Freud and War

Abstract

The article examines the issues of war in the context of the life and work of Sigmund Freud in historical and sociological retrospect. Using a personal approach to the analysis of historical and sociological material, the author analyzes the impact of war on Z. Freud's life. It is noted that despite the difficult financial situation, the presence of Z. Freud's three sons at the front, the wartime was quite fruitful for him. It was at this time that the famous "Introductory Lectures on Psychoanalysis" were published, from which experts sometimes recommend starting acquaintance with this system. S. Freud's views on war and death, expressed in the essay "Reflections on War and Death", written six months after the start of the First World War, are analyzed in detail. In this work, the founder of psychoanalysis puts forward two theses: first, war leads to disillusionment with civilization; secondly, war leads to a change in our attitude towards death. War washes away the later cultural stratifications from civilized man and brings back to light the primitive man who lives in the depths of our unconscious. Special attention is paid to the correspondence between Z. Freud and A. Einstein, in which the problem of war is discussed. To A. Einstein's question "Is there any way of delivering mankind from the menace of war?" Z. Freud answers negatively. The resolution of conflicts with the help of force is inherent in all animals, including man, although in the process of civilization the role of intelligence in human conflicts has increased. The death instinct works in every person: it manifests itself internally when we unconsciously desire our own destruction, and externally when we desire the death of another. The transfer of destructive impulses to other people, the outside world is a way to preserve oneself, so it is impossible to completely overcome human aggressiveness. The article discusses works of Vamık D. Volkan and Viviane Chetrit-Vatine, who develop a psychoanalytic approach to war. In summary, the author claims that moral and political progress lags significantly behind technical and technological progress, which cannot but cause moral concern. All this forces us to look for new opportunities to prevent and resolve conflicts by non-military means.