Blog 5 Psychoanalytical Criticism

Psychoanalytical criticism was developed by the famous (or infamous, depending on who you ask) Sigmund Freud. It is the study of how the unconscious interacts with the conscious. It said that many others discussed this theory before Freud, but it was Freud who fully developed the theory into what we know today.

The main idea behind psychoanalytic criticism is the concept of the id, ego, and superego. The id portrays the "I want it now behavior," strictly acting on impulse with little to no control. The id has to be suppressed by the ego and the superego in order for the conscious to function properly. The ego is the main suppressor of the id and the mediator for the superego. Another main function for the ego is to perceive and adapt to the reality. The superego acts as guide for the conscious. It provides logic and advice in order to avoid conflict and mistakes.

Another theory that Freud developed is the Oedipus Complex. Based on the famous Greek tragedy, the Oedipus Complex is when a person has desires for a parent of the opposite sex. Daughters master this by having a jealousy of men (a.k.a "penis envy") and boys overcome it by having a fear of castration. Boys tend to monopolize their mother's affection by displacing their father while girls do not fear the loss of love at all.