Freud's Burden of Debt to Nietzsche and Schopenhauer

This paper addresses the questions raised by the evidence presented that many cardinal psycho-analytic notions bear a strong resemblance to the ideas of Schopenhauer and Nietzsche. In the process, the author considers not only that the 19th century Zeitgeist, given its preoccupation with the unconsc...

Full description

Saved in:  
Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Indo-Pacific journal of phenomenology
Main Author: Cybulska, Eva (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
Check availability: HBZ Gateway
Journals Online & Print:
Drawer...
Fernleihe:Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste
Published: Rhodes University [2015]
In: The Indo-Pacific journal of phenomenology
Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains:B Freud, Sigmund 1856-1939 / Schopenhauer, Arthur 1788-1860 / Nietzsche, Friedrich 1844-1900
RelBib Classification:VB Hermeneutics; Philosophy
ZD Psychology
Online Access: Volltext (kostenfrei)
Description
Summary:This paper addresses the questions raised by the evidence presented that many cardinal psycho-analytic notions bear a strong resemblance to the ideas of Schopenhauer and Nietzsche. In the process, the author considers not only that the 19th century Zeitgeist, given its preoccupation with the unconscious, created a fertile ground for the birth of psychoanalysis, but the influence on the Weltanschauung of Freud, Schopenhauer and Nietzsche of their common German cultural heritage, their shared admiration for Shakespeare and love of Hellenic culture, and the meteoric rise of science. Although influence may not be sharply separated from confluence, the parallels between Freud's concepts and those of Schopenhauer and Nietzsche are too specific to be coincidental. And yet, Freud vehemently denied ever having read these philosophers' works until “very late in life”. It is suggested that an unconscious sense of guilt may have induced that denial.This study adopts a cross-sectional approach that juxtaposes Freud's cardinal concepts with the ideas of Schopenhauer and Nietzsche. Its tripartite structure has the advantage of observing similarities and differences not only between Freud and the two philosophers, but also between Nietzsche and Schopenhauer. The focal concepts include: the unconscious; ego, id and superego; libido; drives; repression; sublimation; dreams; catharsis; free association; primary and secondary process thinking; Oedipus complex; repetition compulsion; the pleasure principle; mourning and melancholia; a criminal from a sense of guilt; and the death instinct.
ISSN:1445-7377
Contains:Enthalten in: The Indo-Pacific journal of phenomenology
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1080/20797222.2015.1101836