Introduction to Freud
Part I: The Topographical Model
Sigmund Freud (1856–1939) was an Austrian
neurologist who became known as the founding
father of psychoanalysis. He’s considered one of
the most influential thinkers of the 20th Century.
Freud’s first theory of identity is referred to as a
Topographical or
Conflict Model
Part I: The Topographical Model
Topographical Conflict Model
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The self is not unified. It is not a coherent,
singular entity. Not entirely rational, not entirely
in control of itself.
There are competing elements within ourselves.
No way to resolve competing elements – the
only way to stay healthy is not to let any one of
them “get the upper hand” or sickness (neurosis
or psychosis) can occur.
Part I: The Topographical Model
Sigmund Freud’s conflict model is based on the
idea of the id, the ego, and the superego. These
are the components of the self. Freud describes
the human personality as a battlefield: “He [a
human] is a dark-cellar in which a well-bred
spinster lady (the superego) and a sex-crazed
monkey (the id) are forever engaged in mortal
combat, the struggle being refereed by a rather
nervous bank clerk (the ego).”
Part I: The Topographical Model
The Id
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“Id” is Latin for “it”.
Irrational, emotional, demanding, strong
The source of all selfish desires as it tries to satisfy
basic bodily, sexual, and aggressive drives
Does not care about others or the reality of the
situation
The oldest part of our mind – most primal, most
primitive, since it precedes learned culture
Part I: The Topographical Model
The id is ruled by what Freud called the pleasure principle.
According to the pleasure principle, the id cares only
about immediate self-gratification; it doesn’t care about
others or the circumstances (reality) of the situation.
The id is sometimes represented by a devil sitting on
someone’s shoulder. As this devil sits there, it tells the
ego to base behavior on how the action will influence
the self, specifically how it will bring pleasure to the self.
Part I: The Topographical Model
The Superego
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Latin for “above the I”
The moral part of the mind—the conscience—
since the ego is not necessarily moral
Represents social and parental values that step in
when mom or the cops aren’t around
Sometimes represented by an angel sitting on
someone’s shoulder, telling the ego to base
behaviors on the rules and how the actions will
affect others or influence society
Part I: The Topographical Model
The Ego
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Latin for “I”
The part of the personality that maintains a
balance between our impulses (our id), our
conscience (our superego), and reality.
Represented by a person, with a devil (the id) on
one shoulder and an angel (the superego) on the
other
Part I: The Topographical Model
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The ego is ruled by the reality principle and is
more pragmatic: “You can’t always get what you
want.”
The ego understands that other people have
needs and desires and that sometimes being
impulsive or selfish (i.e. acting on the id’s
desires) can hurt us in the end. It is the ego’s job
to meet the needs of the id, while taking into
consideration the reality of the situation
(including moral consequences). The ego works,
in other words, to balance the id and superego.
Part I: The Topographical Model
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The ego is in service to the id, yet it uses some
of the id’s psychic energy to control the id by
reasonably satisfying the id. Over time, the ego
becomes pretty good at this and develops a large
vocabulary of methods for keeping the id
gratified without provoking the superego.
In other cases, the ego uses repression to
suppress and forget its instinctual or id-oriented
impulses.
Part I: The Topographical Model
Part I: Id, Ego, Superego
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If, as an adult, your id is too dominant, you are
very self-absorbed, don’t care about others, and
are only out for yourself.
If, as an adult, your ego is too dominant, you are
distant, rational, efficient, unemotional, or cold.
If, as an adult, your superego is too dominant, you
are guilt-ridden or sanctimonious (i.e. telling
everyone else what’s right or wrong all the time).
Part II: Psychoanalytic Model of
Identity
The Iceberg Model of the Mind
Part II: Psychoanalytic Model of
Identity
Conscious Mind
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The tip of the iceberg
Smallest part: 10% of the mind.
We can access this. We are aware of this part of “us.”
We understand it logically.
Part II: Psychoanalytic Model of
Identity
Preconscious Mind
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Middle of iceberg
Medium size: 10-15% of the mind.
Ordinary memory. You don’t keep a lot of information
in your preconscious mind all the time.
If you need to remember something (where you parked
your car) you can bring it “up” to your conscious mind.
Part II: Psychoanalytic Model of
Identity
The Unconscious Mind
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Bottom of iceberg
Huge: 75-80% of our mind.
Not directly available to the conscious mind, since it’s
“underwater”.
Plays a very large role in how we function as human
beings. Most of the work among the id, ego, and
superego occurs here.
Part II: Psychoanalytic Model of
Identity
The Unconscious Mind
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A dumping ground for all of our desires, anxieties,
memories, especially those which are painful.
Nothing in the unconscious goes away. Even if we
aren’t aware of it, what is in the unconscious influences
us every day in every way.
Can’t directly or easily access the unconscious with the
conscious mind. It speaks a different language, using
dreams and free association, for example.
Part II: Psychoanalytic Model of
Identity
Psychoanalysis
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Therapy is the “talking cure” that investigates how the
conscious mind interacts with the unconscious mind.
When we don’t want to deal with a fear, memory, or
desire, the ego represses or hides it in the unconscious
mind, which can result in neuroses and psychoses.
The psychoanalyst uses techniques to unbury the
repressed, unconscious forces that the ego has lost
control over in its attempts to ignore them.
Part II: Psychoanalytic Model of
Identity
Literary critics sometimes analyze the actions of literary
characters using the three personality structures that
Freud identified.
As critics explore the ego, superego, and id of characters
in a work—along with their unconscious forces—they
focus on the ways that these parts of the characters’
personalities influence the work as a whole. The author’s
works can serve as “dreams” that reveal identity.
This interpretive lens is called psychoanalytic criticism.
Part II: Psychoanalytic Model of
Identity
Consider how Freud’s topographical and
psychoanalytical models of the mind can provide
insight into what is happening in Lord of the Flies.