Sigmund Freud

On facebook today, someone's facebook update was... "Freud is sooo twisted". To my curiosity i said to myself "How twisted can someone get?".

(here are some wise words from the internet) Google is your friend.

And in seconds i learned that Freud.. Sigmund Freud was 'psychology's most famous figure and is also one of the most influential and controversial thinkers of the twentieth century'.

It seems that Freud was someone who was infatuated with people and their personalities. 'The most important contribution of Freud is his division of the human psyche in three different energies: Id, Ego and Superego.' What the three energies mean I'm not too sure .. yet.. But from my short readings of this guy i found that he has created many theories to why people are the way they are. What intrigued me was his research about 'Phychosexual Development'.

'Freud believed that personality develops through a series of childhood stages during which the pleasure-seeking energies of the id become focused on certain erogenous areas. ' And he suggested that if a child completes these stages successfully he/she will have a healthy personality. But if a child is stuck in a certain stage it could result in personality disorders.

In short a child would go through stages Freud called

• The Oral stage- The child's primary source of interaction occurs through the mouth which is vital for eating. This develops a sense trust and comfort towards the parent. If the child does not move on from this stage in a healthy manner it could result in drinking, eating, smoking, or nail biting problems.
• The Anal stage- This in short is the toilet training. If it is done in a negative manner it could result in a messy, wasteful, or destructive personality
• The Phallic stage- A stage where children begin to realise the difference in gender. Which may or may not lead to a rivalry between their fathers for their mothers affection.
• The Latent stage- A time of exploration in which the sexual energy is still present, but it is directed into other areas such as intellectual pursuits and social interactions. This stage is for the development of social and communication skills and self-confidence.
• The Genital stage- This is where the child would have grown up and have realised the sexual urge. Directing their attention to the opposite sex focusing on individual needs or just being horny.
  

I found this very insightful but the issues with his research was all his theories were based on boys and never girls. There was no quantifiable way of measuring someone's 'sex drive' and the length of time between the 'cause and effect' was just way too long to be monitored.

I'm not too sure if my interpretations of his works are 100% correct but i hope to learn more about his theories and experiments so i can decide for myself if he is really crazy.

Just found "To Freud the sex drive is the most motivating force, not only for adults, but for children and infants as well. It had been scientifically proved that the ability for orgasm is neurologically present from birth, but Freud exploring much more than that. To him sexuality involves not only intercourse but anything and everything that feels pleasurable to the skin." Now i really do want to know more.