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SigmundFreud'sviewsonhomosexualityWikipedia,thefreeencyclopedia

SigmundFreud'sviewsonhomosexuality
FromWikipedia,thefreeencyclopedia

SigmundFreud'sviewsonhomosexualityhavebeendescribedas
deterministic,whereashewouldascribebiologicalandpsychological
factorsinexplainingtheprincipalcausesofhomosexuality.Hebelievedthat
humansarebornwithunfocusedsexuallibidinaldrives,andtherefore
arguedthathomosexualitymightbeadeviationfromthis.Nevertheless,he
alsofeltthatcertaindeeplyrootedformsofhomosexualityweredifficultor
impossibletochange.

Contents
1 Overview

SigmundFreud

2 Femalehomosexuality
3 Viewsonattemptstochangehomosexuality
3.1 1935letter
4 Modernperspectives
5 Seealso
6 Notes

Overview
Freud'smostimportantarticlesonhomosexualitywerewrittenbetween1905,whenhepublishedThree
EssaysontheTheoryofSexuality,and1922,whenhepublished"CertainNeuroticMechanismsinJealousy,
Paranoia,andHomosexuality."[1]Freudbelievedthatallhumanswerebisexual,bywhichheprimarily
meantthateveryoneincorporatesaspectsofbothsexes,andthateveryoneissexuallyattractedtoboth
sexes.Inhisview,thiswastrueanatomicallyandthereforealsomentallyandpsychologically.
Heterosexualityandhomosexualitybothdevelopedfromthisoriginalbisexualdisposition.[2]Asoneofthe
causesofhomosexualityFreudmentionsthedistressingheterosexualexperience:"Thosecasesareof
particularinterestinwhichthelibidochangesovertoaninvertedsexualobjectafteradistressing
experiencewithanormalone."[3]
Freudappearstohavebeenundecidedwhetherornothomosexualitywaspathological,expressingdifferent
viewsonthisissueatdifferenttimesandplacesinhiswork.Freudfrequentlycalledhomosexualityan
"inversion",somethingwhichinhisviewwasdistinctfromthenecessarilypathologicalperversions,and
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suggestedthatseveraldistinctkindsmightexist,cautioningthathisconclusionsaboutitwerebasedona
smallandnotnecessarilyrepresentativesampleofpatients.[4][5]
Freudderivedmuchofhisinformationonhomosexualityfrompsychiatristsandsexologistssuchas
RichardvonKrafftEbingandMagnusHirschfeld,andwasalsoinfluencedbyEugenSteinach,aViennese
endocrinologistwhotransplantedtesticlesfromstraightmenintogaymeninattemptstochangetheir
sexualorientation.FreudstatedthatSteinach'sresearchhad"thrownastronglightontheorganic
determinantsofhomoeroticism",[6]butcautionedthatitwasprematuretoexpectthattheoperationshe
performedwouldmakepossibleatherapythatcouldbegenerallyapplied.Inhisview,suchtransplant
operationswouldbeeffectiveinchangingsexualorientationonlyincasesinwhichhomosexualitywas
stronglyassociatedwithphysicalcharacteristicstypicaloftheoppositesex,andprobablynosimilartherapy
couldbeappliedtolesbianism.[5][7][8]InfactSteinachsmethodwasdoomedtofailurebecausetheimmune
systemsofhispatientsrejectedthetransplantedglands,andwaseventuallyexposedasineffectiveandoften
harmful.[8]

Femalehomosexuality
Freud'smaindiscussionoffemalehomosexualitywasthe1920paper"ThePsychogenesisofaCaseof
HomosexualityinaWoman,"whichdescribedhisanalysisofayoungwomanwhohadenteredtherapy
becauseherparentswereconcernedthatshewasalesbian.Herfatherhopedthatpsychoanalysiswould
cureherlesbianism,butinFreud'sview,theprognosiswasunfavourablebecauseofthecircumstances
underwhichthewomanenteredtherapy,andbecausethehomosexualitywasnotanillnessorneurotic
conflict.Freudwrotethatchanginghomosexualitywasdifficultandthereforepossibleonlyunderunusually
favourableconditions,observingthat"ingeneraltoundertaketoconvertafullydevelopedhomosexualinto
aheterosexualdoesnotoffermuchmoreprospectofsuccessthanthereverse."[9]Successmeantmaking
heterosexualfeelingpossibleratherthaneliminatinghomosexualfeelings.[7]

Viewsonattemptstochangehomosexuality
Freudbelievedthathomosexualscouldseldombeconvincedthatsexwithsomeoneoftheoppositesex
wouldprovidethemwiththesamepleasuretheyderivedfromsexwithsomeoneofthesamesex.Patients
oftenhadonlysuperficialreasonstowanttobecomeheterosexual,pursuingtreatmentduetosocial
disapproval,whichwasnotastrongenoughmotiveforchange.Somepatientsmighthavenorealdesireto
becomeheterosexual,seekingtreatmentonlysothattheycouldconvincethemselvesthattheyhaddone
everythingpossibletochange,leavingthemfreetoreturntohomosexualityafterwards.Freud,therefore,
toldtheparentsonlythathewaspreparedtostudytheirdaughtertodeterminewhateffectstherapymight
have.Freudconcludedthathewasprobablydealingwithacaseofbiologicallyinnatehomosexuality,and
eventuallybrokeoffthetreatmentbecauseofwhathesawashispatient'shostilitytomen.[4][7][10]

1935letter
In1935,Freudwrotetoamotherwhohadaskedhimtotreatherson'shomosexuality,aletterthatwould
laterbecomefamous:[4]

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Igatherfromyourletterthatyoursonisahomosexual.Iammostimpressedbythefactthat
youdonotmentionthistermyourselfinyourinformationabouthim.MayIquestionyouwhy
youavoidit?Homosexualityisassuredlynoadvantage,butitisnothingtobeashamedof,no
vice,nodegradationitcannotbeclassifiedasanillnessweconsiderittobeavariationofthe
sexualfunction,producedbyacertainarrestofsexualdevelopment.Manyhighlyrespectable
individualsofancientandmoderntimeshavebeenhomosexuals,severalofthegreatestmen
amongthem.(Plato,Michelangelo,LeonardodaVinci,etc).Itisagreatinjusticetopersecute
homosexualityasacrimeandacruelty,too.Ifyoudonotbelieveme,readthebooksof
HavelockEllis.
ByaskingmeifIcanhelp[yourson],youmean,Isuppose,ifIcanabolishhomosexualityand
makenormalheterosexualitytakeitsplace.Theansweris,inageneralwaywecannotpromise
toachieveit.Inacertainnumberofcaseswesucceedindevelopingtheblightedgermsof
heterosexualtendencies,whicharepresentineveryhomosexualinthemajorityofcasesitis
nomorepossible.Itisaquestionofthequalityandtheageoftheindividual.Theresultof
treatmentcannotbepredicted.
Whatanalysiscandoforyoursonrunsinadifferentline.Ifheisunhappy,neurotic,tornby
conflicts,inhibitedinhissociallife,analysismaybringhimharmony,peaceofmind,full
efficiency,whetherheremainshomosexualorgetschanged.[11]

Modernperspectives
ThoughmodernmedicalprofessionalorganizationsshareFreud'sopinionthatattemptstochangesexual
orientationarenothelpful,theyalsodonotfindthatasortofarresteddevelopmentexplainshomosexuality
orthatinterpersonalrelationshipsarewhatdeterminesexualorientation.[12][13]Morescientificresearchhas
sincefoundotherbiologicalfactorsthatinfluencesexualattraction,withenvironmentalfactorsweighing
moreonsexualbehaviorthansexualorientation.

Seealso
Conversiontherapy
SexualPreference(book)

Notes
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.

Lewes1988,p.28
Ruse1988,p.22
Freud1905,p.48
Lewes1988
Freud1991,pp.5859
Lewes1988,p.58
Freud1991,p.375Citeerror:Invalid<ref>tagname"SigmundFreudCaseHistoriesII"definedmultiple
timeswithdifferentcontent(seethehelppage).
8. LeVay1996,p.32
9. Freud1991,p.376
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10. OConnor&Ryan1993,pp.3047
11. Freud1992,pp.423424
12. "Sexualorientation,homosexualityandbisexuality".AmericanPsychologicalAssociation.Archivedfromthe
originalonAugust8,2013.RetrievedAugust10,2013.
13. "SexualOrientation".AmericanPsychiatricAssociation.ArchivedfromtheoriginalonJuly22,2011.Retrieved
January1,2013.

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