Sigmund Feud is popularly referred to as "the father of psychoanalysis." He lived between 1856 and 1939. His work and ideas have greatly influenced psychological imaginations and popularized notions such as Freudian sleep and dream symbolism, defense mechanism, unconsciousness, and many more. These notions have greatly contributed to films, literature, and theories such as feminism, psychology, philosophy and criticism.Freud is also known for theories such as unconscious mind, specifically those revolving around repression mechanism. He redefined sexual desire as mobile and believed that it is directed towards a wide variety of objects. His therapeutic techniques improved the understanding of transference in therapeutic relationship. The technique presumed that human beings are able to gain insight into the unconscious desires through dreams.
Freud's psychoanalysis had an objective of bringing the repressed feelings and thoughts to consciousness. Freud's successors including his daughter Anna Freud postulated that the goal of the therapy was to allow for development of a stronger ego in the patient. Other theorists and researchers such as Jacques Lacan thought that the therapy would lead to the analysis and acknowledgement of the patient's inability to satisfy their basic desires.
Traditionally, it was believed that bringing the unconscious feelings and thoughts to unconsciousness could be enhanced if the patient was encouraged to talk freely about their dreams. The other important aspect of psychoanalysis is lack of direct involvement by the analyst in the whole process, which encouraged the patient to project the feelings and thoughts. The process of transference allows the patient to resolve and rebuilt the repressed conflict; specifically, the childhood conflict with one's parents.
Personality
According to Sigmund Freud's theory on psychoanalytic of personality, human behavior results from the interaction of the three components of the mind: superego, ego and the id. The structural theory of personality emphasizes on conflict on the parts of the mind, personality and mind shape behavior. Such conflicts are thought to be unconscious, thus, Freud argued that the personality which develops during childhood is shaped through psychosexual stages that he called psychosexual theory of development.
During the stages, the child faces conflict that results from social expectations and biological drives. These are internal conflicts, and if one manages to successfully master the stages, it results in maturity in personality. However, Freud's ideas have since been criticized because of the way he focuses on sexuality as a way that drives human personality development.
According to Freud, personality development results from interaction among the fundamental of human mind: superego, ego and id. Conflict among these three structures and an effort...
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