structure, the ego-controlled movement, perception, and contact with reality (Lacan, 1973). Additionally, the ego had the capacity to form mutually satisfying relationships as a fundamental function, which is not available at birth but is practiced throughout the child’s development. Boyd (2007) states that “the superego was part of the personality structure related with ethics, standards, and self-criticism” (p. 57). In practice, Freud’s personality structure relates to children’s identification with important and esteemed people in early life, particularly their parents (Winer, 1995).
Freud began a discussion of a condition in which love has been transformed into hate of the object:
Here the instinct of destruction has been set free and it seeks to destroy the object (53). After sublimation the erotic component no longer has the power to bind the whole of the destructiveness that was combined with it, and this is released in the form of an inclination to aggression and destruction (54-55).
In further discussions on sublimation, Freud said that it produces a diffusion of instincts. He also discusses a setting free of aggressive drive in the superego.
Object Relations and Identification
Freud’s psychoanalytic theory introduced the object relations concept, the psychological attachment to another person or object. Freud believed that the choice of a love object in adult life and the nature of the relationship would be based on the nature and quality of the child’s object relationship during the early formative years. Normally, children’s first love objects were the mothers, who were sources of nourishment and providers of pleasure. Gradually, as children are detached from their mothers, the nature of their initial attachment influenced any future relationships (Lacan, 1973).
The development of children’s capacity for relationships progressed from a state of narcissism to social relationships, initially within the family and then within the larger society. Although the objects relations concept is fairly abstract, it can well be understood in children who imitate their parents and then become like their parents in adulthood. These children have incorporated their parents as love objects, identify with them, and become like them as adults. Freud’s psychoanalytic theory becomes significant especially in understanding abused children, who under certain situations become adult abusers as well.
Anxiety and Mechanisms of Defense
According to Freud, anxiety was a specific sense of unpleasantness followed by motor discharge along definite pathways, reaction to the danger of object loss. The concept of a defense mechanism shielded an individual from unwanted anxiety. In psychic mental health practice, defense mechanisms play an explanatory role. Freud discussed the concept of defense as a general mental function that could be employed to comprehend certain pathological phenomena. Freud’s ego and mechanisms defense acknowledged that mechanisms of defense served not only pathogenic functions but were also likely to be necessary for normal ego development. Given that a child’s ego is weak, mechanisms of defense protect it from being disrupted by painful effects and therefore enhancing its development (Corey, 2009).
Sexuality
Freud (1905) postulates that the psychic drive associated with the sexual instincts resided in the id. Therefore, when a desire for sex was controlled and not expressed, led to tension and was transformed into anxiety. Adult sexuality was believed by Freud as an end product of a process of development that is complex that started in early childhood and involved a number of body functions that corresponded to stages of relationships, particularly with parents. Fundamentally, Freud asserts that sexuality is the source of all experience. The human basic drives and conflicts are played out through sexuality at each developmental level (Freud, 1905).
Psychoanalysis theory by Freud maintains that it is the body that is the source of human experience. For instance, people react to pain and pleasure spontaneously in early life. In this context, Freud considered the role of sexual excitations in trauma and the fact that traumatic neuroses are more likely to happen when there has been no physical injury. Freud Stated:
Thus, on one hand, the mechanical violence of the trauma would liberate a quantity of sexual excitation which, owing to the lack of preparation for anxiety, would have a traumatic effect; but, on the other hand, the simultaneous physical injury, by calling for a narcissistic hypercathexis of the injured organ, would bind the excess of excitation (33).
In real practice, certain desires and actions are not allowed and are routinely punished by others. Therefore, it becomes necessary to hold back or repress impulses and actions linked to pleasure gratification. In essence, the repression process expresses in it both the action potential to release the desired impulse, as well as the injunction to hold back (Winer, 1995).
As maintained by Freud, ongoing repression of opposing feelings and emotions produces an ever-intensifying pressure within the psych which sometimes overflowing of this damned energy into certain areas of the body. Unable to receive and contain the overabundance of energy, the body becomes numb, pained or diseased. Consequently, the initial emotional conflict is converted into a physical disorder. These converted reactions could be processed or cured through various emotional releases and verbal expressions of the nuclear conflict. This healing process was referred to as catharsis, including stirring memories of the conflict that are buried until they could be brought into conscious awareness, assimilated and accepted by the individual (Corey, 2009).
According to Freud, human pain becomes increasingly emotional as development continues. Therefore, the mind must translate the pain in an effort to derive some meaning in it. However, if the mind is not capable of sufficient objectivity, or knows too little about the translation of psychological pain, we turn to another person for guidance. This person may be better trained, or at least more detached from the issues at hand. In essence, Freud provided meaning to psychoanalysis and psychotherapy as an extension of this human striving to attach meaning to painful experiences (Freud, 1905).
Psychoanalytic Contribution to Psychiatry
The theory of psychoanalysis has led to the development of psychoanalysis to the level of specialized science and therapy. As a result, there is a profound effect upon the thought and techniques of general psychiatry. Freud’s study of the unconscious, repression, mechanisms of defense, ego, and others, have been embraced as part of the common vocabulary of psychiatry and clinical psychology (Lacan, 1973). Additionally, the fundamental importance of childhood experience, most important, the psychological attributes of family relationships of the past in the life of the adult is generally accepted in the psychiatry profession. The central focus of psychiatry is the study of ideas, fantasies, emotions, interpersonal relations, conflicts, and personality development; and a reflection of these in the conscious and unconscious experience of the individual patient (Hendrick, 1999).
Freud’s psychoanalysis theory about mental processes, that is, by the study of neuroses, and of dreams, illuminates the psychology of mental diseases. Psychotic people have minds, emotions, personalities, and respond to the same primal requirements for adaptation according to the desire principle as do other human beings. Psychoanalytic theory has provided knowledge of the unconscious, of conflict, of the emotional relationships of ideas, sexuality, and the repressive process (Lacan, 1973). Consequently, this has resulted in a major contribution to understanding human beings afflicted by psychosis.
Conclusion
In sum, Freud assumed that human behavior is a result of an ongoing series of internal conflicts. Competition among the id, ego and superego are routine. This is because the id needs to gratify its urges immediately; however, civilized societal norms frequently dictate otherwise (Freud, 1905). For example, an individual’s id might feel an urge to steal from your neighbor who is rich and meaningful. However, society detests such behavior, so the individual’s ego would try to hold this need in check, and would find him in conflict. In practice, therefore, Freud’s theory dominates people’s lives. In postulating that the early years shape an individual’s personality, Freud’s psychoanalytic theory did not content that personality development comes to an abrupt stop in middle childhood (Hendrick, 1999). However, Freud believed that the base of an individual’s personality in adulthood is entrenched by this time. He strongly maintained that future developments of human personality are grounded in early, formative experiences. Hence, significant conflicts experienced in later years are replays of crises from childhood (Freud, 1905).
In psychoanalysis theory, the ego is the decision-making component of personality that operates according to practical principles. It mediates between the forceful desires of the id for immediate satisfaction, and the external social world, with its norms and expectations regarding acceptable behavior. The ego considers social practices, such as; societal norms, rules, etiquettes, rules, and customs, in choosing how to behave. The superego on the other hand is the moral component of the personality and includes social standards about what represents right or wrong. Throughout the life of individuals, specifically during childhood, individuals get training about what is good or bad behavior (Gurman, 2006).
Reference
Bower, M. (2005). Psychoanalytic Theory for Social Work Practice. London: Routledge.
Boyd, M. (2007). Psychiatric Nursing. Sydney: Wolters Kluwer Health.
Corey, G. (2009). Theory and Practice of Counselling and Psychotherapy. London: Cengage Learning.
Freud, S. (1920). On Metapsychology. Harmondsworth: Pelican, 1920.
Freud, S. (1905). Three Essays on the Theory of Sexuality. London: IUP.
Gurman, A., & Messer, S. (2003). Essential Psychotherapies. New York: Guilford Press.
Hendrick, I. (1999). Facts and Theories of Psychoanalysis. London: Routledge.
Lacan, J. (1973). The Four Fundamental Concepts of Psychoanalysis. London: IUP.
Winer, J. (1995). The Annual Psychoanalysis, Volume 22. London: Routledge.
Generally, the ego is considered to be an objective issue. On the other hand, it is recognized to be the so-called control center of a persons’ mind. The super-ego it’s considered to be a special mechanism in a person’s mind which is mostly associated with an internal judge. The super-ego is over the ego and controls and punishes the objective issue with numerous unpleasant emotions.
There is also an opinion that it is the super-ego, which causes heightened self-esteem. Both subjects of discussion are unconscious, so, a person doesn’t notice the contents of his/her sense of self-esteem or self-importance. The id is considered to be the most primitive element of every human. A person is born with two basic instincts, which are divided into life instinct and the death instinct.
The first type is called eros, while the second one got the name Thanatos. Id can’t exist without both issues. The combination of the id, ego, and superego influences a person’s behavior in various situations. In other words, the three points play an important part in the development of the personality.
The mechanisms of defense are also rather important. Thus, repression is recognized to be one of the earliest stages of condemnation. In other words, entrance into the conscious is hindered. However, on the other hand, the instinctual person’s relation to the unconscious is not denied.
Repression-resistances separated an important objective issue from the id; although repression establishes more connections with other parts of the id. As far as the way of forming substitutes differs from repression formation, it is obvious, that the earliest stage of condemnation acts in different ways. A withdrawal of libido is considered to be a typical feature of repression.
Remembering, Repeating and Working Through
One of the most interesting psychological phenomena is the paradox of memory. Thus, childhood memories are often difficult to remember; while various unimportant memories are always in a person’s mind. They appear spontaneously and sometimes can be related to haunting memories.
However, one of the most important points which can be used to explain the screen memories is the contradiction between defense mechanisms of a person’s mind and the instinctual desires. For this reason, parapraxia is based on a person’s unsatisfied dreams. In other words, the products of the unconscious (errors, jokes, etc.) appear due to the work of the screen memory.
The actions which are based on such desires are indirectly related to the conscious, so, the conflict between the two issues is reduced. So, the creation of a compromise is recognized to be a key point, which is of great significance for the contrary feelings. The memories can be aggressive, erotic, etc., but they come from the depths of a person’s mind.
The repetition is considered to be the way of transference of the past. When a person is afraid of his/her pastor thinks that the past can be disclosed, he/she comprehends the morbid events as certain actions, i.e., a person repeats associations, but not the memories. In this case, repetition replaces remembering. The handling of the transference is one of the most reliable ways to influence a person’s memories.
A doctor shouldn’t show his/her resistance to a person as a process of treatment can become more difficult. The most important point is that a person needs time to study, analyze or investigate the resistance, to work through it, to use the basic rules of psychoanalysis to overcome the problem. The part of work causes the process of reexamination.
Civilization and the Individual
The principal aim of individual development is to get pleasure from various activities. In other words, the issue of happiness is considered to be one of the most important for a human being. However, there are altruistic and egoistic conceptions, which are the primary points a person is to consider to achieve his/her main aim.
For this reason, integration into a human community is a significant factor a person is to keep in mind. The principal aim of civilization development is to establish unity beyond the individual. Thus, the issue of happiness is considered to be the secondary aim of a developmental process. So, in other words, if one neglects the individual’s happiness, a community will flourish.
However, the important point is that civilization appeared due to a human. Each person looks for pain and pleasure. It means that a person’s inherent characteristic is egoism; thereby, civilization exists based on self-interest as the foundation of morality. Of course, the super-ego of both issues is similar. The cultural super-ego is also related to the development of the individual; however, there is an agreement between the two subjects, which states certain ideal demands.
The heading of ethics is the key point in interpersonal relations. People value ethics as they hope their expectations will be come up. On the other hand, there are changes in persons’ interactions, which are more important than various ethical principles.
Another important question is the interdependence between persons’ cultural development and their appetency to destroy the community they live in. On the other hand, the issue of self-destruction is still to be discussed.
It is possible to discuss several images that are related to Freud’s concepts of self and other. For example, one can look at the following pictures. To some degree, they throw light on the behavior of children and infants at the time when they have little background knowledge. Moreover, they illustrate the importance of bodily experiences.
Picture 1
Source: Cross-cultural reflections on the mirror self-recognition test.
Picture 2
Source: Anna Bing Arnold Children’s Center, 2010.
These images can show how a child learns to distinguish self from other. It should be kept in mind that Sigmund Freud (1991) places emphasis on the notion of bodily self. In other words, an individual’s perception of one’s identity is based on the awareness of his/her body (Freud, 1991). This argument is particularly relevant when one speaks about children.
This is one of the first points that can be made. Thus, the first picture is a good illustration of a how a child tries to learn more about oneself. This is one of the first aspects that can be distinguished. It should be kept in mind that this image depicts a child who acts an explorer. At this point, she is not accustomed to seeing her reflection in the mirror.
Moreover, the movements in front of the mirror help her strengthen the sense of her bodily self. At this point, she does not have a distinct perception of her physical appearance. Overall, Sigmund Freud pays close attention to bodily sensations of a person whose identity has not been developed completely.
They are essential for describing the concept of self which is a vital component of personality. This is one of the aspects that can be identified. It is important for understanding Freud’s ideas and his views on the formation of a human being’s inner world.
However, at the same time, an individual learns to distinguish oneself from other people. For instance, one can look at the second image which illustrates how infants identify the differences in the physical appearance of one another. This experience is of great importance for these children because they can see the distinction between self and other. Moreover, in this way, they can learn more about the surrounding world.
Moreover, these children can shape their own identity by seeing their bodily images. In each of these cases, bodily sensations play an important role. Thus, one can say that the chosen pictures can be related so some of the themes which Sigmund Freud examines in many of his works.
Introduction to Freudian Perspective to Dream Functions
A wide spectrum of views and opinions has been held as to the purpose of dreams to one’s psychological wellbeing. One of the most influential contributions in this discipline has been put forward by Freud, bequeathing laboratory psychology with varied hypothetical situations which have triggered extensive debates on the functions of dreams.
Although the contemporary thought on the function of dreams is more refined, dynamic and with an open focus on environmental impact to dream function- envisioned in the trio perspectives of problem solving, information synthesis and ego consolidation- It does however derive its roots from the Freudian mechanistic and drive reduction approaches to dream function.
Function of Dreams according to Freud
Freud held that dreams have a dual compromise purpose in one’s life. In this perspective he proposed that latent instinctive and unconscious drive demands the expression of a consciously deplorable impulse. The reduced conscious self-control mechanism evident in sleep paves the way for a symbolic expression of the repressed conscious desire – otherwise known as a dream.
Thus the manifested elements of the dream show the resultant compromise between the instinctive desire yearning for expression and the repressive power of conscious self-control.
One of the key assumptions which Freud considered was that the latent power is enormous, rather greater than the conscious power, such that if it were not for the dream which provides a safe avenue of symbolic discharge, the instinctive energy would always disrupt one’s sleep by awakening the sleeper.
In this respect, therefore, dreams not only serve the biological role of preserving sleep but also the psychological duty of easing one’s psychological faculties by relieving them through the discharge of unacceptable impulses- which may be detrimental to the conscious life.
It is quite apparent that Freud’s psychological analysis on the function of dreams rested on the distinction between the conscious and the innate dream content, this wide deviation between the conscious and the instinctive dream content led him to hold the view that dreams hide meaning rather than expose it. A dream, thus, fall short of satisfying the logical discriminative orders of the conscious mind, it does therefore demand to be ordered and decoded for it to be interpreted in structure of the conscious thought.
In this perspective dreams serve a wide variety of purposes such as problem solving, on which front, a dream becomes the mirror of one’s characteristic theology to life, providing the tentative and intrinsic outlook to problem solving. In this manner dreams refine the conscious thought, motivates one to take certain actions and equips one with adaptive responses towards problem solving.
Dreams occur when one sleeps, when one’s physical and conscious faculties are passive, in which state sleep and dreaming are perceived to be part of the whole of the organism’s processes. It is at such an improved information processing environment that the external realities of the conscious world can be well comprehended, for then the mind is most alert, the unseen can be visualized and there is a great awakening of the creative memory systems.
Such awareness ultimately lays the foundation for corresponding attitude adjustment in the dreamer which is evident in the accompanying actions in the conscious world. Perhaps this role of dreams can be regarded as identity-preserving through ego consolidation in which one can get a thorough acquaintance with his/her environment.
Reference List
Dallett, J. (1973). Theories of Dream Function. Web.
“The Interpretations of Dreams” by Sigmund Freud has been widely recognized as one of the major works that deals with the theory of human nature. The theory of human nature may be best comprehended as encompassing four basic dimensions. First, a background metaphysical understanding of the universe and humanity’s place in it has been attempted. Remarkable enough, the question concerning the universe has by no means been settled, though it may be concluded that the universe means what the veracity denotes. Human beings constitute this universe. It is they who churn the wheels of this universe. However, the same universe is in disparity with the individual.
The problem of human beings is a primordial problem in metaphysics concerning universals. Dreamers do not come from a diverse world; they develop a world of their own around them in their sleep and what more – they have the potential to commit it all to their memory which not all of us can perform, though the art can be learnt. Sigmund Freud recognized dreams as an interaction between the conscious and the unconscious. The unconscious is the dominant might of the dream, and in dreams it conveys its own mental activity to the perceptive faculty. (Freud 1955).
Destiny is a predetermined course of events whether in general or for an individual. Destiny is envisaged for-ordained by Him. There is a disparity between destiny and human will. It is said that there is an influence inside us that recognizes the compelling force of nature. General consumption of the universe has its origin in the recasting of the intellect of the impressions which reach it from nowhere in the course of time, space and causality.
Mythology is the study of myths. It does not entail that myths are necessarily phony. It can mean a sacred story but certainly not a false story. The obscure information which is brought to us by mythology and legend from the ancient ages of human society can at times lead certain dreams.
Secondly, to deal with the questions or general claims about humans, human society, and the human condition, let it be emphasized that human nature is the assortment of psychological characteristics including the universal to all ways of thinking and acting. Dreams in pre-scientific set-up were in comprehensive harmony to the people’s view of the universe. Dreams were an impression of the alien from the outer space contrasting with the remaining contents of the psyche, though those with a scientific cast of mind refuse to accept any such beliefs. Dream it is said is not of a divine origin; rather it has a demonic origin.
According to Strumpell, “in the waking state the mind thinks and imagines by means of verbal images and language, in dreams it thinks and imagines in actual perceptual images.” (Freud 1887, p. 39).Therefore, in dreams the mind preserves the same attitude of images and perceptions as in the waking state. On account of sickness the bodily organs can become an exciting source of dreams. Whilst we have had a contented day we are more bound to see happy dreams and its vice-versa on occasions of gloom.
If mind, body and culture be arranged in a triangle one can comprehend the interrelation and interdependence of the three. The dreams are a collaborated outcome of them. According to many, nerve stimulus and bodily stimulus are the lone and exclusive spring of dreams. The conduct of memory in dreams edifies us that “nothing which we have once psychically possessed is ever entirely lost.” (Freud 1887, p. 34).
Although humans have the right of free will, the end results guide their behavior. What is unknown to us as the reality of the external world, and it is just as imperfectly communicated to us as the data of consciousness as is the external world by the reports of our sense organs.
Culture also plays a key role in the behavior of individuals and it is not entirely free of conceptual and methodological difficulties. The culture of humanity determines whether the theories of Human Nature are sufficient and, according to the need of the environment, it constructs alternative theories.
Next, diagnosis of typical defects of humans, of what tends to go wrong in human life/society has been made possible by the classic studies or interpretations of dreams as carried out by Fraud. The symptoms and the root causes of the human weaknesses have been pointed out by Fraud in the book. No human being is devoid of defects, whether psychological or physical.
Psychological defects get termed under weaknesses which the individual tries to hide and feel ashamed of. The causes of these defects are not the same to all. Human nature varies from different combinations of symptoms and causes.
One symptom can be produced from one cause in one individual while it may not produce the same symptom in the other individual. This variation depends on the nature and surroundings of each and every individual. It may be noted that there are theories to know about ourselves and the universe. The whole trend of evolution of knowledge moves from a passive mode to the active mode. In performance we may never reach complete knowledge but the achieved knowledge will be in reflection of reality.
Finally, prescription or ideal for how human life should best be lived is a significant question ahead whether to chose a model society or a utopia. These paramount questions are clear in the work of Fraud. Accordingly, each individual forms the backbone of the society. Society is a group of like-minded individuals. Men and women together constitute the society.
Men and women are essentially the same and yet there is a vast fundamental difference in terms physical strength and mental views. It is the way they are made. Each has a different way of expressing themselves. This difference can be summed under congenital and natural being of a man and a woman. Within the confines of being a man the behavior of expression depends on person to person and the conditions surrounding him and the same goes for the class; women.
Since the beginning, man has sought a perfect society. A sense of balance of freedom and duties amongst individuals constitute a perfect society. Mutual harmony, best possible life for all, common sense and common purpose are the vital utopian philosophy. It unites the world for good and noble actions. Everyone dreams of a better world, to live in their own vision of paradise so it can be said that utopia is the common dream of Humanity.
Works cited
Freud, Sigmund and Strachey, James (ed). The Interpretation of Dreams. Basic Books: New York. 1955.
Freud, Sigmund. The Interpretation of Dreams. Schlaf und Traum. Leipzig, as quoted in p 18,Plain Label Books. 1887. p. 34. Web.
Freud, Sigmund. The Interpretation of Dreams. Plain Label Books. 1887. p. 39. Web.
The name of Sigmund Freud is not unfamiliar to most people in the modern world regardless of their level of education. This name has become synonymous with psychoanalysis, the science he essentially invented at the beginning of the 19th century. Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) was a medical doctor who worked with mental patients in Vienna prior to 1959 and is considered one of the founding fathers of modern day psychology because of his development of the psychoanalytic theory.
Originally trained as a neurologist, Freud’s work with his patients, frustrated by a mediocre ability to hypnotize, necessarily took on a more imaginative turn that revolutionized the way people approached the treatment of the mind. Although others had been doing work to understand the inner workings of the mind before him and others have come after him to refine and build on his theories, as well as add theories of their own, Freud is generally credited with the first break-through in treating the mind as an entity separate from the body. His identification of different levels of thought and how these levels interact and intertwine led to his development of psychotherapy. Within this theory, Freud outlines three major components of an individual’s psyche – the id, the ego and the superego.
Although the concept of the unconscious mind had existed well before Freud began his work, and the concept of hypnosis had been around for at least a century prior to his failure to work with it, it was Freud’s understanding of what the effects of hypnosis were in the treatment of the mind, as well as why these effects manifested themselves, that ultimately led to his development of the psychoanalytic process and the concepts therein.
To place his theory in basic terms, Freud determined that the human mind consisted of three main elements, which he called the Id, the Ego and the Super-ego. The id is the essentially biological element of the human mind that conceives of basic impulses and instinctual desires. As such, this element of the brain is treated as being essentially unconscious. The conscious mind was more associated with the ego, which was the socializing element of the human mind, functioning to help us navigate through the outer world by bringing the impulses and the desires of the id into socially acceptable bounds.
This was ruled over by the super-ego, what most people term their conscience, in which judgments are made regarding whether the individual’s determination to act or not to act on a specific impulse, including the methods in which any action is pursued, was good or bad. This area of the mind is also the one to dispense punishment whenever the rules are broken in the form of guilt. “Put more idiomatically: The Id says, ‘I want it now!!’; The Ego says, ‘No wait, please. Accept this substitute’ (sublimation); and the Superego judges either ‘Well done!’ or ‘You shouldn’t have done that. Now you will have to suffer guilt.’” (Landow, 1988).
Through the concept of the preconscious mind, Freud introduced the possibility that the conscious and unconscious mind were indeed linked in sophisticated ways, each affecting the other in a process ultimately geared toward protection and defense against traumatic events. This concept of the mind has informed a great many approaches to psychology over the years, as the following studies demonstrate.
The year of Freud’s death, his theories were already being recognized for their strength in multiple applications. In his article “The Contribution of Freud’s Insight Interview to the Social Sciences,” author Harold Lasswell (1939) illustrates the tremendous advantage Freud’s approach provided in terms of understanding the various dynamics involved in interpersonal relationships. This is primarily because Freud’s theory changed the focus of investigation from an extensive standpoint focused on exterior causes and responses, to an intensive standpoint. “An intensive standpoint has two distinguishing characteristics: it is prolonged and complex.
The observer focuses his attention upon the subject for a protracted period of time and uses special ways of exposing structure and functions” (Lasswell, 1939: 375-376). This longer observation period, coupled with a deeper understanding of the working of the mind, eventually reveals patterns in communication that, in turn, reveal deep internal causes and responses that had previously defied adequate explanation.
While a wide variety of observational positions had been developed and put into place spanning the entire continuum of extensive vs. intensive approach, Freud’s theory provided a scientific backdrop to these approaches. “The psychoanalytic standpoint is scientific and therapeutic. It is used to obtain data which are relevant to the confirmation or the disconfirmation of a body of explanatory propositions, and it is used to heal disease” (Lasswell, 1939: 376). Thus, Freud’s theory provided a basis of science for the investigation of the mind as well as a means of applying that science for the betterment of his patients.
At the same time that Freud’s theories broke the traditional approach to mental health, he also changed the relationship that was customary between the observer and the patient. “The participants know that they are being studied, and they know something about the special procedure by which they are studied” (378). This, too, had been a part of more traditional therapies but was fundamentally changed with Freud’s theory in that the observer takes an active role in the interview process, encouraging the participant to continue with free association techniques and, when appropriate, suggesting possible connections. “The interviewer offers ‘interpretations’ to the subject which are intended to assist him in recognizing and avowing with serenity those aspects of himself which are concealed from full waking awareness, or which are recognized, if at all, with great perturbation of affect” (381).
Through this process, the observer encourages the participant to investigate numerous possible interpretations of their behaviors and thoughts in order to develop a deeper insight into the various elements of their personality. This represented a significant shift in the traditional process in that the participant, with no prior educational knowledge of the approach taken, becomes an active agent to their own cure, eventually capable of some form of self-analysis.
However, even this early in the theory’s development, modifications to the theory are mentioned to have been made to either side of Freud’s original concepts regarding the role of the interviewer. “The group analysis of Trigant Burrow is supposed to take the leader off his authoritative pedestal and to add his analysis of himself to the material furnished by the group as a whole. The modifications introduced by Alfred Adler and Carl Jung gave prominence to the part played by the physician, decreasing the scope of the subject” (380).
While Freud’s theory provided essential information regarding the close connection between mental illnesses and the cultural context in which they occur, his interpretations of various symbols and concepts were also recognized early on as necessarily connected with his own cultural environment and issues.
This realization, in itself, also helped to further psychological studies as the researchers and doctors themselves began to understand and recognize the role that cultural environment played in their own researches and practices. The reach of this knowledge extended, even in 1939, from psychology to sociology to anthropology and beyond. The importance of understanding one’s own cultural approach to science of the mind continues to be stressed within any reputable training facility.
Freud’s psychoanalytic theory can also be seen to have been effective in treating criminals both before and after they have committed a crime. In “Psychoanalysis and Crime: A Critical Survey of Salient Trends in the Literature,” author John Fitzpatrick, surveys numerous studies of crime that employ a modified psychoanalytic approach. By 1976, the year that this article was published, it was widely recognized that Freud’s interpretation of symbols almost exclusively in terms of sexual orientation and libido were somewhat limited by his own personal understandings. Later researchers began taking the ego into greater account and recognizing a much broader range of possible interpretations.
Freud’s approach to crime is illustrated as having been rooted in “instinctual expression and unconscious psychosexual conflict,” but that later psychoanalysts “minimize the role of instincts and highlight selected adaptational and environmental factors which impel one toward criminal behavior” (Fitzpatrick, 1976: 68).
Freud’s theory held that children suffering the guilt and frustration of the oedipal complex, in which the child unconsciously desires an intimate relationship with the parent of the opposite sex and the removal of the parent of the same sex, who are incapable of solving this conflict on their own eventually grow up to become criminals as they seek alleviation from this guilt through punishment. The idea that criminals are anti-social and behave in ways that will end in incarceration primarily as a means of alleviating early unconscious and unresolved emotions of guilt was continued strongly into the 1940s and then began to take on less significance as researchers began recognizing the importance of environment and cultural concerns. However, according to Fitzpatrick, the instinctual libido concept continued to hold its own even into the 1970s.
Attempts to prove that Freud’s theories regarding crime were well-founded instead tended to illustrate the importance of environment in the development of a criminal while still taking on a psychoanalytic approach. “Adelaide M. Johnson and Stanislaus Szurek, who studied the parents of a number of delinquents as well as the delinquents themselves, found that there was a striking similarity between the parents’ regressive and unintegrated impulses and the behavior of their children” (Fitzpatrick, 1976: 71).
In other words, family’s in which the dynamics tended to place one child as the ‘bad’ seed or the scapegoat for all the family’s issues tended to turn out individuals who engaged in criminal behavior. While these studies did not conclusively prove ‘nature over nurture’, they did manage to illustrate a complex combination in which a mother’s unexpressed, unfulfilled and unacknowledged unconscious sexual promiscuity were reflected in her daughter’s engagement in illicit sex or a father’s lack of conscience regarding theft and petty crime, though unpracticed, is reflected in his son’s participation in such activities.
While not quite recognized yet as being a part of a debate that would engage scientists and researchers well into the future, Freud’s theory is thus seen to have unintentionally sparked a significant shift in human studies as we attempt to discover whether our behavior is brought about by our genetic disposition or our early environmental experiences.
Despite the libido approach to criminal investigations, by the time of Fitzpatrick’s article, the theory had mostly been discounted as comprising the dominant motivation behind criminal behavior. This was first because the theory seemed too simplistic to comprise the various elements involved in crime and secondly because of emerging evidence regarding the ego portion of the mind. Other reasons why a strictly instinctual theory was abandoned were because the mitigating factors of environmental stresses and experiences could not be responsibly ignored, particularly as attention on the family as a primary agent of socialization was explored to greater depths.
To support his contention that psychologists were beginning to move away from the strictly id-based concepts of unconscious guilt as a motivator for crime in favor of more ego-driven responses to the prevalent culture, Fitzpatrick cites the work of Franz Alexander. Alexander was unable to explain the various motivations of a group of criminals in America based upon strict application of Freud’s theories of criminality. “Alexander held that culture can not be conceptualized merely as either a magnified individual or a force that exerts a constant and common impact on all the people exposed to it. Instead, culture reflects a multiplicity of phenomena that need to be studied in their own right to determine how they influence the exceedingly complex etiology of crime” (Fitzpatrick, 1976: 72).
Erik Erikson took these ideas one step further and identified adolescence as the crucial period in an individual’s life in which they determine whether they associate themselves with a vocation and a productive ‘normal’ existence or if they will embrace a life of crime.
Through his synopsis of Freud’s theory as it is applied to criminal behavior, Fitzpatrick illustrates the many ways in which psychoanalytic theory had evolved between its original presentation, in this context in 1916 in a paper written by Freud, and the mid-1970s.
Having been presented as primarily concerned with the operations of the subconscious mind, or id, as the primary motivator for a life of crime, the theory underwent numerous studies and comparisons in which it was discovered that while some innate tendencies seemed to contribute to an individual’s choice to participate in criminal activity, there were other, equally compelling motivations and associations having to do with the individual’s environment and understandings based upon that environment. Thus, the ego was seen to take on a stronger role in the application of psychoanalytic theory not only in the criminal justice sector, but in other realms of mental health services as well.
Moving into more recent years, psychoanalytic theory has seen a number of changes and applications and remains a well-respected method of treatment for numerous types of patients in a variety of fields. Rebecca Curtis (1996) discusses the various ways in which psychoanalytic theory can be usefully integrated with a cognitive-social approach as a means of attempting to explain why people behave the way we do yet continues to call for a new model that more accurately depicts the knowledge gained so far.
Launching off of Freud’s original model of the human mind as essentially a three part system – the id, the ego and the superego – psychology has advanced to the point where the self, identified by Freud as essentially the ego, is now defined in a variety of different ways and placed on an entire shelving system of relative hierarchies. For instance, “Klein presented the idea that the term self provides an integrative function, which the term ego cannot. He pointed out that the ego cannot be both in conflict with a drive and also create the conflict. The self would be aware of such a conflict between ego and drive” (Curtis, 1996: 29). As this suggests, the field of what constitutes the unconscious id, the self as ego or the governing factor of the superego has thus been blown wide open.
As these fields are explored, a great deal of overlap has been found between various different theories and psychological approaches, either forcing the psychoanalyst to ignore compelling evidence or entertain the possibility that another approach may be equally or perhaps even more effective in adequately explaining variances. At the same time, questions are being asked regarding the various processes handled by the individual elements of the mind as defined by Freud such as “primary process thinking is now no longer considered by some psychoanalysts to be the exclusive province of the id.
Freud was attempting to include this irrational self in his concepts of the preconscious and unconscious, but his rejection of the spiritual self, which he connected with religion, led him to regard aspects of this type of processing, so frequently related to aspirations for a union with universals … as pathological rather than as a search for a repetition of a previously rewarding experience” (Curtis, 1996: 30).
As psychoanalytic theory has developed, it has moved away from the formal interpretations offered by Freud in the early 1900s and taken on new significance with the realization of the role environment plays upon available interpretations of various acts and behaviors. This reinterpretation of symbols and other particulars was taking place even as early as 1939, the year of Freud’s death. Freud’s theory has also been shown to have greater depth to it than he seemed to imagine as Freud focused upon the unconscious id-like motivations for various behaviors, both positive and negative, exhibited by individuals.
Investigations into why this should be so further helped to advance the field as the significance of the cultural role began to be realized to greater extent. This placed emphasis upon the mitigating effects of the ego as it attempted to find a means of balancing the inner needs of the id with the outer needs of the cultural environment and the individual’s experiences within it. Finally, the fundamentals of psychoanalytic theory, with its useful model of the human mind, has been adapted and adjusted to be combined with other human behavior theories in an attempt to come to a more accurate idea of just how the individual personality develops in all its complexities and disconnects.
References
Curtis, Rebecca. (1992). “A Process View of Consciousness and the ‘Self’: Integrating a Sense of Connectedness with a Sense of Agency.” Psychological Inquiry. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Fitzpatrick, John J. (1976). “Psychoanalysis and Crime: A Critical Survey of Salient Trends in the Literature.” Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science. Sage Publications.
Lasswell, Harold D. (1939). “The Contribution of Freud’s Insight Interview to the Social Sciences.” The American Journal of Sociology. University of Chicago Press: 375-390.
Freud’s case of hysteria is considered to be a complex treatment of a young girl Dora who tried to resist any medical interference with her psychological state. This book is rather complicated and covers attempts to treat hysterical symptoms rooted from sexual basis of the general patient’s condition. The subject of sexuality was predominantly reflected in the Freud’s writing where he tried to connect all the problems of psychological state with sexual disorders.
Discussion
At the very beginning of the story Freud stressed that he would try to disclose all the sexual questions in detail. The reader could see that the interpretations of the character’s dreams described in the text are given a special place by the author. The whole text is devoted to the disclosure of the symptoms step by step. Though the story is rather thought provoking and highlight all the possible aspects of the Dora’s case of hysteria, it cannot underline the main aspects of the psychological disorder and answer the necessary questions as to the hysteria problems.
Freud wrote the text taking into account all the details of sexual methodology and psychological science trying to connect them and show that sexual problems usually give a start to all psychological disorders.
Analyzing the writings of the author it should be stressed that Freud prescribed his case of Dora’s treatment to another year which was wrong. He assigned it to 1899 rather than to 1900. Freud stated that the last visit of Dora was in 1902 though the author managed to provide false information for three times.
The problem of the psychological disorder is the central one. Freud underlined the fact that this disease is closely connected only with Dora’s sexual activities. Freud’s treatment demonstrated in the text resulted in the condition improvement and complete stop of new symptoms formation. The author focused on the psychoanalytic investigation.
Dora’s case of hysteria was presented in the text taking into account earlier experience of Freud. Nevertheless the case of treatment appeared to be disastrous. And Freud realized that he had gone wrong in the methodology he used. When Dora was to stop her treatment Freud felt irritation and madness. His writing shows the author’s attitude to the situation. More deep analysis of the story allows seeing how two psychological states interact, morality of Freud and Dora. It should be stressed that no Dora is merely considered to be the protagonist of the story but Freud. This piece of writing allowed Freud to dismiss the case and rid of Dora. It was a difficult experience for Freud to cope with this case both in terms of morality and psychological state.
Freud’s manner of writing is perfect but rather complicated. It covers a lot of aspects of medicine and psychology which are closely interwoven with each other. He realized that the symptoms of Dora were characterized differently, by the reversal effect. All the text is the deep analysis of the history and possible background of the disease. Freud searched for possible motives which could help him understanding the reason for the symptoms. He made a mistake in identifying the exact reason for the hysteria symptoms connecting it only with the sexual situation of the patient. The main aspects covered by the author are the following:
Physical pressure;
Phobia symptoms based on sexual disorientation;
Erotogenic zone repression;
The case analysis is the research of Freud devoted to the sexual aspect of the girl’s life beginning from the very childhood.
The conclusion as to the hysteria treatment taking into account only sexual aspect can be considered mistakable. No wonder that the author made such conclusion, because his solution of hysteria was based on the studies and experience he used to go through. But this method cannot be the key element to the treatment of all cases of this disease. His conclusions are based only on the aspect he considered to be the most appropriate in this case. Though it cannot be the so firmly approved. Taking into account the meaning of dreams and sexual experience Freud made his conclusions as to the disease symptoms.
In prefatory remarks Freud failed to determine the age of the patient and he used different interpretations such as “woman”, “girl” etc. it shows the confusion of the author in the text presentation and disclosure of the problem. According to the author he wrote this work for about two weeks; nevertheless he managed to reflect all the peculiarities of the case treatment and the background of hysteria disease with the reasons for the symptoms.
Conclusion
Thus we can make a conclusion that the complexity of the Dora’s case can be explained by the history of the disease background. The author tried to devote more attention to the sexual side of the problem and show logical connection between the psychological point and the sexual one. He managed to underline the gradual development of the disease in case of treatment stop. Though Freud made some mistakable conclusions in his work the manner of presentation is excellent which proves that he is really a giant in psychology and literature.
References
Lawall, Sarah. The Norton Anthology of World Literature. The Twentieth Century (Second Edition). 2001.