This book examines Freud's changing views of human instincts, exploring the moral and social implications. Part One investigates Freud's concept of instinct and discusses the phases of his ongoing attempt to classify the instincts. In Part Two the author argues that Freud's instinct theory leads to a moral philosophy, and he relates this philosophy to Freud's views on group psychology. The notion of instinct is central to psychoanalytic theory, but never before has it been treated so comprehensively, with such close attention to the text. Nor has anyone previously examined in detail the moral and social implications of Freud's instinct theory. In examining these implications, Abel bridges the fields of psychology and philosophy.

This book examines Freud's changing views of human instincts, exploring the moral and social implications. Part One investigates Freud's concept of instinct and discusses the phases of his ongoing attempt to classify the instincts. In Part Two the author argues that Freud's instinct theory leads to a moral philosophy, and he relates this philosophy to Freud's views on group psychology. The notion of instinct is central to psychoanalytic theory, but never before has it been treated so comprehensively, with such close attention to the text. Nor has anyone previously examined in detail the moral and social implications of Freud's instinct theory. In examining these implications, Abel bridges the fields of psychology and philosophy.

Now a classic, this book was hailed upon its original publication in 1959 as "An event to be acclaimed . . . a book of genuine brilliance on Freud's cultural importance . . . a permanently valuable contribution to the human sciences."—Alastair MacIntyre, Manchester Guardian "This remarkably subtle and substantial book, with its nicely ordered sequences of skilled dissections and refined appraisals, is one of those rare products of profound analytic thought. . . . The author weighs each major article of the psychoanalytic canon in the scales of his sensitive understanding, then gives a superbly balanced judgement."—Henry A. Murray, American Sociological Review "Rieff's tremendous scholarship and rich reflections fill his pages with memorable treasures."—Robert W. White, Scientific American "Philip Rieff's book is a brilliant and beautifully reasoned example of what Freud's influence has really been: an increasing intellectual vigilance about human nature. . . . What the analyst does for the patient—present the terms for his new choices as a human being—Mr. Rieff does in respect to the cultural significance of Freudianism. His style has the same closeness, the same undertone of hypertense alertness. Again and again he makes brilliant points."—Alfred Kazin, The Reporter

(Dover thrift editions).

This book presents Freud's theory of the mind as an organic whole, built from first principles and developing in sophistication over time.

In today's world where every form of transgression enjoys a psychological motive and rational justification, psychoanalysis stands alone in its ability to uncover the hidden motives that inform individual and social collective behaviour. Both in theory and practice, it bears witness to the impact of anonymity on the potential for perpetration, especially when others are experienced as faceless, disposable objects whose otherness is, at bottom, but a projection, displacement, and denial of our own interiority-in short, the evil within. In keeping with this perspective, Ethics of Evil rejects facile rationalizations of violence; it also rejects the idea that evil, as a concept, is inscrutable or animated by demonic forces. Instead, it evaluates the moral framework in which evil is situated, providing a descriptive understanding of it as a plurality and a depth psychological perspective on the threat it poses for our well-being and ways of life. In so doing, it also fashions and articulates an ethical stance that recognizes the intrinsic link between human freedom and the potential for evil.

In his later work, Freud proposed that the human psyche could be divided into three parts: Id, ego and super-ego. Freud discussed this model in the 1920 essay Beyond the Pleasure Principle, and fully elaborated upon it in The Ego and the Id (1923), in which he developed it as an alternative to his previous topographic schema (i.e., conscious, unconscious and preconscious). The id is the completely unconscious, impulsive, childlike portion of the psyche that operates on the "pleasure principle" and is the source of basic impulses and drives; it seeks immediate pleasure and gratification. Freud acknowledged that his use of the term Id (das Es, "the It") derives from the writings of Georg Groddeck. The super-ego is the moral component of the psyche, which takes into account no special circumstances in which the morally right thing may not be right for a given situation. The rational ego attempts to exact a balance between the impractical hedonism of the id and the equally impractical moralism of the super-ego; it is the part of the psyche that is usually reflected most directly in a person's actions. When overburdened or threatened by its tasks, it may employ defense mechanisms including denial repression, undoing, rationalization, repression, and displacement. This concept is usually represented by the "Iceberg Model". This model represents the roles the Id, Ego, and Super Ego play in relation to conscious and unconscious thought. Freud compared the relationship between the ego and the id to that between a charioteer and his horses: the horses provide the energy and drive, while the charioteer provides direction.

This early work by Sigmund Freud was originally published in 1908 and we are now republishing it with a brand new introductory biography. ''Civilized' Sexual Morality and Modern Nervous Illness' is a psychological essay on the effect of social culture on mental illness. Sigismund Schlomo Freud was born on 6th May 1856, in the Moravian town of Príbor, now part of the Czech Republic. He studied a variety of subjects, including philosophy, physiology, and zoology, graduating with an MD in 1881. Freud made a huge and lasting contribution to the field of psychology with many of his methods still being used in modern psychoanalysis. He inspired much discussion on the wealth of theories he produced and the reactions to his works began a century of great psychological investigation.

What influences led to the creation of civilization? How did it come to be? What determines its course? In this seminal volume of 20th-century thought, Freud elucidates the contest between aggression, the death drive, and its adversary eros.

Examines Nietzsche's thinking on the virtues using a combination of close reading and digital analysis.