Mind and Body: Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung - Essay Example

Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) is considered the ‘father of psychoanalysis’ due to his immense contribution to the theory and field of psychoanalysis. His theories mainly focused on the conflicted relationship especially between children and parents and on how to deal with pathology or mental disorders. He gained inspiration from Joseph Breuer as he was carrying out hypnosis on patients and by observing hysterical women. He thus came up with the idea that personality is unconscious, hidden, and unknown and that behavior is shaped by unconscious mental processes (Austrian 15-16, 204). Freud believed that the mind is structured into two parts: the conscious and unconscious mind. The conscious mind represents the things which can be brought into awareness easily or those we are aware of while the unconscious mind represents the things outside our awareness but influence our behavior (Cherry, nap). Out of these parts, personality is formed which comprises of three components: id, ego and superego. Id is part of the unconscious mind; it is the most primitive and source of all libidinal energy (life instincts) and death instincts. It operates on pleasure principle hence seeks immediate gratification of needs. The ego mediates between the id and superego and operates on reality principle. Its work is to ensure demands are satisfied in acceptable ways hence delayed gratification is preferred (Austrian 15). The superego on the other hand, acts according to the moral standards. The ego in its mediation works encounters difficulties leading to anxiety. This prompts it to develop defense mechanisms such as rationalization, repression and denial to protect itself from anxiety. Freud also believed children develop in stages (psychosexual stages) with energy focused on different parts of the body at each stage and failure to progress to next stage leads to fixation while success leads to healthy development. For example, getting fixated at phallic stage can lead to Oedipus for boys and Electra complex for girls. These include: oral, anal, phallic, latent and genital stages (Cherry, nap). Freud also developed a theory of dreams to explain the unconscious mind. For him, dreams are “a royal road to the unconscious” (Austrian 14). They reveal repressed memories from childhood desires unfulfilled. He emphasized on the role of instincts especially sexual instincts in driving people to dream. He interpreted dreams through free association whereby women would narrate their experiences revealing their hidden truths. He enumerated two components of dreams: latent and manifest. Manifest content are the actual images and thoughts contained in the dream or what people remember on waking up. These have no meaning according to Freud as it is the “disguised representation of true thought underlying a dream” (chap 6). Latent content is the unconscious desires or the hidden psychological or true meaning of a dream. The interpretation of dreams requires the dream content (Manifest content) to be translated one by one to language of dream-thoughts (latent content). This process is what Freud regarded as ‘dreamwork’ (Freud, chp.2). This can be done through condensation, displacement, symbolism, or Secondary revision. Dream formation for Freud is based on condensation process where two or more latent thoughts are represented as one manifest dream image. Through symbolism, vague concepts are converted to dream images. For example, elongated objects like sticks are associated with male organs while boxes and hollow objects represent female organs (Freud, Chap. 6). In secondary revision, dream loses appearance of absurdity and incoherence. The role of instincts is to drive people to fulfill their needs hence disturbing the sleeper as he/she reacts to the external stimuli and internal emotions. In this case, the mind manufactures dreams to protect the sleeper from these disturbances. Although Carl Gustav Jung (1875-1960) was influenced by Freud in his dream theory, he differs significantly from Freud. Jung believes in the existence of the unconscious but not on instinctual or sexual drives, rather on more spiritual drives (Austrian 203). He also emphasizes on the role of collective consciousness in production of myths, visions, and dreams common to different cultures and different periods and not individual consciousness. While Freud views dream as the road to the unconscious, Jung views dreams as a way of communication. Dreams for Jung represent wisdom of past ages and are a “symbolic guide to present and future conduct” (Austrian 107). The interpretation of dreams as opposed to Freud does not reveal repressed sexual needs but rather, something about ourselves, relationships with others and situations in our waking life. Both manifest and latent contents are vital and revealing whereas Freud only attaches more importance to latent content to reveal true meaning of dream. Jung also believes people are capable of interpreting own dreams. For him, dream symbols are universal (have similar meaning across cultures). He thus came up with archetypes that help in dream interpretation. Archetypes are “images and ideas common to all humanity from beginning of life” (Austrian 203). These include but not limited to: the persona (self); shadow (repressed aspects of yourself); Anima /animus (female and male aspects of yourself); divine child or true self; the wise old man; the great mother and trickster (Austrian 203-204). Jung’s model offers a deeper and more inclusive explanation for the nature and meaning of dreams. Freud’s explanation is not inclusive as it dwells much on sexual instincts and all his subjects were female. It is therefore, not appropriate to generalize the findings to whole population although he gave his own accounts which may be liable to bias. For example, assuming that elongated or hollow objects are sexual organs is absurd. These objects may represent something else in the dream and not necessarily repressed sexual urges. I agree with Jung that dreams are a way of communicating and acquainting with the unconscious as most of the times we dream of daily activities or something that is disturbing our mind and not for the sake of avoiding sleep disturbance as Freud purports. The archetypes given by Jung can be used by anybody to interpret dreams. Besides, they warn of days to come and how to shape our behavior. Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace Darwin and Wallace were the discoverer’s of the ‘natural selection’ phenomenon and turned it into a theory explaining how species evolve. The Vestiges of Creation 1844, stated that “several series of animated beings, from simplest to oldest, to the highest and most recent” were under the providence of God (Darwin Vii). This supported creationism which is faith-based and purports that all living things were created by God according to biblical teachings. Organisms reproduced young ones through the reproductive process thus maintaining the existence of their species. However, as science advanced, the theory of evolution came up which views species as having evolved from earlier species but in different forms. The idea of natural selection or survival for the fittest was put forward by Darwin although Wallace also had a similar idea but had not developed a method of how evolution takes place. They both borrowed the idea from Robert Malthus an economist who viewed population as growing at geometrical rate while food production was growing at arithemetic rate hence a time would come when population would be higher than food production leading to extinction of races (Darwin 61; Wallace 4). Since population would be high accompanied by other changes in the universe, the organisms would be forced to struggle for surviaval and only the fittest would survive. On The Origin of Species, Darwin indicates that the preservation of individual, inherited by offspring would give the offspring better chance of survival (61). Natural selection for Darwin thus is the preservation of favorable variations and rejection of injurious variations. Wallace in his article “On the Law Which has Regulated the Introduction of Species," indicates that “every species has come into existsence coincident both in space and time with a pre-existing closely allied species” (5). This is natural selection for him as his work was associated with geographical studies. According to the theory of natural selection, organisms must learn to adapt to changes in the universe by changing their structure and form including internal organs. For example, in cold seasons, it grows fur and next generations are born with fur. The animal may also change its internal organs to adapt to new food species in case of scarcity thus affecting offsprings who are born with the new features which are better adapted to the environment (Wallace 310). As such, the offsprings differ from parents or same species in every possible way, every organ and in every function (307). They have different color, form, size and structure of internal and external organs. However, they resemble parents in their adaptaion to new conditions in the universe. However, he argues that the changes must be slow since the changes in the universe are also very slow. The problem with this theory for Wallace is applicability to human beings. Wallace was a spiritualist hence believed that external forces affected human development. He argues that natural selection cannot account for hman intelligence for various reasons. First, unlike animals who change their structure and form to adapt to new environment, evidence has shown that human beings remain more or less the same for generations (Wallace 302-331). Moreover, human are social beings who offer mutual assistance to each other in times of difficulties thus preserving their race. They share food, they have division of labor, and are sympathetic creatures. If one is sick, he/she is given food hence does not have to die or become extinct. This helps to check the effects of natural selection. He also argues that physical characteristics of humans are of less importance than for animals as men depend on mental and moral qualities to ensure their existence (p. 312). For example, men through their intelligence are able to plan ahead hence domestic plants and animals for consumption in all seasons thus natural selection would have no impact on them. Humans also have moral qualities given by a superior being early in their lives to help them adjust to new environment. Men can make spears to hunt, tools to farm, build houses, sew warm clothes in cold seasons hence do not suffer. Natural selection instead of acting on their bodies thus must act on their intelligence for harmony to be accomplished (315). Furthermore, the man’s naked skin is evidence enough that it could not have been produced by natural selection but by some other power. Previous savages had hair on their bodies and natural selection could not have led to complete elimination of this hair as it was vital for survival. The man’s voice which produces musical sounds also shows it was existent for a purpose and so are the feet and hands given to savages which had no use then but are now useful. For Wallace, “the organs developed in anticipation of future progress of man” (350). Moreover, even today, men are still progressing directed at future of the race rather than the present status. This only means some higher intelligence directs the process by which human race developed and not natural selection. However, natural selection had an impact of skin color and this explains why there are so many racial groupings. I would support Alfred Wallace’s theory of human development as the evolution theory of natural selection is not adequate in explaining the nature of humans. The theory of natural selection Works Cited Austrian, Sonia, G. Developmental Theories through the Life Cycle. 2ed. Chichester, West Sussex: Columbia University Press, 2008. Print. Cherry, Kendra. Freudian Theory. About.com. Web. 22 June 2014. http://psychology.about.com/od/sigmundfreud/a/freudian-theory.htm Darwin, Charles. On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection: Or the Preservation of Favored Races in the Struggle for Life. New York: D. Appleton & Co, 1864. Freud, Sigmund. The Interpretation of Dreams . NuVision Publications, 2004. eBook. Wallace, Alfred Russel. Contributions to the Theory of Natural Selection. 2ed. New York, NY: Macmillan & Co, 1871. Read More