Mind and body Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Mind and body - Essay Example Freud believed that the mind is structured into two parts: the conscious and unconscious mind. The conscious mind represents the things which can be brought into awareness easily or those we are aware of while the unconscious mind represents the things outside our awareness but influence our behavior (Cherry, nap). Out of these parts, personality is formed which comprises of three components: id, ego and superego. Id is part of the unconscious mind; it is the most primitive and source of all libidinal energy (life instincts) and death instincts. It operates on pleasure principle hence seeks immediate gratification of needs. The ego mediates between the id and superego and operates on reality principle. Its work is to ensure demands are satisfied in acceptable ways hence delayed gratification is preferred (Austrian 15). The superego on the other hand, acts according to the moral standards. The ego in its mediation works encounters difficulties leading to anxiety. This prompts it to de velop defense mechanisms such as rationalization, repression and denial to protect itself from anxiety. Freud also believed children develop in stages (psychosexual stages) with energy focused on different parts of the body at each stage and failure to progress to next stage leads to fixation while success leads to healthy development. For example, getting fixated at phallic stage can lead to Oedipus for boys and Electra complex for girls. These include: oral, anal, phallic, latent and genital stages (Cherry, nap). Freud also developed a theory of dreams to explain the unconscious mind. For him, dreams are â€Å"a royal road to the unconscious† (Austrian 14). They reveal repressed memories from childhood desires unfulfilled. He emphasized on the role of instincts especially sexual instincts in driving people to dream. He interpreted dreams through free association whereby women would narrate their experiences revealing their hidden truths. He enumerated