Freud’s Concept of Narcissism (Essay Sample)

Freud’s Concept of Narcissism
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Freud’s Concept of Narcissism
Sigmund Freud’s concept of narcissism encompasses diverse issues and theories. Over the past, there have been distinct obscurities and contradictions in different psychoanalytical conceptions of narcissism. Currently, the standard concept of narcissism ranges from selfishness to excessive admiration of or interest in oneself and their physical appearance, involving a need for affection, a lack of empathy, and a sense of entitlement. Nonetheless, as Freud described in his text on On Narcissism: An Introduction (2014), the psychologist outlined distinct narcissism dynamics. Freud also believed that narcissism had a significant relationship with libido and played an integral role in an individual’s psychosexual development.
While demystifying the dynamics and mechanics of narcissism, Freud noted that that people start developing ego during early childhood when going through the first phase of psychosexual development. According to this theorist, children are highly egocentric during this time and believe that everything revolves around them merely because their parents fulfil all their desires and needs (Baranger, 2018). However, as they progress into subsequent stages, they realize that everything does not revolve around them; consequently, their self-centeredness begins to weaken. In this connection, Freud hypothesized that humans have a certain degree of inborn narcissism and are essential for normal development. Even though people progress past infancy, their extreme self-love begins to decline, and their love for others takes shape.
Regarding libido, Freud believed that narcissism could manifest in two forms. In his observation, the psychologist noted that an individual’s libido is majorly channeled towards their newly acquired ego during infancy, referred to as ego-libido (Freud, 2014). Freud also underscored the inseparability of the sex-instincts and the ego-instincts during early childhood. As described in Freud’s On Narcissism, egocentrism caused by ego-libido during infancy is dubbed primary narcissism and contributes to human development. However, as people grow, their self-love begins to seek foreign objects to direct their energy (Freud, 2014). Freud believes that this is the period when sex-instincts and ego-instincts become separable. According to the psychologist, this conception could explain why having a meal and having sex are completely detachable things once people outgrow their primary narcissistic stage.
Freud also observed that if object-love is not returned or reciprocated, all libidinal energy begins to flow back to the ego. Consequently, the affected person is trapped in life-threatening neurotic self-love. According to Freud, this consumption is a secondary narcissism and might result in a combination of paranoid delusion