Nikki (Unit 26) - Notes On Freud

Sigmund Freud

• Freud had the idea that there are layers to our psyche: ID, Ego and Superego
• ID: The ID is associated with the villains in films as it refers to characters/a part of our unconscious that is lawless and feel no remorse. This part of the psyche is often referred to as our animal instincts and is linked to sex, lust and aggression.
• Superego: In film the superego is often shown as the mentor to the main character, for example: Yoda and Dumbledore. This part of the psyche dominates the ego as part of the moral conscience. These characters can often be seen as the ‘boring’ ones because they always stick to their morals and what is the right thing to do.
• Ego: The ego is usually represented by the ‘hero’ of a film such as luke skywalker and harry potter who battle between their ID and their Superego to find a balance of morality.
• In Wolverine the Ego would be Wolverine himself as he is the ‘hero’ of the story, the ID would be Magneto because he is the villain of the story and the Superego mentor of Wolverine would be Charles Xavier.
• Dr Jeckyll and Mr Hyde is a very interesting way of exploring Freud’s idea of the psyche because we see the same character with two different states of conscious. One is the Ego and the other is the ID and we see the character’s battle between these two states of conscience.
• Freud also had the idea of Repression which explores the idea that people forget events as a coping mechanism after something traumatic. This is something that is common in abuse victims as several case studies show. This is explored in the film The Sixth Sense.
• Another idea of Freud’s is that of the Uncanny. It is a notion very similar to dreams and is described as feeling of something very familiar. Some examples of the uncanny are: De Ja Vu (a feeling of having lived something before), The Double (in film this is often used via spooky twins or a doppelganger) and The Automation (wherein the audience is left uncertain whether the character is real or not).
• The Uncanny and Surrealism’s main feature is blurring the lines between dreams and reality. The use of The Surreal and The Uncanny is to shock and disturb an audience. Directors like Hitchcock use this method a lot.