In Civilization and Its Discontents Freud examines the anxieties and tensions that are part of modern society and how they affect individuals, who naturally want to be free in a world that demands conformity. According to Freud, humans still have caveman instincts, and may want to kill, rape, steal and pillage to get pleasure. However, living in a society requires “civilization” and the laws, communities, norms and repression that go along with modern life. As a result, individuals feel frustrated, isolated, alienated and angry, which makes them discontent. They want to do what comes naturally and produces pleasure, but are forced to act against their instincts, subduing and denying their desires. Freud goes on to apply his famous psycho-sexual theories as a framework to analyze both society and individuals. In short, he explains the causes of many of the neurosis, anxiety and psychological problems people experience in modern life. The rules, laws and norms that keep society civilized, also produce many of the psychological problems that plague its populations. Humans have created a lawful society that also makes them miserable. For example, marriage is a sacred societal institution that encourages monogamy, which may go against human sexual instincts.
Today, society seems to have more psychological problems than ever. Many people are on medication for a variety of mental illnesses, and in recent media coverage there are numerous examples of deranged and young men shooting at innocent people. For example, in 2014, a college student named Elliot Rogers wanted to kill a large amount of women because he was a virgin who could not get a girlfriend, despite being affluent, having a nice car and caring about his appearance. He wrote a 140 page manifesto where he blamed society for his lack of sexual partners (Wolf). According to Freud’s analytical framework, Rogers was repressed and angry because he was unable to fulfill his instinctual sexual desires, so he lashed out against society. There are many more examples of discontents expressing their alienation and rage by killing random innocent people. In the Middle East, ISIS is recruiting young men and women to fight in the name of Islamic fundamentalism, and many of these new “soldiers” seem to be discontented people who are angry with modern society. Their actions can also be explained by Freud’s explanation of the natural human “death instinct” which can encourage dangerous and hostile behavior. Both ISIS and the U.S. and their allies are also directing their rage against a foreign “enemy” to fuel their natural caveman anger and aggression, which they are unable to acceptably unleash against their own society and population. War can be seen as a way society and its members “vents” its natural instinctual aggression.
However, it could be argued that there is less repression, guilt and neurosis in modern society than in 1929 when Freud wrote Civilization and Its Discontents. Gay and transsexual people are accepted, gay marriage was recently approved by the Supreme Court and most people are more “free” than in the past. While Freud’s theories are important and still relevant, using psycho-sexuality, the Oedipus Complex, and the Super-Ego as a way to analyze society may not be the most modern and effective framework to explain the high levels of narcissism, violence, depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, bi-polar disorder and suicide in society today. Today, Freud’s theories make sense as a major theoretical work, but seem old fashioned, offering only broad generalizations to describe the causes of human behavior.
Works Cited
Freud, Sigmund. Civilization and Its Discontents. New York: W.W. Norton, 1962. Print.
Wolf, Nikki. "Chilling Report Details How Elliot Rodger Executed Murderous Rampage." The Guardian. N.p., 20 Feb. 2014. Web
