Fin-de-siècle Vienna, Part II Vienna – Birthplace of the Psyche [PDF]

Fin-de-siècle Vienna, Part II Freud and Schnitzler

Vienna – Birthplace of the Psyche „

Freud and Schnitzler contemporaries Jewish „ doctors „ interested in the subconscious „ „

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Freud to Schnitzler: your fiction summarizes my theories

Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) studied in Paris with Charcot „ 1895: Studies on Hysteria with J. Breuer „

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early psychic trauma leads to hysteria cathartic method (under hypnosis)

Freud rejected hypnosis in favour of “talking method” or “free association” „

repressed material in unconscious allowed to emerge

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The Interpretation of Dreams (1899) “The interpretation of dreams is in fact the royal road to a knowledge of the unconscious; it is the securest foundation of psychoanalysis.” „ first complete exposé of Freud’s theories „

What are dreams? divine revelations? repressed wishes? „ random firing of brain neurons? „ „

Freud’s dream theory „

“The dream is the (disguised) fulfilment of a (suppressed, repressed) wish.” “truth” is present in subconscious as it makes its way to the conscious, it is censored and filtered „ the material which makes it to the consciousness is in a disguised form „ „

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Freud’s dream theory „

dreams have latent and manifest content „ „

latent content: the thoughts behind the dream manifest content: the distorted dream story

dream work turns latent content into manifest content „ dream interpretation reveals the meaning of manifest content „

Dreamwork „

dreamwork: what dreams do to our thoughts condensation displacement „ representation „ secondary revision „ „

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dream interpretation: reversing the direction of dreamwork

The Interpretation of Dreams „

Freud’s method

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components of Freud’s world view

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interpretation based on his world view

literary „ Jewish „ anti-Semitism of fin-de-siecle Vienna „

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Anti-Semitism in Vienna, 1900 1800s - many Jews emigrated to Vienna 1887 - foreign Jews prohibited from emigrating to Austria „ ca. 1900 - 10% of Vienna Jewish „ „

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assimilated liberal intellectuals non-assimilated orthodox Jews (“eastern Jews”)

1897 - Karl Lueger elected mayor; struggle with emperor

The Interpretation of Dreams „

Freud’s dreams in Chapter Four „

class discussion

Arthur Schnitzler (1862-1931) medical doctor and reserve officer dramatist and fiction writer „ important works „ „

Die Reigen (La Ronde) (1897) Leutnant Gustl (1900) „ Der Weg ins Freie (Road into the Open) (1908) „ Traumnovelle (Dream Story) (1926) (basis of film Eyes Wide Shut) „ „

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Leutnant Gustl - Scandal deemed offensive to army „ Schnitzler court-martialed; lost reserve officer status „

Leutnant Gustl - Technique „

interior monologue subjective narrative strategy reveals thoughts in unmediated fashion „ limits description of details external to protagonist „ „

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Schnitzler knew Interpretation of Dreams „ „

familiar with free association inner monologue ideal for emulating free association

Leutnant Gustl - The Man bigoted self-deceiving „ conscious of appearances „ hypocritical „ code of honour „ „

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Leutnant Gustl - Questions What is Gustl’s main problem? What is the image of the military and military officers in the story? „ Why is interior monologue so effective in telling this story? „ What connections do you see between this story and Freud’s Interpretation of Dreams? „ „

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