General Psychological Theory

The Story

Freud's stress on the sexual aspects of man's nature was not the only reason for his unpopularity at the turn of the century. He was attacked just as severely for daring to build his science on the basis of hypotheses that were contradictory to many scientific views then current. For example, he assumed the presence of the unconscious mind - an underworld that only a few poets had hinted at - and used that very assumption to prove its existence and its powerful influence on human behavior. Freud's purpose in theorizing is, as the editor of these essays puts it, to provide 'steady points of reference from which to map journeys leading...into the jungle of emotions.' Exploration is the keynote as the reader follows Freud through clear explanations of his theories concerning the libido, narcissism, negation, mourning and melancholia, repression, dreams, paranoia, and masochism. In this volume, as in his other works, it is evident that Freud was not afraid to venture into unknown areas of the human mind and that he was superbly equipped to uncover its secrets.