Literary theory is a body of ideas and methods used in interpreting literature. By literary theory we refer to the different theories developed in order to retrieve meanings from literary work. According to Culler “Theory in literary studies is not an account of the nature of literature or methods for its study...It’s a body of thinking and writing whose limits are exceedingly hard to define.” (in Culler, p. 3;as cited Chakraborty, n.d.). There are a few schools of literary theory, but this paper will analyze and discuss the psychoanalytic approach of Freud and Lacan as opposed to the liberal humanist idea of analysis.
To begin with, the psychoanalytic approach is based on psychoanalysis itself and the main critics were Sigmund Freud and Jacques Lacan who agreed to a certain degree, that a text is fundamentally related with the psyche. Freud strongly believed that our unconscious is affected by events which occurred during childhood and so he divided the human psyche into developmental stages regarding one’s relationship with parents, drives and the pleasure principle. These stages are the oral, anal and the phallic, representing the levels of desire and repression.What he claims is that, what has
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The Lacanian theory is in support of the postructuralist idea of the division of the self, linking this idea to intertextuality and how textuality is made up of cultural meanings challenging the borders of the text, which become “diagnostic telling us something about the meanings and implications of the text” (Delli, 2017, para. ). This theory binds together the writer with the culture, the text with the reader, at the level of language which is an access to the culture. He considers the text as a process-field and he focuses on the structure of a text, through repetitions, gaps and closures. He focuses not on the text itself, but on the structures of it and how they are realized by the
Psychoanalysis created by Sigmund Freud is much like Individual therapy in the sense that it will explore the past and how any past circumstances are effecting the now adult. This therapy will last as long as the client needs the support of the counselor and relies on the client’s full participation. In this form of therapy the counselor will participate in guiding the client thru the unconscious mind to and find how it may be contributing to thoughts and behaviors that are causing the client distress. Like analytical therapy psychoanalysis will cover a variety of issues including psychosexual, compulsive, and depressive disorders. According to Haggerty, J. (2006) “The essence of Freud’s theory is that sexual and aggressive energies originating in the id (or unconscious) are modulated by the ego, which is a set of functions that moderates between the id and external reality. Defense mechanisms are constructions of the ego that operate to minimize pain and to maintain psychic equilibrium. The superego, formed during latency (between age 5 and puberty), operates to control id drives
The purpose of this paper is to provide an analysis of the work of Sigmund Freud and a neo-analytical theorist. This paper will compare the work of Freud and Karen Horney and begins with an introduction to the study of personality and an identification of the key elements in Freud and Horney’s theories. The paper then moves into an analysis of where Horney and Freud would find agreement and disagreement. Finally, an analysis of improvements from Freud to neo-analytical theory will be discussed.
Sigmund Freud and Carl Rogers are two extremely renowned individuals who have greatly contributed to the history of psychology. Their contributions are the foundation for the tools, techniques, and methodologies used by psychologist today. Although, each psychologist is from different times and developed different methods, they shared a passion for the workings of the human mind. As a result, their drive and foundation has motivated and prompted new theories and research for the future. This paper will provide a summary of two articles highlighting the processes contemporary psychologists use to develop the theories of Freud and Rogers. It also explains their views of human nature and worldviews as
Sigmund Freud’s primary version of psychoanalytical theory presented in the late 19th century is one that has withstood the tests of time; with just a few exceptions. Freud’s psychoanalytical theory which is comprised of many of Freud’s very unique and great theories like the tripartite mind, psychosexual developmental stages, and defense mechanisms gave insight into the inner-workings of the mind that until then had not yet been discovered nor explored. After all, psychoanalysis centers on exposing the human unconscious by viewing human behavior through a deterministic lens, meaning that the mind is governed by the unconscious, instinctual drives, and other forces.
Reading a narrative from a psychoanalytic perspective can prove to be a sometimes frustrating experience. Psychoanalysis often disregards the actual texts and verbal context of a piece of literature in favor of the Freudian and Lacanian ideas, which seek to find encrypted motifs in the depths of every creation in order to reveal the author’s unconscious mind. Nevertheless, the critiques of psychoanalytic interpretation of literature claim that such interpretations focus on the content of the text at the expense of the literary form and temporal dimension, which can reduce the literary plots to lifeless machinations. Furthermore, psychoanalytic interpretation of a text may tell us less about the author’s unconscious mind and more about the
Psychoanalysis is the subdivision of psychology that concentrates on treating mental disorders by identifying the relations between the conscious mind and the unconscious mind. It is said that often the unconscious mind prods people to make decisions even if they don’t’ distinguish it on a conscious level. The psychoanalytical theory, introduced in the 19th century by Sigmund Freud, highlights on the idea that experiences that occur during one’s childhood can contribute to the way people will function later in adulthood. In this paper, I will analyze Lolita, by Vladimir Nabokov through psychoanalysis and provide reasoning behind the characters actions in this controversial novel.
The psychodynamic approach founded by Sigmund Freud was a lot of our behavior, is determined by unconscious thoughts, memories. Freud developed the first complete theory of mind and is the founder of a series of techniques called psychoanalysis. This aims to explore the unconscious mind by using techniques, such as free association, dream interpretation etc. and then and be used treat abnormal behavior. Psychodynamic psychology ignores the aspects of science and instead focuses on trying to get inside the head of individuals to make logic of their relationships, experiences and how they see the world. (McLeod, 2007). Freud’s theories
Psychoanalytic criticism originated in the work of Austrian psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud, who pioneered the technique of psychoanalysis. Freud developed a language that described, a model that explained, and a theory that encompassed human psychology. His theories are directly and indirectly concerned with the nature of the unconscious mind. Through his multiple case studies, Freud managed to find convincing evidence that most of our actions are motivated by psychological forces over which we have very limited control (Guerin 127). One of Freud’s most important contributions to the study of the psyche is his theory of repression: the unconscious mind is a repository of repressed desires,
The theory argues that principles of humanity are universal and timeless and that the purpose of literature is to enhance human values. Formalism and its contemporary version, New Criticism, place an emphasis
Psychoanalysis is a therapy and also a theory which was produced by Sigmund Freud. This therapy stress that human behavior and emotion are unconsciously cause by their past experience and drive in the unconscious part and the client doesn’t know them. The therapist always uses this therapy to help the client understand more emotion and
Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) is responsible for developing the Psychoanalytic Theoretical Perspective; Freud argued that our early life experiences are essentially the base to our subconscious mind and in turn heavily influence our current behavior. Freud believed that people could be treated and healed by articulating their dreams and childhood memories allowing an individual to gain insight into these unconscious thoughts and ultimately motivate them to resolve the repressed conflicts within. This technique was developed into a therapy used today known as Psychoanalysis, similar to hypnosis, it was founded in 1896 (“Freud's Psychoanalytic Theories.”). Just like any other psychological theory, there are many interesting concepts to Freud's Psychoanalytic Theoretical Perspective. The theory says that your personality is determined by the manner in which your behaviors have been depicted to the unconscious mind, this theory tells us that our behavior is completely
Psychoanalysis was the name given by Sigmund Freud to a system of interpretation and therapeutic treatment of psychological disorders. (McLeod, 2007) In particular, we present five key concepts on psychoanalytic therapy: structure of personality, psychosexual stages, defense mechanism, anxiety, and the unconscious mind.
Undoubtedly Sigmund Freud is the father of psychoanalysis. He was an influential thinker of the early twentieth century who elaborated the theory that the mind is a complex energy-system and the structural investigation of which is the proper province of psychology. Freud articulated and refined the concepts of the unconscious, infantile sexuality and repression and he proposed tripartite account of the mind ‘s structure, all as part of a radically new conceptual and therapeutic frame of reference for the understanding of human psychological development and the treatment of abnormal mental conditions. Freudian approach can be
Sigmund Freud was the discoverer and inventor of psychoanalysis and coined the term in 1896 after publishing studies on Hysteria with Joseph Breuer in 1895. Psychoanalysis still remains unsurpassed in its approach to understanding human motivation, character development, and psychopathology. Freud’s insights and analyses of psychic determinism, early childhood sexual development, and unconscious processes have left an indelible mark on psychology (Korchin, 1983).
By assimilating the structure of unconscious to that of language, Lacan bridges between psychoanalysis and linguistics and hence makes a new interdisciplinary field of study. The splitting of self that Freud was considered to be merely psycho-physical is in Lacanian term an alienation that occurs in language. This alienation happens as a consequence of the