Sigmund Freud: A Very Brief Biography

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INTRO Sigmund Freud is considered one of the most influential figures in modern psychology. He is best known as the father of psychoanalysis. He developed several important theories of personality, including the theories of mind, the id, the ego, and the superego, life and death instincts, psychosexual development, and defense mechanisms. He also published many books that helped shape psychology into what it is today. EARLY LIFE Sigismund Schlomo Freud was born in Moravia, Czech Republic on May 6, 1856, to Jakob and Amalia Freud. His parents quickly moved their family to Vienna, Austria, where Freud would grow up. He was considered his mother’s favorite of 8 children, a fact that he was aware of. He would later say that “men who are the favorite of their mother keep for life the feeling of a conqueror, that confidence of success that often induces real success.” He was first homeschooled by his parents, and then went to public school where he consistently excelled, placing top of his class 7 out of 8 years. When he was 22, he changed his name from Sigismund to Sigmund. He was proficient in German, French, Italian, Spanish, English, Hebrew, Latin, and Greek. Freud loved reading William Shakespeare’s works, and some believe that his understanding of human psychology came from Shakespeare’s many plays. As a child, Sigmund had wanted to be a government official, but because he was Jewish, he instead decided to enroll in medical school at age 17. His studies included philosophy under Franz Brentano, physiology under Ernst Brücke, and zoology under Darwinist professor Carl Claus. He earned his medical degree from the University of Vienna in 1881. His experiences in medical school would greatly influence his personality ... ... middle of paper ... ...nd become “fixated” on the uncompleted stage, which continues to affect them in their adult lives. Freud’s first stage of psychosexual development is the oral stage. The erogenous zone in this stage is the mouth, and it lasts from birth to one year. The rooting and sucking reflex is of primary importance in this stage. This is how the child eats, drinks, and sucks its thumb, deriving pleasure from each of these activities. They can put objects into their mouths, which is a way of exploring the world around them by tasting. Freud says the primary conflict of the oral stage is the process of weaning the child off of their oral dependences. If fixation occurs in the oral stage, problems can develop with drinking, eating, smoking, or nail biting. DEFENSE MECHANISMS FREUDIAN SLIPS INTRO TO PSYCHOANALYSIS PSYCHOANALYSIS INTRO TO FAMOUS CASES

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