But in this it is opposed by the mostly unconscious superego, a sort of moral judge that arises from the internalization of parental figures, and, by extension, of society itself. The id is driven by the ‘pleasure principle’ and seeks out immediate gratification. The wholly unconscious id contains our drives and repressed emotions. He later became dissatisfied with the topographical model and replaced it with the ‘structural model’, according to which the mind is split into the id, ego, and superego (see figure). In The Interpretation of Dreams, Freud developed his ‘topographical model’ of the mind, describing the conscious, the unconscious, and an intermediary layer called the preconscious, which, although not conscious, could readily be accessed by the conscious.
Such behaviour is only to be expected, and indicates that the patient is close to recalling repressed material but afraid of doing so. In the course of analysis, the patient is likely to display ‘resistance’ in the form of changing the topic, blanking out, falling asleep, arriving late, or missing appointments. At the same time, the analyst should guard against projecting his own thoughts and feelings, such as his disappointment in his own wife or daughter, onto the patient (‘ counter-transference’). This passivity transforms the analyst into a blank canvas onto which the patient can unconsciously project her thoughts and feelings (‘transference’). Such outcomes can be achieved through the methods of free association and dream interpretation, and by a sort of passivity on the part of the psychoanalyst. Treatment requires the patient to recall these repressed experiences into consciousness and to confront them once and for all, leading to a sudden and dramatic outpouring of emotion (‘catharsis’) and the gaining of insight. In Studies on Hysteria, Freud and Breuer formulated the psychoanalytic theory according to which neuroses have their origins in deeply traumatic and consequently repressed experiences.
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