Introductory Lectures on Psychoanalysis - Sigmund Freud > Reviews (1)

now this book isn't, strictly speaking, by him...its translated, and that means that there are some points that are maybe not exactly spot on, but it is still good for a general coverage of his ideas. Also it has been said to me that this the american version of the translation is no where near as good as the british, as it does not capture freud's flare for writing. however, i have not personally read both versions (i've been stuck with a us copy) so i don't know how much truth there is in that last statement. one alot of people seem to dismiss freud very casually as a repressed victorian with some very wacky ideas about sex. now to a certain extent i am sure this is true, but it is often the case that the people with the wacky ideas also come up with some of the greatest, and i definately think this is so in freud's case. even though today many of his theories are not directly relevant or in practice (although many are) some of the key underlying features are critical in the understanding of other major theories. probably the single most important feature of freud's psychoanalytic theory is that of the unconcious, and this book gives a very good account of this aspect of freud's ideas. also covered are parapraxes, dreams and symbolism. until recently i was also of the view that freud was just another psychologist who's ideas had been out dated, but this book has helped revise this opinion and i now see a liitle bit of freud in nearly every other psychological idea i am taught. just read the book.