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Strengths and weaknesses of Sigmund Freud’s theory
Freud's contributions to psychology
Explain the contribution of Freud to the study of psychology
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The Psychology of Religion is composed of a variety of different perspectives, which in certain cases proves difficult in determining both the clinical and pastoral implications of a theory. Modern-day psychology has demonstrated possible beneficial results in religious spiritual individuals, however, much of the current research has avoided questioning the “real” presence of the Divine or a Higher Being. Although a century has passed since his undertaking of psychoanalysis, Sigmund Freud readily settled the question of religion by declaring it a form of mental illness. While Freud’s Psychology of Religion is that religion only exists as a neurosis, his view provides the three clinical implications of hypnotism, free association, and dream analysis, each of which have also remained a source of criticism. Rather than recognize the beneficial aspects religion and spirituality have to offer, Freud instead likened religion to a mental illness, which could be cured through psychoanalysis. When discussing weaknesses of society in Civilization and its Discontents, Freud remarks “The religions of humanity, too, must be classified as mass-delusions…Needless to say, no one who shares a delusion recognizes it as such.” (“Civilization and its Discontents” 774). Freud felt that his conclusion on religion was logical, yet he relied on paring it to disorders, such as hysteria, in an attempt to gain scientific credibility. Freud also benefitted from the delusion comparison because it offered yet another situation in which his psychoanalytic tools could be used. While Freud rarely made use of hypnotism, he did not advise against its use on an individual basis as a means of self-analysis. Citing the potential damage resulting from a therapist... ... middle of paper ... ...etation of Dreams.” The Major Works of Sigmund Freud. Ed. William Benton. Chicago: Encyclopedia Britannica, Inc., 1952. 135-398. Print Freud, Sigmund. “Selected Papers on Hysteria.” The Major Works of Sigmund Freud. Ed. William Benton. Chicago: Encyclopedia Britannica, Inc., 1952. 25-119. Print Jonte-Pace, Diane E. Speaking the Unspeakable: Religion, Misogyny, and the Uncanny Mother in Freud’s Cultural Texts. Ewing: University of California Press, 2001. Print. Parker, Ian. "Rosalia H.: With Freud In A Prelude To Psychoanalysis." Psychodynamic Practice 13.4 (2007): 375-383. Academic Search Premier. Web. Summers, Frank. "Psychoanalysis: Romantic, Not Wild." Psychoanalytic Psychology 28.1 (2011): 13-32. PsycARTICLES. Web. Woodworth, R.S. “Some criticisms of the Freudian psychology.” Journal of Abnormal Psychology. 12.3 (1917): 174-194. Print.
In 2002, Doctor Armand Nicholi, Jr. sought to put two of the greatest minds of the 20th century together to debate the answer to the lifelong question, “Is there a God, and if so, how should we respond to his existence?” Nicholi is the first scholar to ever put the arguments of C.S. Lewis and Sigmund Freud side by side in an attempt to recreate as realistic of a debate as possible between the two men. He examines their writings, letters, and lectures in an attempt to accurately represent both men in this debate. His result, the nearly 300 page book, The Question of God: C.S. Lewis and Sigmund Freud Debate God, Love, Sex, and the Meaning of Life, is one of the most comprehensive, well researched, and unbiased summaries of the debate between the worldviews of “believer and unbeliever” (Pg. 5).
Similar to Marx, Freud believes humans simply make up the idea of God in explanation to things science could not disprove. Humans take relationships from our Earthly fathers and compare it to our Heavenly father. According to Freud, “Religion is an attempt to master the sensory world in which we are situated by means of the wishful world which we have developed within us as a result of biological and psychological necessities.” (H/R,p.26) Science can neither prove or disprove religion. Freud chooses to believe science and claims religion is only comforting and hopeful thinking to our purpose after
...othing more than repressed contents, these contents being constellated around the figure of the father. (Palmer, 1997, 164). It would seem that Freud went above and beyond to dispel religion as a healthy essential practice for the growth of society but rather saw it as a weakness. That many of Freud’s theories have stood the test of time is tantamount to his title as the ‘Father of Psychoanalysis’ although many have been tweaked or adjusted to suit today’s conditions. It would be unwise to completely ignore Freud’s views on religion but I think we can conclude that they are somewhat flawed.
Erich Fromm in his psychoanalytical approach to religion is distinct from the earlier works of Sigmund Freud. Fromm defines religion as “any system of thought and action shared by a group which gives the individual a frame of orientation and an object of devotion.” Fromm argues that irreligious systems including all the different kinds of idealism and “private” religions deserve being defined as a “religion.” Based on Fromm’s theory, it is explained that there is no human being who does not have a “religious need,” almost every part of human life reflects religious need and its fulfillment, in fact he states it to be “inherent” in man.
Sigmund Freud believed that he “occupies a special place in the history of psychoanalysis and marks a turning point, it was with it that analysis took the step from being a psychotherapeutic procedure to being in depth-psychology” (Jones). Psychoanalysis is a theory or therapy to decode the puzzle of neurotic disorders like hysteria. During the therapy sessions, the patients would talk about their dreams. Freud would analyze not only the manifest content (what the dreamer remembers) of the dreams, but the disguise that caused the repressions of the idea. During our dreams, the decision making part of personality’s defenses are lowered allowing some of the repressed material to become more aware in a distorted form. He distinguished between
To draw a parallel of obsessional neurosis with religion, established disconcerting similarities between compulsive acts and religious practices that, in his view, aimed essentially the same thing: remove the guilt by a ritualistic compensatory restoration. Both the religious obsessive as in the main formula would be similar to what happens psych- scroll in a dream - through which the trivial details of the ritual activity become more important, since they are forcibly expelled the truly meaningful content. Regarding this analogy, Freud concludes that we can conceive of obsessional neurosis as a pathological match against religious formation, featuring obsessional neurosis as an individual religiosity and religion as a universal obsessional neurosis.
In the first two chapter of the book, Freud explores a possible source of religious feeling. He describes an “oceanic feeling of wholeness, limitlessness, and eternity.” Freud himself is unable to experience such a feeling, but notes that there do indeed...
In the midst of his already successful career, Sigmund Freud decided to finally dedicate a book of his to religion, referring to the subject as a phenomena faced by the scientific community. This new work, Totem and Taboo, blew society off its feet, ultimately expanding the reaches of debates and intellectual studies. From the beginning, Freud argues that there exists a parallel between the archaic man and the contemporary compulsive. Both these types of people, he argues, exhibit neurotic behavior, and so the parallel between the two is sound. Freud argues that we should be able to determine the cause of religion the same way we determine the cause of neurosis. He believes, since all neuroses stem from childhood experiences, that the origins of this compulsive behavior we call religion should also be attributed to some childhood experiences of the human race, too. Freudian thought has been dominant since he became well known. In Cooper’s The Last of the Mohicans, religion becomes entirely evident as a major part of the novel, but the role it specifically plays is what we should question. Therefore, I argue that Freud’s approach to an inborn sense of religion and the role it plays exists in The Last of the Mohicans, in that the role religion plays in the wilderness manifests itself in the form of an untouchable truth, an innate sense of being, and most importantly, something that cannot and should not be tampered with.
Contemporary Psychology, 36, 575-577. Freud, S. (1961). The Species of the World. The Complete Works of Sigmund Freud. London: The Hogarths.
Freud, S. (1957b). Some character types met with in psychoanalytic work. In J. Strachey (Ed. & Trans.), The standard edition of the complete psychological works of Sigmund Freud (Vol. 14, pp. 309–333). London: Hogarth Press. (Original work published 1916)
After reading a few of the chapters in "Psychology Through the Eyes of Faith", I feel as if I have learned more in one sitting than many in years of my life. The chapters were not life altering, but simply stated things that I have overlooked. The topics that affected me most were on living with the mysteries of faith, benefits of true rest, and the emotion of happiness. Yes, they are really in no way related, but each of these topics impacted me in a different way, and made me think about what was being presented.
A framework of five models is shared: Enemies, Spies, Colonialists, Neutral Parties, and Allies. The Enemies model either associates no relationship between Christianity and psychology. The Spies model focuses on what works best for them from both Christianity and psychology. Colonialists use psychology only to the degree that it fits theology. Neutral Parties model holds that psychology and theology are independent with possible correlation between findings of the two, however that is about as far as one discipline may encroach on the other. Allies, the model considered by Entwistle, acknowledges that while psychology and theology are separate, they are still dependent, based upon the underlying unity of truth of God’s written word and His Works (Entwistle, 2010). The underpinning of the integrative approach to psychology and Christianity appears to be that of anthropology; this may be seen in the two books, God g...
disagreement. With everyone trying to promote themselves in the eyes of God, or achieve eternal salvation spirituality is no longer about humanity’s deliverance. The individual believes that as long as he serves the word of God he is justified in benefiting himself. Humans have, in a way, made religion into a competition, and with competition comes conflict.
Goodwin, A. (1998). Freud and Erikson: Their Contributions to the Psychology of God-Image Formation. Pastoral Psychology, 47(2), 97-117. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.
The aim of this essay is to clarify the basic principles of Freud’s theories and to raise the main issues.