Freud religion as an illusion Flashcards
What did freud call the human mind?
Tripartite mind- super ego, id, ego
What is the id?
Contains the libdo unconscious self, no moral concern with right and wrong
contains sexual drive
Superego
Collective influences society have on us, strutted by society- moral/concious self
links with secularisation the decrease in christianity maybe due to this collective neurosis of religion
What is the ego?
We show to other people, masks our conscious thought
What is sublimation?
Repression of ythe id by the superego as some things are often unacceptable in society
our mind knows whats right but our id wants to counter argue this with our desires
What is the Oedipus complex?
The myth of the boy wanting to have sexual relations with mother killing father, reality happns
this is what freud used as a basis of this neruoriss and this sexual desire
happens at the age of 3-6 (the phallic stage) the source of libido (life force) is concentrated in the Childs body
How is freud right in evidence?
The little Hans case; the boy is obsessed with his penis, the mother says if he doesn’t stop the doctor will chop it off
development of the fear of horses at the age of 5
freud came to the conclusion that this was due to the fear of his father castratin him for having sexual desires towards his mother.
the horse represented the father; the moustache and big penis
what is the electra complex?
The female version of freud, the woman has sexual urges towards her father
Why is the Oedipus complex so important to freud?
‘the central phenomenon of the sexual period of early childhood’
What is the usage of Darwins primal horde?
There was a dominated alpha male who dominated the pack as it were and dominated the females when the younger grew older they were driven off by him. One day they killed the alpha male and ate him liberating themselves and dominate the female. The guilt was among them, then there was a future totem-animal arising which represented this father figure
How did the usage of the primal horde represent chrisitnaity to freud/
This guilt created this neurosis to christians who saw god as the father and for atonement
e Christian ritual of Holy Communion, as Christ now replaced the father as the centre of religious devotion through his atonement
The earlier totemic meal is replaced by Holy Communion and identified with the son rather than a totem
How did freud compare the mind>
Compared it with archaloegy when doing psycholanayslis with his patients, digging down into layers
What did freud say about the ego/
“The ego isn’t the master in its own house” he unconscious controls us, similar to a haunted house there is no control
What was freud the founder of?
Pyshcoanayslis
What simulates did freud find between a religious person and a person with a neurosis?
This obsessive compulsive disorder, repeated actions of people wh feel uneasy; the rosary
Where did freud think religion came from?
Not as an element of god and belief but from the human mind, religion is an infantile neurosis
What other reasons did freud think religion comes about?
From early childhood experiences given the person comfort for adulthood in the supernatural; similar to Darwin said that people need a life without god to be healthier
What were societies rules about sexual behaviour?
freud believed that society had expectations of sexual behaviour and that our mind was under conscious control, as we evolve we have to cope with these sexual desires and impulses
What view of religion did freud support?
The reductive one,/ religion is a function/product of the human mind. religion is pointless
What did freud say the unconscious mind contains?
Memories we dont want to remember; traumatic events, sexual feelings
What did freud believe happened to people who were still religious?
That hadn’t Come to sense with their unconscious mind, religion was a sign of a lack of maturity as it is an obsession
Why is god male significant to freud?
Backs up the oppose to felinity that god is male, due to god is strong, god is representing the father figure, god is to be feared
How does freud think people can deal with this adulthood?
By facing up to reality and dealign with the maturity- our aim in life is to stick to scientific facts and ignoree these religious beliefs behind
the religious person may feel neurotic behaviour if they dont perform their ritual/behaviour and feel fear and anxiety
Who further agreed with freud?
David Hume who believed religion was a comfort
