Time & Other Thieves

"Civilization and Its Discontents," by Sigmund Freud

June 11, 2022 Sarah B. Season 2 Episode 2
Time & Other Thieves
"Civilization and Its Discontents," by Sigmund Freud
Show Notes

In this episode, which originally aired in radio format on January 20th, 2022, I explore some of the ideas presented in Sigmund Freud's 1930 book, Civilization and Its Discontents, including but not limited to: the purpose of human life, the frustration of dealing with other humans, how we tend to cope with that frustration, the role of technology (what Freud called our "auxiliary organs"), mankind's inclination toward aggression, Thanatos (the death drive), Eros (the life drive), and how civilization would probably be “most successful if no attention had to be paid to the happiness of the individual.”