Freuds Theory about Femininity - Research Paper Example

Freud’s Theory about Femininity Introduction Sigmund Freud is often regarded as the father of psychoanalysis and can be credited for his tendency to attribute psychological problems to issues of sex. His theory of psychoanalysis together with his explanations of the oedipal complex has become popular in the field of psychology. During his lifetime, his views on women brought controversy; even today, his thoughts continue to stir significant debates. This paper will discuss Freud’s theory about femininity and the riddle of femininity. Moreover, the paper will focus on the role that daughter-father relationship plays in development of femininity. The paper will also explore the nature of masculinity, how it develops, and its relationship with femininity. In a way, the paper will also explore the implications of these relationships for the development of the girl child as well as how they affect the father-daughter relationship. Lastly, the paper will give an own opinion about the theory about femininity by Sigmund Freud. Freud’s thoughts on Femininity In 1925, Sigmund Freud wrote a paper entitled “The Physical Consequences of the Atomic Distinction between the Sexes.” In this paper, Freud argued that women tend to oppose change, add nothing of their own and are passive recipients. In his arguments, Freud held that the Oedipal Complex of the young girl tends to run a different course as compared to the Oedipal Complex of the little boy. For Freud, femininity cannot be easily understood based on conventional or biological perspective. He held that sexual difference tends to be primarily concerned less with material reality than physical reality. Therefore, sexual differences mostly focus on the facets of fantasy than those of nature and cultural dispositions (Fiorini & Rose, 2010). Freud maintained that the Oedipal Complex can be considered as the story of how human beings become subjects, the story of development of the psychic, as well as how people develop sexual differentiation. In regard to femininity, Freud concentrated more on the girl child as the subject; therefore, he regarded the boy child and men as points of contrasts for the girl child. The pre-Oedipal and Oedipal Complexes bring out the differences in the development of the boy child and the girl child. He postulates that girls face immense difficulties in their move towards attaining femininity. He radically suggested that the selection of femininity takes place out of bisexual origin as well as social constructivism (Kirkham, 1996). According to Fiorini & Rose (2010), in the early stages of her life, the girl child starts life with her mother but later on switches her affection and feelings to the father. This happens before the onset of the oedipal complex. Freud argued that, as the girl child grows, she tends to develop what he referred as penis envy. As the girl child interacts with the boy child, she notices that there exist some differences between her anatomy and that of the boy. As a result, the girl views herself as inferior as she does not possess a penis, which is viewed as a superior organ and weapon. Consequently, the girl feels that she does not measure up; she views the lack of a penis as something that makes her incomplete. Upon the realization that she does not have a penis, the girl starts to envy the penis. As such, she feels that she would also like to have a penis together with all the power and might that can be associated with a penis. Thereafter, she realizes that she cannot have a penis as only the boys are created with the coveted penis. Therefore, she tries to counter this loss by wishing to have a penis substitute; this would probably be a baby boy. In order to have a baby, the girl realizes that she needs both the mother and father. Thus, the girl child sets her eyes on the father who she presumes can assist her acquire the penis that she needs very much. However, the girl realizes that the mother has already taken the father. Therefore, the young is forced to displace from the father to other men and boys. Consequently, she has to identify with the mother since she is the woman who has already taken the man she truly wanted. Freud argued that the transference of the wish of a penis baby on to girl’s father indicates that the girl child has entered into another situation referred to as edifice complex. This intensifies her hostility towards the mother, which needed not be created afresh. The girl perceives her mother as her most significant rival; this stems from the fact that the mother received what the girl desired to get from the father. Freud argues that the edifice complex for girls implies the outcome of a difficult as well as long development. To him, it can be viewed as a preliminary solution, a resting position in which the girl tends to stay for a long time without abandoning it soon (Kirkham, 1996). In his explanations of the sexual differences, which exist between men and women, Freud strived to demonstrate the power of masculinity in a society dominated by men. His ideas formed the basis of sexual development theory. Freud argues that it is during the phallic stage (3-5 years) that girls devote their attention and feelings of affection to their fathers. In his theory about femininity, Freud postulated that childhood sexual abuse could be attributed to the causes of hysteria. Later on, Freud argued that sexual fantasies played an essential role in the development of various illnesses and neuroses. According to Sigmund Freud, the repression of the sexual desires by women could make them to be hysterical (Brennan, 1992). Freud further portrayed the weaknesses in women by arguing that the hostility of the girl child to the mother stems from the endless sexual desires by the girl. Later on, these desires alter in accordance to the phase of libido since they cannot be satisfied. The girl feels frustrated at the phallic period since the mother prohibits her from engaging in activities, which would trigger pleasure. Freud contended that the mother issues severe threats to the girl child coupled with every sign, which portrays displeasure. This is opposed to the fact that the mother introduced the girl to the pleasure herself (Damousi, 2005). Freud postulated that gender can be regarded as both a psychological and physical construction. He also noted that gender played a significantly essential role in determining the infantile sexuality of a child, the maturation of the child, and how the child relates to his or her parents. Out of this argument, he constructed explanations and views on the issue of femininity. He argued that bisexual origins could be attributed to femininity in that femininity is selected out of this bisexual origin, as well as social constructivism (Herick, 1985). Freud was puzzled by how femininity came into being because of the prehistory of the girl’s attachment to her mother and love. Prior to the organization of genitals, the girl experiences the masturbatory (phallic stage). Freud posed the question on why the girl child would be forced to switch the site of pleasure in her body from the clitoris to the vagina. These mysteries brought into the limelight the riddle of femininity. He understood sexual identity as a form of differentiation as well as individualization, which could only be realized from complex interactions between the familial others and bodily drives. This opposes the belief and argument that sexual identity could be understood as a natural pre-given essence, which is deeply rooted in anatomy (Brennan, 1992). In his demonstration of the weaknesses portrayed by women, Freud argued that the story of the boy could be regarded as more continuous and seamless than that of the girl. This stems from the argument that the boy strives to retain his phallic pleasure more than the girl. In addition, the boy replaces the object of immediate pleasure, who was previously the mother, with someone who resembles the mother. Therefore, the boy can look forward and substitute objects as compared to the girl. Thus, Freud viewed women and girls as inferior beings who take to take a longer time to adjust than the boys (Damousi, 2005). According to Freud, the boy identifies with the father at the end of the Oedipal Complex by establishing a superego within himself. As such, the boy abandons and forgets the immediate object he used to desire with the hope that he will also possess an object modeled as the mother in the future. On the contrary, the Oedipal Complex of the girl can be regarded as more complicated than that of the boy. This is because only a break from the pre-Oedipal relation with her mother can instigate it; therefore, it can be considered as a secondary formation (Herick, 1985). Freud held that the girl turns her love towards her father upon the realization that the mother is castrated just like her (the girl). Castration does not resolve the Oedipal Complex for the girls; rather, it leads the girls into entering the Oedipal Complex. As such, Freud claims that the Oedipal Complex is never demolished or concluded, and this accounts for the weak super-egos in girls and their lesser capacity for sublimation. According to Freud, fear does not make the girl turn to her mother; rather, contempt as well as envy for what the mother never possesses makes the girl turn to her (Fiorini & Rose, 2010). The father does not pose a threat to the girl or the prospect of a desire that has already been fulfilled. Rather, the father represents the prospect of a desire to be fulfilled in the future for the boy. For the girl, the father promises a refuge from loss, which is represented by the mother who has already faced this loss and can be blamed for the girl’s loss. In the girl's oedipal scenario, the father represents the capacity of the desire itself, which the girl lacks, and that can only be reclaimed by having a boy child with another man. In the Oedipal Complex of the girl, the realization of femininity occurs as the desire to be masculine. Freud claims that the little girl can be regarded as a little man since, pre-Oedipally, she starts off in the same emotional place as the boy. Freud also maintains that there exists only one single, masculine libido since the girl and boy are not sexually differentiated while young. According to Freud, genital organization only occurs when children pass through the Oedipal Complex. This stems from the fact that genital organization is realized and acquired as the last stage in sexual development and while related to castration (Herick, 1985). Own Opinion I agree with the arguments of Freud that masculine can be assumed to mean active while feminine can be regarded as passive. This can be related to the predispositions by the society on the roles, which should be played by both men and women. The passivity that relates to the femininity of women emanates from the social impositions on the behavior of women. His arguments that the behavior of young girls and boys can be regarded as the same also tend to be somehow true. However, I disagree with the statement of Freud that the envy for the boy’s penis by the girls can be regarded as the root for the development of femininity. I also discredit some of the arguments laid out by Freud since he does not provide any reliable evidence from a regular environment. The subjects of his studies include mentally ill patients and not children undertaking their daily experiences in a regular manner. The population and study sample he relies on cannot be said to give credible results. It includes people undergoing psychoanalysis. As a result, the results given can be regarded as skewed since the sample appears to be limited by circumstances as well as some unique traits. Conclusion. The riddle of femininity by Freud exemplifies the typical woman and the unique characteristics of females, most of which tend to be borrowed from men. Freud argues that women can be regarded as passive while men can be said to be active. According to Freud, the girl’s desire to be like her male counterpart can be considered as significant in the behavior of the girl. As the little girl grows, she develops penis envy, a phenomenon that entails desire to have a penis. As time goes by, the girl realizes that she has been castrated and that the father belongs to her mother. The girl identifies with the father after realizing the mother’s weakness. References Brennan, T. (1992). The Interpretation of the Flesh: Freud and Femininity. London: Routledge. Damousi, J. (2005). Freud in the Antipodes: A Cultural History of Psychoanalysis in Australia. Sydney: UNSW Press. Fiorini, L. G. & Rose, G. A. (2010). On Freud’s Femininity. London: Karnack Books. Herick, V. J. (1985). Freud on Femininity and Faith. California: University of California Press. Kirkham, P. (1996). The Gendered Object. Manchester: Manchester University Press. Read More