Civilization And Its Discontent, By Karl Marx And Sigmund Freud

In nineteenth and twentieth centuries Europe, Karl Marx and Sigmund Freud published books with radical ideologies that would have great influence and relevance on society today. These two men worked in very different occupational fields, but they were both able to communicate their thoughts regarding society and human nature. Karl Marx is most known for his publication of The Communist Manifesto and the formation of the political ideology, Marxism. Most of his philosophies revolve around societal class structure and the relationship between labor and capital. Sigmund Freud was a medical doctor, who founded the theories and techniques of psychoanalysis. In Civilization and Its Discontent, Freud uses the theories of psychoanalysis to discuss
the conflicts between civilization and the individual. Both men created different theories regarding human nature, but have certain similarities that tie them together. When reading the two books, it is apparent that the topics of discussion are rather different. Marx focuses on economics and production, while Freud uses his knowledge of psychology to interpret the human personality. The one commonality between the two is that both face conflict. Marx describes his conflict to be between the bourgeoisie and the proletariat, working to abolish the upper class in order to achieve a classless, moneyless system. Freud believes that there is an internal struggle between an individual and their mind. Individuals have to master the ability to control their primal instincts, while applying certain morals to their life that would be approved by society. In a way, Marx and Freud share similar views on human nature in the fact that both rely on instinct. The Marxist principles use production as a way to fulfill basic instincts and needs to survive in a society. Freud entire belief revolves around satisfying the primitive and emotional urges that are formed in the unconscious mind. While one can deduce the similarities between the two views on human nature, they were still set apart by the variability of the main idea and overall meaning.
Karl Marx believed that human nature was not a fixed thing, rather it continually changed based on the economic situations of the time period. This means that production, capital, labor, private property, and freedom influenced how humans behaved and interacted with one another. Individuals are the sole determinants of human nature, meaning it can be altered based on social relations and previous history. Humans would adapt to a particular environment in order to satisfy basic needs and instincts. Marx’s views and theories generally revolved around class struggle, specifically between the bourgeoisie and the proletariat. During the time Marx was writing the manifesto, the Industrial Revolution was occurring at an extremely rapid pace, and there was no middle class by today’s standards; only a drastic separation between the nobility and the workers. Both of the classes had their own version of human nature. The human nature of the bourgeoisie revolved around the exploitation of the lower class. They controlled all of the land and had the money and resources to employ workers, reaping all of the rewards of the labor. As Marx stated, the basic function of the bourgeoisie was the “exploitation of the many by the few” (Marx 67). The human nature of the proletariat, or the working class, is the need for production. The speed of change in the Industrial Revolution began to eliminate artisans and craftsmen in favor of the factory worker, who was placed into a limited, monotonous position. The workers are designed to produce, and when that does not happen, alienation occurs. This alienation is due to the fact that the workers are investing their life in the object they are producing; yet they do not gain any benefits from its production. The proletariat is forced to put time and effort into production because that is their new mode of survival.
Freud believed that human nature was inherently bad.
His pessimistic views led him to the belief that human aggression is apparent in everyday life and the relationships between one another. The unconscious forces in an individual instigate the animalistic instincts and drives, such as sex and aggression, which determine behavior. To further explain his views on humanity, he divided personality, or a human’s psyche, into three different forces: the id, the ego, and the superego. The id is our unconscious mind that is purely instinctual and operates on the pleasure principle. The pleasure principle is the need for immediate gratification for instinctual urges such as hunger, sex, and aggression. One of Freud’s main theories revolves around the libido being the source of all energy, such as aggression, guilt, and the pursuit of pleasure. The libido is part of the id and is the basis for human behavior. As a result of the id, the ego is the rational part of the mind that operates on the reality principle, which is need to satisfy the id in realistic ways. The superego uses morals and societal values to control the impulses of the id, such as sex and aggression. This is the part of brain is responsible for repressing aggressive instincts, which in turn leads the individual to redirect the aggression on their own ego, engendering guilt. Without this repression, individuals act like newborns, constantly wanting instant gratification. When Freud refers to this, he
implies that all humans have the need to fulfill the pleasure principle, striving for immediate sexual gratification. The three parts of the personality are continuously in conflict between one another, but they all serve a specific purpose that influences human nature. The unconscious mind constitutes the majority of the individual’s personality, determining the conscious life.
Karl Marx and Sigmund Freud were brought up in similar environments that may have influenced their writings.
Although they lived in different time periods, both men had German upbringings and were well educated through universities. Religion also impacted their views on society and human nature. Freud was born into a Jewish family, but in no way felt a connection to religion. In Civilization and Its Discontents, he begins by describing an “oceanic” feeling that is a “purely subjective fact…but the source of religious energy” commonly experienced by many (Freud 24). He states that he has never actually felt this unbounded and limitless feeling that is so common, but he tries to understand what it means from a scientific standpoint. Freud makes other statements about his disdain for organized religion when he refers to it as “infantile” and “foreign to reality” (Freud 39). For the most part, individuals strive for happiness in life and Freud uses religion as a simple way to find this internal happiness. In The Communist Manifesto, Marx does not explicitly talk about religion, but can be inferred that religion never positively influenced his theories. Similar to Freud, Marx viewed religion as a way to escape the hardships of society. He was a materialist, so he denied all notions that societal values and morals stemmed from a religious power. Marxism relied on the suppression of religion in order to control the lives of the
proletariat.
A consideration to think about is that Marx died before Freud published anything of significance, but Freud was well aware of Marx and his theories. In Civilization and Its Discontents, Freud discusses his opinions on communism, saying that the system is based on “an untenable illusion” (Freud 97). He reasons that the elimination of economic barriers in society will not counter the internal desires of man to dominate and destroy one another. Thus, the peace and harmony that Marx believes will occur when the proletariat rises up against the bourgeoisie, creating the communistic society, will never be actualized due to man’s natural desire for aggression.
Both Marx and Freud had views on human nature that were considered radical at the time, but were slowly incorporated into the day-to-day lives of man, impacting today’s society tremendously. Marxism, in the forms of Socialism and Communism, has impacted billions of people around the world since the manifesto was written in 1848. The reality of this system is that there is no easy method of promoting equality for all without using force and subjugation. In the end, there will be more people who exploit the system instead of making contributions, triggering a decline in quality and performance over time. Freud impacted society with his contributions to the theory of psychoanalysis and treating neuroses. He believed that the suppression of instincts caused neurotic disorders among many people. Today, psychoanalysis is still used as a therapeutic technique and is constantly sparking debate regarding its efficacy.
Overall, Marx and Freud had completely different views on human nature. Marx believed that humans rely on economic and social relations with one another, gaining mutual support by working together for a common goal. Freud, on the other hand, used psychoanalysis to illustrate that human nature was purely based on instinct, specifically for sexual gratification. It is clear that both men had tremendous influence on society with both positive and negative results. These results are subjective in that some people may conclude there were more positive than negative results and vice versa. Today, Freud’s teachings ad beliefs have been muted to a larger extent, but Marx’s influence is still predominant in places like China and North Korea. Marx believed that utopia was achievable, whereas Freud concludes that human improvement can only occur marginally on a smaller scale. Both men used their radical ideas to impact the society around them, influencing individuals and their beliefs on human nature now and in the future.