A
Psychoanalysis of Human History
Carlos Cardoso
Aveline
Sigmund Freud, and the front cover of McGrath’s book
Forgotten by many,
the 1986 book “Freud’s Discovery of Psychoanalysis: The Politics of Hysteria”,
by William J. McGrath, is a valuable tool if you want to avoid a planetary war and
prevent unnecessary destruction.
Rather rare by now, the book makes it easier to understand
many a political crisis and the disease of contempt for democratic decisions
and institutions.
The chronic sickness is present in many a formally
democratic country, side by side with an epidemics of repetitive personal
attacks against leaders.
Describing the origin of Psychoanalysis during the
years of Sigmund Freud’s study and research in Hysteria, the book by McGrath
examines the evolution of the medical and psychological approaches to hysteria
and the relation between this disorder and human history, including political
and institutional life.
The sickness seems to have existed for ages.
Collective hysteria makes public opinion substitute
slogans and mere propaganda for actual reasoning. Soon after that the process
of organized hate emerges. Political or religious scapegoats are necessary for the
collective feeling of discontent to be projected into some external object,
which will produce a false relief.
While the blame game of present politics is ridiculous
if seen from a rational point of view, it corresponds to an ancient practice, whose
popularity is great in medieval, modern and “postmodern” times. It stimulates the
perverted pursuit of sadomasochistic pleasure; the satisfaction derived from
one’s own suffering and from making others suffer. The persecution against Jews
and heretics in the Middle Ages was hysterical, and so are the various forms of
political and social hatred in the 21st century - “progressive” or otherwise.
The dynamics of hysteria must be understood before it
is abandoned. Common sense and the love of truth are enough to eliminate it. However,
McGrath’s book invites us to the building of an intercultural view that is
respectful of differences. The task belongs to theosophy, psychology,
philosophy and other fields of knowledge.
By unmasking the mindless character of hysteria in
family, in politics and every aspect of life, human karma or fate will be
improved. It is useless to wait for “something to happen” that cures it from
the outside. Each individual has the power and the means to become a healer of
himself and the world. The peace of the soul will be restored according to the
needs of evolution, and we all can help it take place. Big and small events are
united and small seeds become large trees. A butterfly flaps its wings in Taiwan
and a tornado occurs in London. The impact of the ocean waves in one part of
the globe can be felt by the islands of other continents, as Victor Hugo writes
in “The Toilers of the Sea”. [1]
Whenever hysteria spreads in society, sincere dialogue
and moderation become the object of contempt. One must observe, then, the emotional
process that flows behind unstable, nervous and automatic forms of intolerance.
Psychosis and Hysteria
Perhaps the main difference between psychosis and
neurosis is that a neurotic sacrifices his basic instincts for the sake of
preserving a realistic view of the facts. In social life, this is central to
the democratic process. Such renunciation is also necessary in any balanced
relationship among humans, or between human beings and the natural environment.
We sacrifice our personal wishes to preserve social
harmony. We practice self-restraint in order to benefit others whom we love, for
the sake of nature preservation, or out of respect for the reality of democracy
and mutual help in our community and nation.
In the psychotic attitude, however, the individual
sacrifices his feeling of respect for reality, in order to automatically follow
his own instincts and desires. Truth, then, is left aside and moderation
forgotten.
Psychoanalysis says that in neurosis we see “a loss of
oneself”, or a self-sacrifice. In psychosis, one loses one’s relation to the objective
reality. In neurosis, one painfully learns from his inner conflicts. In psychosis, the conflicts are projected
into the outside world and the individual pretends he has no need to obey limits.
Freud writes:
“…One of the features which differentiate a neurosis
from a psychosis [is] the fact that
in a neurosis the ego, in its dependence on reality, suppresses a piece of the
id (of instinctual life), whereas in a psychosis, this same ego, in the service
of the id, withdraws from a piece of reality. Thus for a neurosis the decisive
factor would be the predominance of the influence of reality, whereas for a
psychosis it would be the predominance of the id. In a psychosis, a loss of
reality would necessarily be present, whereas in a neurosis, it would seem,
this loss would be avoided.” [2]
In a neurosis, the view of facts is distorted, while
in psychosis the view of reality is simply suppressed, and no degree of
frustration will be accepted. Fantasy takes the place of actual facts: hence
the process of hysteria. In any psychosis, dissociation dominates and reason
has scarce chances.
In social events like anti-Semitism, racism, terrorism
and religious intolerance, psychotic attitudes are present and influential. Every
form of systematic hatred in politics tends to place instincts above reason and
is under the influence of hysteria. One must remember that hysteria means a childish condition of the soul. Small
children did not have a chance yet to recognize the proper limits to their
actions, which Life and Necessity inevitably impose. [3]
The complex relation between instinct and reason in
human souls is a major factor in determining the future of civilization.
Since the last decades of 20th century, the widespread
use of psychoactive drugs has been consistently stimulating the epidemic of
psychotic attitudes and the loss of balance in the perception of reality.
The alternative, according to classic esoteric
philosophy, consists in restoring the ability to be in harmony with the
soul. He who listens to his conscience
can listen to his fellow-citizens. On the other hand, he who can’t really pay
attention to others is not able to learn the lessons taught by his own spirit.
An awakening soul enables the individual to see the
law of equilibrium in operation and perceive the cosmic unity linking all parts
of the universe. The soul teaches us harmony, and as soon as we have inner
peace we see union and positive interaction unfolding among all living beings.
The State of the Nation and One’s Own State
Sigmund Freud documented the direct relation between
one’s state of mind and the state of one’s nation.[4]
There is a double dynamics.
On one hand, the social and political landscape of the
community is a central factor in determining the geography of one’s soul. On
the other hand, the content of one’s mind gets naturally projected to the
outside world, since our emotions and subconscious thoughts are the lens
through which we look at the outside world.
Just like in our friends and adversaries, we see in
our country that which is inside ourselves. The fantasy of dissociation is a
disease, and at this point seven conclusions seem to be largely inevitable:
1) We must be happy
with ourselves in order to transmit peace to others. Superficial harmony depends
on the unstable winds of appearance and is therefore short-lived.
2) The politics of
hatred leads nowhere, and so does the transformation of adversaries in permanent
scapegoats. These are but mechanisms of hysterical escape from reality. No need
to dwell on the famous examples of hysteria given by Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini.
3) It is no use for
social movements to act like grown-up children who cry and yell while refusing
to be responsible for their own actions, and keep ascribing to others - the
“adults” - the power to decide on their own lives.
4) Conservative
groups ought to avoid defeating themselves by behaving like immoral parents who
don’t care for their own family and cheat those who are nearest to them. He who
cheat others or take advantage of poor people is but deluding himself in the
long run.
5) In a parliament
as in a family, if honest dialogue is impossible and words fail to produce a
common understanding of shared goals, it is the time to calmly unmask the
presence of hysteria and nonsense. A firm serenity is necessary in order not to
add fuel to the flames. Disaster will be avoided if the unmasking is promoted
soon enough, with the adequate amount of strength and determination.
6) Effective leaders
stimulate mutual respect. They set the example of voluntary simplicity, constructive
attitude, good will and cooperation. It is the duty of all to be honest with
their adversaries. These principles prevent the causes of corruption and avoid
the source of social injustice, war and terrorism.
7) Since time
immemorial, humanity’s growth in wisdom has been the central factor in History.
Yet the learning of the soul takes place in spiral. Often painful, sometimes
joyful, the process of learning dies and is born again in cycles - big and
small. The most basic principles of life are forgotten from time to time and
must be taught and learned once more in a thousand occasions. Therefore a
theosophist would say: ‘he who does not
have the courage to improve himself should not lose time pretending he wants to
correct others. For the two things are inseparable. One must try to stop his
own mistakes before furiously fighting the mistakes he thinks he sees in
others. We have to know ourselves before we can really know other people.
Self-control is better than controlling the external world.’
The well-written book by William J. McGrath gives us valuable
elements to understand that hysterical attitudes tend to disappear in families,
as well as local communities and nations, whenever real knowledge is attained
and inner balance becomes firm enough to be transmitted to others by example.
My Mind to Me a Kingdom Is
Peace and paranoia, lucidity and hysteria, confidence,
fear and fury are all both collective and individual states of mind. Yet the
source and fountain of every civilization is in the individual consciousness of
the citizen. Family life plays a key role in the connection between the
vertical perception of individual life and the horizontal view of larger
communities. [5]
From the inner world, social life emerges. Our personal
feelings sustain our countries’ happiness or unhappiness. This teaching is present in the philosophical
works of classical Taoism. The correspondence between individual life and
politics is direct. Centuries before Sigmund Freud, Sir Edward Dyer (1543-1607)
wrote:
“My mind to me a kingdom is;
Such perfect joy therein I find
That it excels all other bliss.” [6]
Freud shows in “The Unconscious” (1915), that a human
soul has its own sort of topography. The geography of the mind is analogous to physical
geography. Many different intelligences inhabit the landscapes of each citizen’s
inner being. Every individual has dozens of voices and impulses in his soul, and
they live as more or less educated “citizens” in the realm of
consciousness.
In the parliament of self-perception, thoughts and
feelings represent contrasting possibilities, impulses, points of view and
levels of consciousness. There has to be a common feeling and a central government,
too.
A superego
is necessary that makes decisions in the name of the whole. The governmental superego is supposed to have balance and
moderation. It must listen to the silent voice of conscience: it has to express
a sense of justice in its decisions.
NOTES:
[1] “The Toilers of the Sea” (1866), look at Part II,
Book III, final lines of Chapter III.
[2] From the 1924 essay “The Loss
of Reality in Neurosis and Psychosis”, by S. Freud, see the book “The
Essentials of Psychoanalysis”, Sigmund Freud, Vintage Classics, selected by
Anna Freud, Vintage Books, London, 2005, 597 pp., see p. 568.
[3] On childishness in psychosis, see for instance “The
Essentials of Psychoanalysis”, Sigmund Freud, Vintage Books, London, 2005, p.
562.
[4] Read the first pages of chapter six in the book
“Freud’s Discovery of Psychoanalysis: The Politics of Hysteria”, by William J.
McGrath, Cornell University Press, 1986.
[5] Chapter six in McGrath’s book examines the parallel
made by Freud between the “politics in the soul” and the outward politics of a
country. The same pages examine Freud’s personal opposition to Theodor Herzl
and the Zionist project. Freud died in 1939 and did not see the Holocaust in
the 1940s. In part for this reason, the father of psychoanalysis found it
difficult to understand the need for Israel, and did not think that the Jewish
State should be built as a safe place for Jews to live. Freud may also have
felt a bit of envy regarding the strong sense of a healthy future provided by
Herzl. The topic should be examined in some other article. Freud and Herzl are
two great friends of mankind and both changed human history for the better.
[6] Click to see the poem “My Mind to Me a Kingdom Is”.
000
“The Politics of Hysteria” was published as an
independent article in our associated websites on 10 November 2019. It is also available at our blog in “The Times of Israel”.
Related articles:
* “Resistance to Change in Theosophy”,
and
* “The Process of Concentration”, the
last lone written by Sri Kshirod Sarma.
000
