Discovery of the unconscious Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Discovery of the unconscious - Essay Example Nietzsche stated that psychology is the core of the sciences but it was affected by religious, social and cultural prejudices (Watson 996). And this played a significant role in the development of the concepts that formed the foundations of psychoanalysis. This is because for the generations before the Age of Reformation in Europe, religion and spirituality was used to explain everything. Issues like mental illness was seen as some kind of punishment and these are Biblical images that are related to curses and negativity being connected to people who do bad deeds. Thus, at the end of the Middle Ages, whilst the natural and physical sciences developed, aspects of the soft sciences like psychology took a longer time to be accepted into mainstream society. Earlier researchers who sought to develop concepts and ideas that were used in the development of the unconscious came up with various approaches. They based their arguments that the self is double, there was the normal mind and the deeper mystical and esoteric self which had been explored by members of Eastern and oriental religions through meditations and other practices. One thing that was universally accepted was that the â€Å"second† self influenced peoples behaviours and feelings. Great philosophers like Pascal, Hobbes and Edgar Allen Poe mentioned issues relating to the â€Å"second† self which has become known as the subconscious mind. Some earlier philosophers sought to find linkages between external environmental factors and the mind. Some scientists like Franz Anton Mesmer (1734 – 1814) postulated that just as the appearance of the moon caused the tides to rise, there were bodily fluids in irrational or mad people that also rose during the full moon. This thereby caused the impetus for the concept of â€Å"lunatics† (pertaining to the moon). Other approaches came forward and these were based on issues like hysteria and its logical linkage to female sexuality since most of the victims were