Oedipus 2

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much simpler terms, by having sex: mankind's most intense pleasure and source of deepest happiness. However, this is impossible, because in order for civilization to exist, men must employ their energies in the service of society, thus sacrificing individual personal satisfaction. Freud states that he is strongly concerned of the outcome of the inevitable conflict produced by the demands of man's instinctual drive on the one hand, and the repressive requirements of civilization on the other. By creating substitute gratification, civilization is able to partially compensate individuals by redirecting libidinal energies into socially acceptable forms of bliss. The purpose of society therefore becomes to divert mankind from individual sexual gratification into socially productive and acceptable activities, also known as the civilizing process. Therefore, this conflict is invariably resolved in favor of civilization as all people are born into a restrictive civilization in which human ...

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fate, and even lived a temporarily affluent life, the ultimate decree of the Gods could not be avoided. Oedipus unsuccessfully attempted to control the pitch of his life and his pursuit of happiness. What he did not realize was that his happiness was not in his authority. Freud explains the never-ending struggle between the instinct of life and of death, in terms of the struggle between Eros and Death. Freud argues that the primary drive of the human organism, even more fundamental than the life instinct Eros itself, is the Death Instinct: the search for final homogeneity and release from all biological tensions. The dissipation of Eros, through the continuing repression of libidinal ...

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