Psychoanalytical Analysis

A psychoanalytic critique of media is based primarily on Freud’s psychological theories dealing with the conscious and the unconscious mind. Many times the science is applied to people wanting to understand motives for an action, but for the sake of a media analysis can also be applied to places as well as people. The id, ego and super ego play a significant role in deciphering the idea of the conscious mind versus the unconscious. The id is part of the unconscious part of thinking, based on pleasure. In short the id is what drives an individual. It is impulsive and primitive. The ego is “that part of the id which has been modified by the direct influence of the external world” (Navaneedhan 1). If the id is the impulsive quality of a person, then the ego is the reasoning that stills some of those urges.  It is the job of the ego to point the id in the correct direction. Lastly we have the superego which the conscious part of the mind. Its job is to control both the id and the ego. Like the ego, the superego’s job is to steer the id away from its impulses, specifically those that seem particularly destructive. As for how the superego helps the ego, it guides the ego toward more moralizing goals as opposed to simply realistic and perfect outcomes.

While this seems complicated, in reality we do not realize our mind is constantly striving to better itself. Vampire movies or television shows are excellent places to see all three characters. Take Buffy for example. Toward the beginning of the series Spike is the id, always taking what he wants and never dealing with consequences.  Buffy would be the ego, striving to do what is right and trying to help Spike do the same. Giles is the superego, the consciousness of the group, pushing the id and the ego to be just and right, pushing them to do more for the right reasons.

However, Freud’s ideas of id, ego, and superego are only a small part of what psychoanalysis truly is these three ideas help us to better understand our minds and the thoughts of others.

                                                                                                                                       

Navaneedhan, Cittoor Girija. "Balance of Internal Drive, Ego and Super Ego through Self-Hypnosis." Journal of Behavioral and Brain Science JBBS 2 (2012): 221-24. Print.