Chapter 11: Conclusion (The Discovery of the Unconscious)

Romanticism heavily influenced the schools of psychoanalysis. This can be seen through the teachings of Freud and Jung. Janet was a representative of Enlightenment thought, and to some extent, so was Adler.

The dynamic psychiatrist was also like an artist or a writer in that he draws from personal experiences to inform his ideas about the world. For example, Janet was not emotional and was very active, and this influenced him to start a behaviorist school.

Freud was very interested in the secrets of the human psyche. The Oedipal Complex was an idea that was informed by his own personal life. Neither Adler nor Jung could accept this idea because they had different personal experiences.

Events in Adler’s life led him to conclude that birth order had a significant influence on a person’s life – much more so than their direct relationships with their parents.

It would be a fool’s errand to try to reduce Freudian psychology to Jungian psychology, or to reduce both systems into the conceptual framework of behavioral psychology. The fact that these psychological systems exist in parallel shocks the young scientist’s yearning for unity.

"A gilded No is more satisfactory than a dry yes" - Gracian