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2 Freud as “Meta-physician”
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27 My original purpose . . . was to understand something of the riddles of the world in which we live and perhaps even to contribute something to their solution. —Freud My worthy friend, gray is all theory, and green is alone Life’s golden tree. —Goethe, quoted by Freud Despite Freud’s early aspirations toward philosophy, Freud sought his advanced training within the domain of science. Trained as a doctor, Freud encountered numerous maladies which appeared to be physiological in origin. Upon closer inspection Freud, among others, came to realize that—although some illnesses were very real in their physiological manifestation —the original “causes” were oftentimes not physiological at all. For instance, Freud witnessed humans who suffered from blindness whose eyes were functioning normally, and paralysis in patients whose legs were perfectly fit. Contrary to the attitude of his time, Freud did not believe that these patients were “faking” their illnesses, but rather pondered the possibility that physical suffering could have psychological origins. This was substantiated by the application of hypnosis; Freud found that longstanding illnesses could be magically eliminated within moments, simply by implanting a strong suggestion in a patient who was not wholly conscious . Yet, Freud also discovered that these suggestions only worked to eliminate particular symptoms. Most frequently, patients who had undergone hypnosis developed other symptoms shortly after being “cured.” Freud as “Meta-physician”: Freudian Metapsychological Theory and Psychotherapeutic Practice 2 Through his continual process of developing and refining his therapeutic technique in search of a cure for neurosis, Freud also sought to explain human mental functioning and its interrelated impact on physiological health. Thus, Freud sought to bridge the gap between mind and body, seeing both as organically based. With science as his tool (and his training) he attempted to apply its methodology to human nature in order to explain the interplay of organic and natural forces that he believed composed the essence of human beings and their potential for health. Freud had confidence in scientific knowledge, and believed that he was a loyal follower of the scientific Weltanschauungen. While some would argue that his discoveries took him far beyond the confines of science, Freud held that he appropriately applied the scientific methodology of observation, the formation of hypotheses, and the process of scientific validation ; if a patient showed significant improvement (his/her symptoms disappeared) through the administration of his therapeutic technique, his hypotheses were correct and thus his metapsychological theory held true. Freud hoped that the scientific community would be convinced by his discoveries and expand to include his account of human nature. Unfortunately , the scientific community refused to follow, and Freud was relegated to a kind of limbo, somewhere between science and philosophy— rejected by both disciplines for failing to conform to the demands of each. Freud’s Metapsychological Theory According to Freud, psychoanalysis consisted of a number of diverse yet interrelated elements. He conceived it as consisting of a research procedure , a therapeutic method, and a collection of psychological information .1 Yet, all of these were understood to exist in a unity; hence, psychoanalysis was conceived by Freud to be a unified science. This science, Freud believed, required an ultimate grounding in a comprehensive theory on human nature; thus he developed what he referred to as his “metapsychological theory.”2 Freud considered his metapsychology to be of the utmost importance, claiming that nothing could be achieved without consulting the “Witch Metapsychology”: “without metapsychological speculation and theorizing . . . we shall not get another step forward.”3 He took his metapsychology to be a scientific attempt to rectify the abstruse fantasy-constructions of metaphysics by “transforming metaphysics into metapsychology.”4 Freud’s metapsychological theory was designed “to clarify and carry deeper the theoretical assumptions on which a psycho28 A P P R E H E N D I N G T H E I N A C C E S S I B L E [54.225.1.66] Project MUSE (2024-03-19 13:30 GMT) analytic system could be founded.”5 For him then, the doctrine of psychoanalysis was understood as a superstructure which would eventually have as its foundation an organic infrastructure described in his metapsychological theory.6 In other words, through his theory, Freud asserted and, he believed, demonstrated that human meanings and/or ideas are ultimately grounded in biological processes. Freud referred to his theory as “metapsychology” for obvious reasons . Although Freud believed that psychoanalysis, as a science, was constructed through and remained committed to empirical observation,7 he was not satisfied with...