Psychoanalyze This
Newsweek – March 27, 2006“Freud in Our Midst” by Jerry Adler
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/11904222/site/newsweek/
In Jerry Adler’s article, “Freud in Our Midst,” he writes about one of the most controversial scientists in modern history and how his ideas continue to influence our lives. I found the article while perusing through Newsweek’s science and technology section. I’ve always been fascinated with Freud’s theories, and sometimes I find myself actually reflecting on my own life and my actions and how past decisions I have made have affected the present. Without Freud, this idea of introspection likely never gains notoriety.
The one thing that I noticed immediately when reading the article is the author’s style. He writes poetically using symbolism, metaphors, and imagery to paint a picture of how Freud has shaped the field of psychology and how others react to his theories. Some examples of the poetic language that jumped out at me included “unleash a torrent of denunciation” and “mountains of Prozac every year have failed to bury it.” The style was appropriate for the subject matter because the author says that Freud’s theories are less in the realm of science and more in the realm of literature. The author argues that Freud’s theories are poetic in themselves.
The audience that Adler targets is quite obviously Newsweek readers, but I feel that with the poetic language and scholarly subject matter that he is targeting the more educated Newsweek readers than the whole. Those that have taken a psychology class and have had a chance to study Freud’s theories would be more interested in the subject matter than most. The author cites many sources and quotes many experts throughout the article, something that a more educated reader would note.
Many of the sources that are quoted in the article are doctors that are leaders in the field of psychiatry and psychology. Many of them hold positions at medical schools indicating that they have ongoing research in the field and each is very opinionated in terms of whether they believe Freud’s contribution to the field of psychology was significant or otherwise. Having this testimony not only strengthens the author’s credibility in writing on this topic, but it adds flavor to the debate about whether Freud’s contribution to psychology was indeed lasting and positive.
One thing that bothered me (and it may be a little nit-picky) was the inclusion of a Newsweek poll to help support a point that Freud’s idea of psychoanalysis is still popular among Americans. The poll only includes Newsweek readers which is a biased and unrepresentative portion of the population. Even if the author was using it merely as an illustration, a statistic from the American Psychological Association concerning this subject would have been more appropriate given the scholarly overtone of this piece.
By crafting the article to mirror a debate, the author sets up the conclusion to be open for interpretation. However, he includes a quote from Freud regarding human conflict. By doing this, the author wants to leave a lasting impression on the reader’s mind saying that Freud’s ideas do have a place in modern clinical psychology and research. It has an anecdotal tone and suggests that there may in fact be some underlying reason to certain human actions. I felt that this statement was the author’s way of praising Freud’s contribution to science and the field of psychology.
Overall, the article is written from a fairly neutral point of view offering commentary from both sides of the fence regarding Freud. I felt it was an interesting and appropriate way to commemorate psychoanalysis’ founding father and is appropriate subject matter for a publication such as Newsweek.
posted by Andy @ 7:17 PM
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