The function of anxiety in Freudian metapsychology

Abstract

Since Freud's first conceptions on the genesis of hysteria, anxiety plays a critical role for the understanding of the psychic functioning, and serves as a key element of Psychoanalytic theory. The purpose of this study is to analyze and compare theories on anxiety developed by Freud in the metapsychological texts Project for a scientific psychology and Beyond the pleasure principle, particularly emphasizing his hypotheses about the origins and functions played by this fundamental affect . It is concluded that, although 25 years separate both texts, important similarities can be found between them regarding the concept of anxiety and its derivations. Key-words: anxiety, pain, pleasure, psychism, trauma.