PSYCHOLOGICAL

CRITICISM
PSYCHOLOGICAL CRITICISM
1. It views works through the lens of
psychology
2. It looks either at the psychological
motivations of the characters or of the
authors themselves
3. Most frequently applies Freudian
psychology to works, but other
approaches also exist.
Freud’s ideas are also of
key importance in the
literary criticism:
PSYCHOANALYTIC
CRITICISM.
Freud’s psychoanalytic
perspective proposed
that childhood sexuality
and unconscious
motivations influence
personality.
PSYCHOANALYTIC CRITICISM is
based on Sigmund Freud work.
The earliest application
focused on the text as a
window into the psyche of the
author – dream analysis
Psychoanalytical criticism seeks to
explore literature by examining how
the follow issues are represented:
a. How human mental and
psychological development occurs
b. How the human mind works
c. The root causes of psychological
problems
d. How the id, ego, and superego are
represented
This information can be used to
analyze literature using two different
approaches:

a. Psychoanalysis of the author: this

often requires research of the author’s
life, but some academics make
inferences based on the author’s
writing.
b. Psychoanalysis of the character(s)
FREUD THEORY is composed
of:
a. Theory of Motivation
b. Theory of Thinking
c. Theory of Personality
Development
d. Theory Psychosexual
Development
PERSONALITY
THEORY
1. ID
2. EGO
3. SUPEREGO
The id: Meeting Basic
Needs
a reservoir of unconscious
psychic energy constantly
striving to satisfy basic drives
to survive, reproduce, and
aggress.
Id Example:
Sally was thirsty. Rather than
waiting for the server to refill her
glass of water, she reached
across the table and drank from
Mr. Smith’s water glass, much to
his surprise.
Defenses are the
processes by which we
keep the repressed
repressed in order to
avoid knowing what we
feel we can handle.
Defenses Mechanism:
a. selective perception
b. selective memory
c. denial
d. avoidance
e. displacement
f. projection
g. regression
Ego: dealing with
Reality
the largely conscious,
“executive” part of personality
that, according to Freud,
mediates the demands of the
id, superego, and reality.
Ego Example:
Sally was thirsty. However, she
knew that her server would be
back soon to refill her water
glass, so she waited until to get
a drink, even though she really
just wanted to drink from Mr.
Smith’s glass.
Superego: Adding
Morals
represents internalized ideals
and provides standards for
judgment (the conscious)
and for future aspirations.
Superego Example:
Sarah knew that she could
steal the supplies from the
work and no one would know
it.However, she knew that
stealing was wrong, so she
decided not to take anything.
Theory of Motivation
It tries to provide general sets of
principles to guide our
understanding of the urges,
wants, needs, desires, strivings
and goals that come under the
heading motivation.
Theory of Thinking
Freud maintained that our
desires and our unconscious
conflicts give rise to three areas
of the mind that
wrestle for dominance as we
grow from infancy, to childhood,
to adulthood.
PSYCHOANALYTICAL CRITICAL QUESTIONS:
For psychoanalytical criticism that
focuses on the author:
A. To what extent does the text reveal
the author’s repressed desires?
B. What conflicts exist among the
author’s id, ego, and superego?
C. Does the text indicate any problems
in the author’s psychosexual maturation
process (e.g. Oedipus Complex, oral
fixation)?
For psychoanalytical criticism that focuses
on the character(s):
A. In what way does the text reflect the
psychosexual development of the
character?
B. Does the character demonstrate any
neuroses or psychoses?
C. Is the character’s behavior indicative
of or influenced by repressed desires or
conflicts among the id, ego, and
superego?
Analysis of The Sick
Rose Written by
William Blake
 O rose, thou art sick!
The invisible worm
That flies in the night,
In the howling storm,

Has found out thy bed

Of crimson joy,
And his dark secret love
Does thy life destroy.