Psychoanalysis by Sigmund Freud

Psychoanalysis by Sigmund Freud (1856-1939)

It is an approach to treating emotional issues that are founded on Freud's notion of the unconscious mind (based on case studies of his patients).

According to Sigmund Freud, unconscious forces determine people's thoughts, feelings, and actions rather than conscious choices. (Unconscious mind: all mental activity that goes on but that we are not aware of.)

He held that internal moods and natural motivations—particularly those that stimulate sexual and violent behaviour—are the sources of psychological issues.

He thought that even while we are unaware of these motivations and the tensions that surround them, they nonetheless have an impact on us. (Motives: an internal state or set of circumstances that elicit conduct and provide it with direction.)

Psychoanalytic Criticism

The psychoanalytic approach focuses on the human psyche and is used to investigate the hidden motivation or significance of a work of art.

To help his patients, Freud developed a novel psychological technique (the theory of the unconscious mind), but his theories and concepts are also applied to literary criticism to critique any piece of art.

He claims that language can be used to express a person's underlying wants or emotions. Therefore, all of the desires that are difficult or indirect to convey are presented through the language of writing, art, painting, literature, etc. Briefly said, psychoanalysis uncovers the hidden or repressed desires in literature or any other kind of art and explains the unconscious mind's language. READ MORE…