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A review by thesimplelibrary
Beyond the Pleasure Principle by Sigmund Freud
3.0
Although it’s a pain to read (yes, even though it’s short) and you could easily find a summary online, I definitely recommend reading the primary source, as Freud’s ideas have been misinterpreted in such a way that even popular culture has altered the interpretation of his theories.
Freud’s notion of the Death drive is especially a tricky one, as it does not actually refer to the desire for death, or the supposed Thanatos, as it has been termed, but rather a desire to a primordial inorganic state, in order to maintain a low level of excitation. Whoever simply Googles the term, will get the wrong idea completely. I have to add that Freud is highly speculative about his theories himself, so don’t expect a well-rounded theory that explains in detail how traumatic neurosis or the Death drive for that matter, manifest itself in practice. What you get is a sort of stream of consciousness about the workings of the mind that is subjected to trauma.
As I’ve mentioned, not an easy read, but once you get the gist, it’s really a great insight into the psychoanalytics of trauma.
Freud’s notion of the Death drive is especially a tricky one, as it does not actually refer to the desire for death, or the supposed Thanatos, as it has been termed, but rather a desire to a primordial inorganic state, in order to maintain a low level of excitation. Whoever simply Googles the term, will get the wrong idea completely. I have to add that Freud is highly speculative about his theories himself, so don’t expect a well-rounded theory that explains in detail how traumatic neurosis or the Death drive for that matter, manifest itself in practice. What you get is a sort of stream of consciousness about the workings of the mind that is subjected to trauma.
As I’ve mentioned, not an easy read, but once you get the gist, it’s really a great insight into the psychoanalytics of trauma.