A Biography of Freud

Freud is well-unknown person in Psychology. He is so popular until now with their ideas about Psychodynamic Theories. This post will give you a biography of Sigmund Freud.

Born in Moravia (now Czechoslovakia) in 1856, Sigmund Freud was the son of middle-class Jewish parents. When he was three, Freud's family emigrated to Vienna, Austria, where he spent most of his life. Although the Freuds were quite poor during Sigmund's childhood, he managed to obtain financial assistance from a Jewish philanthropic society in order to enter the medical facility at the University of Vienna in 1873.

Although Freud delayed his medical degree for two years to pursue his research, he eventually entered Vienna General Hospital as a resident assistant physician, where his interests quickly focused on psychiatry. After obtaining his medical degree, Freud traveled to Paris to study under the famous neurologist Marc Charcot. At the time, Charcot was studying an emotional disorder known as hysteria. There is little doubt that Charcot's interests greatly influenced Freud's later pursuits. When he returned to Vienna, Freud opened a practice as a neurologist and was soon a well-respected physician. But Freud's interests centered on the psychological rather than physical aspects of the brain.

In the course of his practice, Freud saw many hysterical patients. At first he treated them with hypnosis but soon began to employ the cathartic method to developed by Josef Breur. In this method, patients lose their symptoms by delving into painful memories while under hypnosis. Freud noted that many of his patients revealed unacceptable wishes in their forgotten memories, and this discovery led the physician to his theory of repression.

Between the years 1895 and 1900, Freud published several of his most important and famous works, describing his theories of the unconscious and defense mechanisms, and touching in the idea of infantile sexuality and hostility toward one's parents. The Interpretation of Dreams, which was published during this period, presented many of these revolutionary ideas, yet the book was largely ignored by scientists in Europe, as was most of Freud's work until 1905. In this year, Freud published a much more explicit account of his theories of infantile sexuality and their relation to adult neurosis. Three Essays on The Theory of Sexuality shocked the intellectuals of nineteenth-century Vienna, and Freud quickly became the most unpopular scientist of the day.

Despite the severe criticism he received, Freud continued to publish his theories and evidence in their support. Much of his later work was devoted to expansion and modification of his original formulations and applications of his psychodynamic views to other fields. Most of his books were criticized severely by experts in the fields, primarily because Freud's speculations attacked many heretofore unquestioned beliefs. Toward the end of his life, however, Freud began to receive the recognition he deserved for his courageous exploration of the human mind. He was initiated into several scientific societies, received the Goethe Award for his writing, and was made a corresponding member of the prestigious Royal Society on his eightieth birthday.

During this period of recognition, the Nazi persecutions had caused many of Freud's supporters to flee Germany, and Freud's books were confiscated and burned in Berlin. Freud's publishing company, which he had founded in 1919, suffered tremendously from the loss of sales in Germany, but Freud insisted upon remaining in Vienna and continuing the firm's operations. When the Nazis invaded Austria in 1938, Freud was persuaded to emigrate to England. One year later, a recurring cancer of the mouth from which Freud had suffered since 1923 terminated his life.


(Source : McNeil, E. B. The Psychology of Human Being. New York: Canfield Press, 1974.)
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