Freud's Concepts of Reality and God: A Text Study
Sigmund Freud was deeply interested in the philosophic as well as psychological problems relating to reality for much of his life. Thus he takes up epistemological and metaphysical questions on numerous occasions in his writings. All of Freud's philosophic discussions are analyzed in this artic...
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| Format: | Print Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
College
1990
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| In: |
Hebrew Union College annual / Jewish Institute of Religion
Year: 1990, Volume: 61, Pages: 219-270 |
| Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains: | B
Exegesis
/ Psychoanalysis
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| IxTheo Classification: | AB Philosophy of religion; criticism of religion; atheism ZD Psychology |
| Further subjects: | B
Idea of God
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| Parallel Edition: | Electronic
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| Summary: | Sigmund Freud was deeply interested in the philosophic as well as psychological problems relating to reality for much of his life. Thus he takes up epistemological and metaphysical questions on numerous occasions in his writings. All of Freud's philosophic discussions are analyzed in this article. What is of particular interest is that in these discussions, which appeared in various works written at different times, Freud takes contradictory positions on the ability of the human mind to know extramental reality. In all he subscribes to four mutually exclusive epistemological positions regarding knowledge of extramental (material) objects, and to three quite different views on knowledge of extramental (other persons') minds. Freud never mentions the fact that he has taken a number of contradictory epistemological positions; each position is presented as though it were the only one to which he had ever subscribed. From Freud's inconsistent treatment of the subject of reality, two conclusions are drawn. First, that Freud was unable to arrive at a firm decision regarding the ability of the human mind to know reality; second, that psychoanalysis is not competent to resolve philosophic problems. Also, the consequences of Freud's philosophic vacillation regarding reality for a correct understanding of the reality principal and realitytesting are explained, as is its significance for Freud's critique of theistic religion. Although Freud vigorously rejects theism, he does subscribe to a concept of God. Since a concept of deity is a component of one's view of reality, an exposition and systematization of Freud's God-concept is given. Freud's God-concept is a theonaturalism, and can be understood as consistent with all the diverse epistemological and metaphysical theories he espouses. |
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| ISSN: | 0360-9049 |
| Contains: | In: Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, Hebrew Union College annual / Jewish Institute of Religion
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