Freud Conformity and Obedience While

Freud

Conformity and Obedience

While many current day psychologists and sociologist often dismiss many of the view of Sigmund Freud as outdated and outmoded, certain relevant factors still apply. In fact, I the world of sociology, Freud may have had more substantial input than originally given credit for. Freud's primary belief in his psychoanalytic theory is that the ego must protect itself in all cases from experiencing overwhelming anxiety and to do so it has developed certain defense mechanisms, which may or may not function adequately, to resolve the psychic turmoil. (Moser)

In a society that is based on long evolutionary line from the pack mentality of our ancestors where there was one Alpha Male and then various positions down the line. Displeasure in the form of pain or ostracizing was strictly avoided. Conformity to group norms was not only necessary for individuals to operate within the community, but for ultimate survival as well. Now in a more civilized world, these same operators are even simpler, it comes down to the idea of what payoff is valued more by conforming, what is the reward for conforming.

For Freud the evolutionary genesis is found in the formation of the ego during infancy and childhood:

In the oral and anal phases, up to two or three years of age, children experience similar pleasures and pain whether they are boys or girls. Both boys and girls have similar pleasures and pains in relation to the breast and in relation to being washed, dried, urinating and defecating. They both have their first experience of social control in the anal phase in relation to being toilet trained. (Bocock 47)

Religion itself is called into the same category and obsequiousness to authority in defense of being banned from the group and ostracized from the community rises from a defense mechanism of deferred obedience:

Features were thus brought into existence which continued thenceforward to have a determining influence on the nature of religion. Totemic religion arose from the filial sense of guilt, in an attempt to allay that feeling and to appease the father by deferred obedience to him. All later religions are seen to be attempts at solving the same problem. & #8230; all have the same end in view and are reactions to the same great event with which civilization began and which since it occurred, has not allowed mankind a moment's rest. (Freud 145)

Furthermore, while it would seem that human beings would always seek out pleasure and avoid pain, even Freud discovered that this was not always the case. The events of the World Wars made Freud feel that there may be something else going on as well.