ESSAY ON METAPSYCHOLOGY FROM THE UNCONSCIOUS ACCORDING TO FREUD Thesis: Freud's

metapsychology reveals that human psychic functioning, rooted in the unconscious, is shaped by a
complex interaction between desires, impulses, conflicts and defense mechanisms. These
elements, driven by the pleasure principle and confronted by the reality principle, shape our
emotions, behaviors and decisions, highlighting the profound and often hidden influence of the
unconscious on our conscious experience. Metapsychology, according to Freud, is the pleasure of
thinking and understanding our psychic functioning that goes beyond conventional psychology,
encompassing a series of key concepts such as the unconscious and repression, as well as drives.
Freud does not discover the unconscious, he invents it, arguing that it is an independent psychic
instance that is inaccessible to consciousness, an unknown knowledge, which is ours, but is made
up of censored and repressed contents that are not at our disposal. Freud was not the first to talk
about the idea of the unconscious mind. However, his approach and deepening of this concept
were exceptional and revolutionary for his time. Although ideas had previously been raised about
the existence of an underlying level of the mind, it was Freud who took this concept further,
building a solid theoretical and clinical scaffolding that thoroughly explored how the unconscious
shapes the behaviors and psychological experiences of people. people. A historical moment, Freud
stood out as one of the pioneers in establishing a structured and practical link between the
unconscious and human behavior, a contribution that triggered a profound impact on psychology
and the understanding of human psychology, explaining that a process psychic acquires
metapsychological qualities when it allows us to see its topical, dynamic and economic dimension.
In terms of the topical dimension, it refers to the mental spaces that range from the unconscious
to the preconscious, consciousness and the external world. Using the second topic, it is explored
whether the psychic process takes place in the unconscious, in the preconscious or unconscious
superego, or in consciousness. In addition to this, the psychic process must be described in
dynamic terms, that is, the underlying conflict in certain behaviors must be analyzed. For example,
the conflict between him, it and the ego is investigated, which can generate symptoms such as
delusions or hallucinations. Instances are identified

involved and the type of conflict that affects them. 3 Finally, the economic dimension at play is
highlighted, which refers to the drives that are involved in the psychic process. It is analyzed
whether sexual, death, life or self-preservation drives are at play. This involves understanding the
psychic dynamics underlying a particular event or behavior. According to this, it is inevitable to
address one of these aspects without referring to the other, since they are intrinsically
interconnected. This constant interrelation immerses us in a continuous search, accompanied by a
persistent desire to decipher the roots of other people's discomfort. The question arises about the
motivating forces, the underlying causes of our actions and the internal mechanics of our mental
life. The human being is in a constant conflict with the unconscious, which acts as his executioner,
he sabotages himself and even if the goal is achieved, if there is a small setback along the way, it is
assimilated as a total failure and upon achieving it, he is invaded by feelings of frustration. where
they do not know what to continue with when they lose their object of motivation, for this reason
the unconscious is called the dark part of the soul, it tells us that we live with a stranger, a stranger
who can be an ally, a foreign being or an enemy who can be more noticeable in the eyes of those
around us. Yes, it is true that some people, despite acting with good will and behaving positively,
may face difficult situations in their lives that seem unfair or inexplicable. In some cultures and
beliefs, it is common to attribute these experiences to evils or negative external forces, such as
bad luck, envy, or even the idea that someone has "cast" a spell on them. This perception may
arise from the need to find an explanation for what appear to be adverse events that go against
the person's expectations. The human mind tends to look for patterns and causalities to
understand the world around us, and sometimes turning to supernatural or mystical explanations
can provide some sense of control over otherwise baffling or painful situations.

It is important to note that these interpretations are not always based on empirical or scientific
evidence, and can vary depending on culture, education, and personal beliefs. In many cases, the
difficulties people face may be due to a combination of factors, ranging from random
circumstances and individual decisions to complex social dynamics and interpersonal relationships.
4 While attributing negative events to evils can be a way to deal with frustration and sadness, it is
also important to explore more realistic perspectives and seek practical solutions to address the
challenges and adversities we face in life. Indeed, the unconscious can play a significant role in
generating feelings of guilt and in seeking reparation through positive actions, even when there is
no real cause for feeling guilty. This relates to psychological concepts such as dissociation and the
influence of unconscious factors on our actions. A clear example of this is when a person under the
influence of substances harmful to their health experiences a transformation in their behavior.
Substances can alter a person's perception, inhibition, and judgment, leading them to perform acts
they would not otherwise do in their sober, conscious state. After recovering from the effects of
substances, that person may experience strong feelings of guilt for their actions during that
altered period. These feelings of guilt may arise from the feeling that actions taken under the
influence of substances are a reflection of your true self, even though they were actually driven by
an altered state of consciousness. In an attempt to reconcile this guilt and repair what they
perceive as harm caused, the person may feel the need to perform good deeds. This process is an
example of how the unconscious can influence our emotions and behaviors, and how past
experiences and repressed emotions can manifest in surprising and sometimes confusing ways. In
this Context, therapy, and self-exploration can be helpful in better understanding these
unconscious patterns and in finding healthier ways to deal with guilt and address the
consequences of impulsive actions. Human beings have the intrinsic desire to make autonomous
decisions and exercise their free will, but it is undeniable that our choices are influenced by a
complex interaction of internal and external factors. Often, when we are questioned about a
specific decision we have made, we look for justifications to support our actions, although
sometimes these reasons are not completely clear or understandable even to ourselves. 5 This is
partly because our decisions are not always the result of a conscious and logical thought process.
Our mind operates subconsciously and uses cognitive shortcuts to make quick decisions. Besides,

Our past experiences, beliefs, values, emotions, and other psychological factors can influence our
choices in ways we are not always aware of. The tendency to seek justifications for our decisions
may be an attempt to maintain a sense of coherence in our self-image; by rationalizing our
choices, we are trying to maintain something that makes sense and that is aligned with our
perception of who we are and how we are. we act. This dynamic may also be related to the fact
that our conscious understanding does not always have access to all the processes that occur in
our mind. Our unconscious can influence our decisions and actions in ways that we do not directly
grasp. Therefore, when we try to justify our choices, we are trying to make sense of something
that may have been influenced by factors operating below our awareness. The functioning of the
unconscious leads us to reject certain ideas, emotions, thoughts and memories, relegating them to
the domain of the unconscious in a process that results in repression. This repression can open the
door to the return of what was repressed. This dynamic is not present from the beginning of life,
since initially our actions were guided by primary instincts. However, as

As time progresses, this repression acquires a more defined structure and manifests itself in ways
that can affect us. This happens particularly when we face situations that we do not process
adequately or that we prefer to deny. Literature offers various situations to illustrate this idea
clearly. Sometimes, people resist recognizing facts that are having a psychological impact on
reality. The body finds ways to express this tension through disorders that can have negative
effects on our physical health, such as muscle contractions, headaches, respiratory and digestive
problems. The distinction between a genuine organic disorder and a conversion symptom is that
the former has an underlying physical cause, while conversion symptoms do not adhere to the
laws of anatomy, but come from the unconscious. These symptoms lack a scientific explanation
and their origin is psychological rather than somatic. 6 Guilt can also trigger these discomforts,
since it is one of the main causes that can be conscious or unconscious. This form of guilt, called
remorse, can generate a desire for punishment as a means of reducing the intensity of the guilty
feeling. In short, this interplay between the unconscious, repression, and physical discomfort
highlights the complexity of how our emotions and thoughts can manifest in our overall health and
well-being. Repressed feelings often find expression in our dreams. Sleep is a psychic phenomenon
that has inherent meaning; It is a representation of desires that have been suppressed and
silenced in waking life. Although these desires may be distorted in dreams, it is still a manifestation
of restricted psychological content. However, these distorted desires originate due to a
disconnection with reality and memory, which gives rise to a form of representation in the dream
that resembles a deformation.

In this process of deformation, each element of the dream is transformed into another, thus
connecting present and past memories in a complex way. Although dreams have an internal
meaning, this meaning is not immediately evident. Identifying the meaning of the dream is not a
simple task, since the dream is itself a creation that seems distant and enigmatic to conscious
thought. This is due in part to the distortion in the dream representation, which gives the
impression that the content of the dream is foreign and enigmatic to our waking mind. In short,
dreams are an avenue through which repressed feelings can find a form of expression, even if this
expression is masked by distortions. The content of dreams has an underlying meaning, but this
meaning can be difficult to decipher due to the way the dream mind operates and presents
elements in an enigmatic way. In his 1916 work, Freud points out that disfigurement in dreams is
related to two main factors. First, the more intense or "worse" the desires that the mind seeks to
censor and hide in the content of dreams, the greater the degree of disfigurement that occurs in
the representation of those desires in the dream. In other words, when desires are more
unacceptable or disturbing from a conscious perspective, the mind tends to distort and mask them
more pronouncedly in sleep. 7 Secondly, Freud mentions that the rigidity of censorship also plays
an important role in dream disfigurement. If the mind exerts strong censorship over certain
desires, this can manifest itself in greater rigidity in the way these desires are represented in the
dream. Censorship can make it difficult to directly express wishes, which
leads to further distortion and disfigurement in the presentation of dream elements related to
those desires. In summary, according to Freud, disfigurement in dreams is influenced by the
nature of the repressed desires and the force of the censorship exerted on them. The more
intense the desires to be hidden and the more rigid the censorship, the more likely it is that
distortions will occur in the way these desires are represented in dreams. The unconscious
constitutes the fundamental basis of our psychological life. It can be said that consciousness
somehow incorporates the subconscious, forming links through words, phrases and establishing
connections through images, sounds or representations. From this point, a structure is built in the
unconscious around the meaning of these connections. Dreams, in this sense, are a manifestation
of the content of the unconscious. Everything seems to emerge through the filter of dreams. The
interpretation of dreams throughout history has been influenced by our culture, education and
beliefs. Metaphorically, dreams can be considered a part of the underworld, comparable to Hades,
which represents the unconscious. This idea highlights the essential role that the unconscious
plays in the way we experience both pleasure and displeasure. In short, the unconscious underlies
our psychological experience and dreams act as a window to its content. Interpreting these
dreams over time has been deeply intertwined with cultural and symbolic influences, and this
process also plays a significant role in how we experience and understand our emotions and
desires. Pleasure and the Unconscious: • The unconscious can harbor desires and thoughts that
seek pleasure and gratification. • Unconscious impulses can be related to repressed desires and
taboos. • Fulfilling unconscious desires can lead to a feeling of pleasure, as accumulated tension is
released. 8 Displeasure and the Unconscious:

• Painful or traumatic contents can also reside in the unconscious. • The appearance of these
contents can generate displeasure and emotional discomfort. • The mind can use defense
mechanisms to prevent these contents from coming to consciousness and causing discomfort. The
balance between pleasure and displeasure, mediated by the unconscious, is influenced by the
pleasure principle and the reality principle: Pleasure Principle: • This principle suggests that the
mind seeks to maximize pleasure and minimize displeasure. Unconscious impulses may be related
to the search for satisfaction and pleasure, but they are not always allowed to be expressed
consciously due to the constraints of reality and morality. Reality Principle: Counterbalancing the
pleasure principle, this principle recognizes that the demands of the outside world, social
restrictions, and long-term consequences influence our actions and decisions. Immediate
gratification is often not possible or appropriate in reality.