The Freudian paradigm and human dignity

[strngrnrth]

I was just musing on the view of humanity that the early pioneers of psychoanalysis believed in and how freud made it popular throughout society. Is it good or bad for the concept of human dignity? To me, the Freudian paradigm is as follows:
A. What you think you are thinking and what you think you are made of are irrelevant. Someone else, who need not know you or share your values, will be all but sure to understand better and you must accept such a person’s verdict on who you are.
B. To try to be strong is simply dishonest or uncooperative. A breakdown is a breakthrough; that is, to act helpless and bewildered is to begin to accept the definitions and paradigms one must accept, soa s to pass them along to others.
C. Though untrustworthy and easily fooled, the patient, or individual, is of paramount importance. Indeed s/he is endlessly intersting to talk about and examine. There is no trivia. Every detail of every thougth a person has or fails to have is worth a lifetime of several other people’s attention.
D. It isn’t what you do or believe that counts but whether your most private thoughts are in line with the norm for society.
E. Therefore, the best use of time is self-analysis, the place for it is in public, and the correct demeanor is slack and helpless.

I think this idea was both good and bad, good because it affirmed the importance of the individual and the inner life at a time when people were becoming cogs in machines, but bad because it taught a deeply self-centered, emotionally dependent, spiritually blank, helpless way of seeing oneself and a sense of doubt of the most basic facts of humanity, such as character, courage, even the sense that it is possible to tell what is real. This attiude has permeated the whole culture, and I think it has altered us all in ways we are not even capable of understanding.

 

[fhansen]

I was just musing on the view of humanity that the early pioneers of psychoanalysis believed in and how freud made it popular throughout society. Is it good or bad for the concept of human dignity? To me, the Freudian paradigm is as follows:
A. What you think you are thinking and what you think you are made of are irrelevant. Someone else, who need not know you or share your values, will be all but sure to understand better and you must accept such a person’s verdict on who you are.
B. To try to be strong is simply dishonest or uncooperative. A breakdown is a breakthrough; that is, to act helpless and bewildered is to begin to accept the definitions and paradigms one must accept, soa s to pass them along to others.
C. Though untrustworthy and easily fooled, the patient, or individual, is of paramount importance. Indeed s/he is endlessly intersting to talk about and examine. There is no trivia. Every detail of every thougth a person has or fails to have is worth a lifetime of several other people’s attention.
D. It isn’t what you do or believe that counts but whether your most private thoughts are in line with the norm for society.
E. Therefore, the best use of time is self-analysis, the place for it is in public, and the correct demeanor is slack and helpless.

I think this idea was both good and bad, good because it affirmed the importance of the individual and the inner life at a time when people were becoming cogs in machines, but bad because it taught a deeply self-centered, emotionally dependent, spiritually blank, helpless way of seeing oneself and a sense of doubt of the most basic facts of humanity, such as character, courage, even the sense that it is possible to tell what is real. This attiude has permeated the whole culture, and I think it has altered us all in ways we are not even capable of understanding.

It sounds like it makes the “norm for society” god rather than the individual. And if Freud determines what the norm for society is then I suppose that makes him god. Either way Gods’ left out of the picture, of course.

 

[annem]

strngrnrth

it taught a deeply self-centered, emotionally dependent, spiritually blank, helpless way of seeing oneself and a sense of doubt of the most basic facts of humanity, such as character, courage, even the sense that it is possible to tell what is real. This attiude has permeated the whole culture, and I think it has altered us all in ways we are not even capable of understanding.

I agree. Freud’s theories have mostly been rejected by now, and there are lots of books out accusing him of being an arrogant fraud and liar.

Nevertheless, psychology is woven into every thread of our culture. Even though research doesn’t support the idea that talk therapy cures, or even helps. The only research that I’ve come across that suggests talk therapy might help is for depression. Those who had talk therapy in addition to medicines were marginally better off.

God bless, Annem