Psychology Essay Sample: Darrell's Psychic Structure from a Freudian Perspective

Freud's Basic Assumptions

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- Human feelings and behavior are influenced by unconscious motives

- One's behavior as an adult is deeply rooted in the experiences he or she had as a child

- Every human behavior can be traced to a particular cause (unconscious)

- An individuals personality comprises of three parts namely id, ego, and super-ego.

- An individuals behavior is influenced by two instinctive drives: eros and Thanatos

- Eros refers to life instinct and sex drive while Thanatos refers to death instinct and the aggressive drive

- Some parts of the unconscious mind are always in constant conflict with the conscious part of the mind, often yielding anxiety.

Darrell's Psychic Structure from a Freudian Perspective

Freudian concepts and assumptions of personality development are evident in the psychic development of Darrell. For instance, Freud postulated that ones behavior in adulthood is as a result of the childhood experiences that they had (Freud, 2004). This has been manifested in Darrells life. As a child living with his parents, his mother always maintained their home neatly and orderly. Similarly, as a grown up, Darrell became known as a neat and tidy person in college and was envied by his colleagues for this reason. Also, he was raised by a stern father who demanded that his word was the law for everyone to abide by. Darrel also adopted a strict approach in his adulthood as he hated on crime and was very strict in applying the law. Furthermore, he was also known to be strong-willed and never backed down from arguments. He became infamous for his arguments and in some cases physical and verbal fights with his peers.

Secondly, Freud had an assumption that human behavior is influenced by unconscious motives (Carducci, 2006). The same is also apparent in Darrells life. The fact that he would be a neat person in his adulthood was always in the unconscious part of his mind. Nobody knew that he would become neat in adulthood. However, since this was something that he was used to as a child, it was stored in his unconscious mind but manifested itself later on in his life.

According to Freudian theories, every human behavior can be traced to a particular and often an unconscious cause (Carducci, 2006). In Darrells case, his strictness, as well as his neatness, are all behaviors that can be traced back to the things he acquired unconsciously from the environment he lived in as a child. Moreover, his fearful attitude that he had, which prompted him to engage others in fights can also be traced to his unconscious mind. As a child, Darrell was always scared and frightened by his father. This instilled in him an element of fear for authoritative figures. Similarly, it motivated him to instill fear in those that he felt had to submit to his authority. Therefore, his life seems to concur with the assumptions of Sigmund Freud.

The other important assumption by Freud is that ones personality is made up of three parts namely the id, ego, and the super-ego (Bollas & Bonaminio, 2013). The same can also be seen in the life and development of Darrell. When he decided to run for office, it was based purely on what he perceived others viewed him. He thought he was loved by the citizenry for his strictness in applying the law. Therefore, his perception of himself was influenced by the ego part of his mind.

References

Bollas, C., & Bonaminio, V. (2013). The Freudian moment. London: Karnac.

Carducci, B. J. (2006). The psychology of personality. Oxford: Blackwell.

Freud, S. (2004). The interpretation of dreams. Place of publication not identified: Kessinger Publishing.