Freud’s Theory of Culture: Eros, Loss, and Politics

In Freud’s Theory of Culture: Eros, Loss, and Politics Abraham Drassinower takes a fresh look at Freud, countering his prevalent image as a man pessimistically renouncing the possibility of social, political, and cultural change. Drassinower contends that what is generally mistaken as Freud’s pessimism is, on the contrary, the very standpoint from which he envisions an alternative to the cultural ‘malaise’ he describes. As he argues that Freud’s attentiveness to loss and death is part of a critical effort to envision alternatives to things as they are, Drassinower demonstrates that Freud deserves greater stature as a participant in the Western tradition of political philosophy.