Many of us are familiar with the expression “Freudian slip,” but not everyone knows what these words mean and where they came from. Let's try to understand this interesting question!
What is a Freudian slip
What does the expression Freudian slip mean?
We are talking about a fairly common expression, which implies a slip of the tongue made by a person due to some motives unconscious to him. The use of the name of Sigmund Freud here is quite natural, because it was he who was the founder of psychoanalysis, who was the first to formulate the doctrine of the conscious as well as the unconscious human basis.
Where did this catchphrase come from?
Most of us are afraid of being in an awkward situation when speaking in public or even talking to someone in private. Part of the culprit for these experiences was Sigmund Freud, who published his famous work, The Psychopathology of Everyday Life, in the early twentieth century. According to the opinion of the “father of psychoanalysis,” behind any of our most innocent slips lies something serious - something that is trying to break through from our subconscious, revealing our true desires. Subsequently, this idea gained worldwide fame, and the term “Freudian slip” is now present not only in academic use, but also among other segments of the population.
We can say that one of the doctor’s many hypotheses has become an axiom for many people, and now almost any reservation is given serious significance. The interlocutor tries to find a secret meaning in the words of the slipper, which often provokes awkward situations. Of course, this state of affairs exists because of Freud's authoritarianism. In addition, his followers also zealously propagated his ideas, although not all psychotherapists agree with them.
By the way, as you know, the scientist developed this famous theory while working with a guy who incorrectly quoted a phrase from the Aeneid in Latin. The patient missed one word, and the doctor decided that this circumstance would help him determine what was happening in the subconscious of the young man. Using associations, Freud was able to determine that the word reminded the client of blood, which, in turn, was associated with the guy’s fear about his lover’s pregnancy. According to the doctor, this word was blocked by the patient due to memories of negative experiences.
Who is Sigmund Freud and why is he famous?
Sigmund Freud is widely known as the founder of psychoanalysis. He had a significant influence not only on psychology, but also on sociology, medicine, literature and anthropology of the past century. He completed an internship with the French psychiatrist Jean Charcot. Subsequently, he admitted that practice taught him to see the differences between diseases and to use hypnosis, thanks to which many of his patients were cured.
Freud used conversations in treatment - people had the opportunity to speak out, thereby changing consciousness. The technique was called the Free Association Method. Monologues of random phrases and thoughts allowed the insightful doctor to identify the patient’s problems and find a solution. The psychiatrist stopped using hypnosis, preferring to communicate with patients who were in pure consciousness. As you know, the method has become widespread.
According to Freud, any psychosis can be called a consequence of a person’s memories, which are not easy to get rid of. He developed the theory that the overwhelming number of psychoses are based on the Oedipus complex and infantile childhood sexuality. In general, the scientist was convinced that sexuality is a factor that significantly influences almost all psychological problems. Freud's views on human nature were groundbreaking for his era, and resonate throughout the scientific community today.
Examples of Freudian slips and their secret meaning
Once, the famous politician Zyuganov noted during his speech: “We are supported by several million rubles,” and he wanted to say not “rubles,” but “people.” Naturally, journalists quickly determined what the communist leader was really worried about at that moment.
George Bush Sr. once said: “We have had victories. There were also mistakes - the usual lack of sex in economic... that is, agricultural policy.” Subsequently, politicians were reminded of this reservation more than once.
Maria Morgun, being one of the journalists of the Vesti TV channel, at one time called the State Duma “State Duma”. This disclaimer quickly spread across the Internet.
Another television journalist, reading out the news, mistakenly replaced the letter “W” with “H” in the title “Grand Slam Tournament,” which immediately created strong associations with the male genital organ.
Once upon a time, US Secretary of State K. Rice mistakenly called the then head of the country, George W. Bush, her husband.
Taking into account these well-known examples, it is not at all difficult to guess what conclusions Sigmund Freud would have drawn. It is worth noting that the scientist was convinced that reservations arise due to the opposition of two different intentions that arose in the human psyche. He seems to be trying to block an intention that should not become known to others, and emphasize another intention that he needs to convey. A person does not want to make public the first intention for various reasons and tries to force it out of consciousness, but in the end it is still revealed in the form of a reservation.
It is believed that a Freudian slip is saying out loud something located in the depths of the subconscious. Freud believed that many unconscious desires and aspirations are the cause of mental disorders, and when a person does not understand this himself on a conscious level, such reservations come into play.
As a result, the term “Freudian slip” is nowadays considered to be a hidden desire that accidentally burst out into the open. A person does not always manage to admit to himself that he wants something, but in the subconscious all these desires are recorded and “issued” through certain clerical notes and reservations. The difficulty is that it is not always possible to determine the nature of the occurrence of these speech errors and correctly decipher them. Although, of course, with a high degree of desire, this can be achieved.
Sigmund Freud created a whole theory about slips of the tongue, according to which all errors in human speech can be roughly divided into the following categories:
- All typos, mishearings, slips of the tongue and edits.
- Problems with memory, when names, words, impressions are forgotten or things are unconsciously hidden.
- Facial expressions and gestures that do not correspond to words.
If one of these problems has emerged, then, undoubtedly, there is a reason for this, because, as Freud believed, there is no place for accidents in life. And yet, unfortunately, not all of them are clear.
We often attribute such speech errors to overwork, depression or mental agitation, being sure that they do not carry a secret meaning. However, Freud fundamentally disagreed with this. If you try to understand in detail why a person said or wrote something that was not at all what he had planned, then in the end you will notice that his action really had its own meaning.
Ordinary everyday situations often clearly demonstrate confirmation of the theory of the famous scientist. For example, if you tell guests “Don’t come more often,” instead of “Well, come more often,” then this clearly indicates that, on a conscious or unconscious level, for some reason you are not entirely pleased with these visits. Also quite a popular phenomenon is forgetting someone’s name or the way to a house or building. We most often forget what is actually not very interesting or necessary for us.
Freudian slips in men and women: examples and their interpretation
Perhaps the most common Freudian slip, both among men and women, is the situation when one of them calls his current other half by the name of his previous passion. Of course, most often this indicates that the person has not completely erased past relationships - at least that is how Freud would probably interpret it. By the way, fans of one of the most famous TV series in the world, “Friends,” probably remember an example of such a situation - in the scene when Ross, being in front of the altar, called the bride after his ex-girlfriend. Naturally, according to the plot, it was obvious and subsequently confirmed that the hero at that time had not yet forgotten about his past relationship.
A Freudian slip is a term that refers to an accidental change in speech that, according to Sigmund Freud's theory, occurs under the influence of our repressed desires.
In general, as we remember, the famous creator of psychoanalysis considered the unconscious to be a key concept that determines many of our actions, deeds and problems. And the unconscious is based on repressed important experiences. Being under the control of consciousness during the waking period, our body does not have the ability to “read” information from the unconscious. But the psyche still sends us uncontrollable signals, which are expressed in parapraxis, that is, slips of the tongue, forgetting, loss, actions “by mistake.” For example, the names of people who are unpleasant or threatening to us are forgotten; important but annoying documents are lost; or a word suddenly falls from our lips expressing our suppressed and hidden desires.
Concept understanding problems and examples
If we take Freud’s theory, then he still wrote it with a non-therapeutic bias. Consequently, he assumed that the person who came a priori had some kind of problem. Therefore, from his point of view, all parapraxis, and especially reservations, are manifestations of unresolved unconscious conflicts and suppressed desires. That is, initially, thanks to such errors, we could suspect a problem area.
Now psychologists urge us not to understand the theory so globally. After all, in general, Freudian slips are errors that express things that are important to us. For example, many mothers, if their child is sick at home, begin to make slips on the topic of illness: instead of “salary” - “cotton wool”, for example. They also constantly make reservations, expressing their inner desire to go home to be near the baby. We are not seeing an underlying problem here, their relationship with their mother was not cold, and they were not “abandoned children.” These are situational reservations that go away as soon as the pressing problem is resolved.
The same can be noticed after a conflict, for example, with a wife. And half of the office is even starting to respond to the name Zina. And dieters are good at monitoring food-related reservations.
Therefore, currently in colloquial speech, the concept of a “Freudian slip” most likely does not mean the deep, repressed needs that became the causes of neurosis; and those facts that are more significant for a person than the actual process. At the meeting, instead of “my program,” he said “my frame,” and everyone around remembered that the man was still in the process of renovating his house.
Signs of a true Freudian slip
Reservations that can truly indicate deep feelings must have stable forms. For example, one patient complained that in conversations with his parents he used the word “new” many times in all variations. “See you soon” when saying goodbye turns into “see you again”, “relationships” - “new things”, etc. Subsequently, during the analysis, it was revealed that the patient really wanted his relationship with his parents to be “different”, “updated”. After all, the “old-style” relationship became the reason for his low self-esteem. And he really wanted mom and dad to look at him “in a new way,” to “appreciate him.”
They must exclude urgent needs, which, as we noted above, can also appear in conversation.
To be not a single manifestation of the problem, but only one link.
Problems of interpretation
Like many of Freud's theories, his work with reservations has some nuances in interpretation. If a young man makes a reservation related to the intimate sphere, is it worth stating unequivocally that the reason for this lies solely in sexual desires repressed in childhood. Perhaps a very sexy girl just passed nearby.
There is another well-known example of a slip of the tongue by journalist Jim Naughty, who on live television replaced the first letter of the surname of the Minister of Culture Hunt with “k”, thus obtaining an English curse. Apologizing, Jim said that the slip did not mean his relationship to the minister or his assessment of his affairs, but was connected with the prolongation and transfer of the letter “k” from the word “culture” before the surname Hunt.
Can conclusions be drawn based on such reservations?
Modern psychologists talk about such parapraxis as possible helpers, and not as clear diagnostic material. So, if your husband suddenly calls you by a different name, this does not mean at all that he has a new lover. Perhaps this is the name of his mother, who called him a hundred times today, or a careless worker. Which he was already tired of making comments to. And even more so, you shouldn’t try to “solve” your problems on your own, relying on slips of the tongue.
But what can really help are the feelings that the resulting words aroused in you. Excluding, of course, the feeling of shame if you suddenly say a curse word in the wrong place. If you yourself laughed with pleasure at the trick that arose, then it cannot signal an important repressed, conflicting event. But if what you received makes you feel uneasy, you are angry with those who noticed the slip and are frantically trying to prove that they meant something completely different, then there is still something problematic in the resulting topic. But what exactly is something that only the person himself and his psychologist should understand.
Last update: 09/12/2018
A Freudian slip is an error, the roots of which, as psychoanalysts believe, should be sought in the unconscious. Most often, such slips or slips reveal thoughts and feelings that people keep to themselves or that they may sometimes not be aware of. It's quite common for people to call their spouses by their ex's names, use the wrong word in conversation, or simply misinterpret what others have said or written.
Hints of the unconscious
The famous psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud was the first to describe various types and examples of such slips in his book The Psychopathologies of Everyday Life (1901).
“Two factors seem to play a definite role in the substitution of words in our minds: first, the effort of attention, and second, an internal factor connected with psychic matter,” Freud suggested in his book. “In addition to simple forgetting, there is also forgetting caused by repression,” Freud explained.
According to Freud, unacceptable thoughts and beliefs are held in the unconscious, and only such reservations reveal them.
A modern view of Freudian slips
Today this expression has become a kind of saying, used when a person makes a mistake in speech. People often remark (jokingly, of course) that a mistake reveals hidden emotions on the part of the speaker.
Freud attached great importance to the hidden meaning of these errors; however, disclaimers are simply unavoidable - so much so that it is very rare that it actually makes sense to attach any significance to them. In his article for Psychology Today Jena Pincott suggested that people make 1-2 mistakes for every 1000 words they speak. On average, this is from 7 to 22 slips per day - depending on how much a person talks. Most of them, according to Pincott, are simply cases of forgetting, speech and other errors.
Several studies support Freud's idea that unconscious or even repressed thoughts can increase the likelihood of such errors. Motley and Beers (1979) showed that people who thought they might receive an electric shock were more likely to make electric shock-related statements. Men who were next to a beautiful female experimenter were also more likely to make reservations related to her attractiveness.
In his classic experiment, Harvard psychologist Daniel Wegner asked participants to talk for five minutes about whatever came to their mind (stream-of-consciousness verbalization). People just talked about whatever came into their heads; the difficulty was that Wegner asked them not to think about the polar bear. Whenever the participant thought about a polar bear, he was required to ring a bell.
The experiment found that those who were asked not to think about a polar bear thought about it, on average, once a minute.
Based on these findings, Wegner developed ironic process theory, which explains why suppressing certain thoughts can be difficult. While part of the mind suppresses this or that thought, another part periodically “checks” to see if we are thinking about it - ironically, the thought we are trying to get rid of is occupying our mind.
Almost always, the more effort we make not to think about something, the more often it comes to mind. And what we often think about, we tend to express in words.
History of the term
Freud developed this idea during his work with a young man who misquoted a phrase from the Aeneid in Latin. The young man missed one word, and Freud believed that this would help him better understand what was going on in the client’s subconscious.
Through association, Freud determined that the word reminded the young man of blood, which he believed was associated with the fear he felt about his girlfriend's pregnancy. Freud theorized that the man blocked the word precisely because it reminded him of a negative experience.
Examples of Freudian slips in popular culture
You've probably heard a lot of funny slips of the tongue. Maybe your biology teacher accidentally said "orgasm" instead of "organism" (much to the amusement of your class). Or maybe someone in your presence blurted out “It’s disgusting to see you!”...
Such reservations always amuse others, especially if they were captured on camera. It’s very funny to hear such blunders from famous politicians or public figures, who are supposed to talk about the most serious things with the most serious look.
- In 2014, during one of his sermons at the Vatican, Pope Francis replaced the word "caso"(“example”) accidentally used an Italian swear word "cazzo". Dad recovered quickly, but the video with the reservation had already been posted on dozens of websites, blogs and, of course, YouTube.
- During a televised address, Senator Ted Kennedy wanted to say that "The national interest should be to reward the best ("best") and the brightest people." Instead, Kennedy blurted out "breast"(“chest”), even cupping your palm. He also quickly recovered and continued his speech, but this incident affected his reputation.
- At one of the dinners, Condoleezza Rice said: “As I already told my husband... As I already told President Bush....” This is a typical Freudian slip, which may have demonstrated some hidden feelings that the unmarried Rice had for her boss.
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Today, in everyday speech, people use words and expressions that not everyone can understand. After all, it’s sad to be made a fool if you hear an unfamiliar concept and cannot respond to the remark made. On our website you will find answers to many of your questions, so bookmark the resource to stay up to date with the most fashionable phrases and jargon. Today we’ll talk about an interesting expression, this According to Freud, which means you can read a little lower.
However, before continuing, I would like to recommend you a couple of other sensible articles on random topics. For example, what does Reflective mean, how to understand the word Force, what Kryzhit means, what is Useless, etc.
So let's continue what does Freud mean?? This phrase comes from the name of the psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud, famous in narrow circles, who believed that most of our actions have hidden motives, subconsciously connected with ongoing deep mental processes.
According to Freud- in this case, we mean a certain reservation that a person accidentally dropped, showing what he really thinks. In simple words, this is involuntary sincerity, which can be interpreted as an accidental expression of hidden intentions
Example:
A tired employee answers the phone at the end of the working day: “Good home, trading day!” Because in his dreams, he is already at home, frying sausage and scrambled eggs in a frying pan and getting ready to go to bed.
Two girls meet, and one says to the other: “You look just disgusting,” although she wanted to say, “You look just disgusting.” Thus, the black envy of one girl towards another is visible.
Once upon a time, quite a long time ago, Zyuganov, the permanent leader of the Communist Party, once said: “We are supported by several million rubles.” Thus, he, against his will, showed what the modern Communist Party of the Russian Federation actually is, and what skeletons are hidden in its closet.
Once, speaking on TV, Finance Minister Kudrin literally stunned everyone with the phrase: “... the fight against corruption is the main evil...” He immediately corrected himself, but it became clear to everyone what the liberal Kudrin was really thinking about.
According to Freud- something related to sex, or having sexual overtones
Such a reservation appears suddenly. Sometimes the substitution can be just one letter in a word, and sometimes a person completely unintentionally inserts a term into his phrase that is in no way related to the statement.
Such reservations in conversation arise due to conflicts of one’s internal desires, which are carefully hidden from others, and break through at the most unexpected moment. This single slip of the tongue can lead to very sad results for the speaker.
Freud divided the erroneous actions performed by a person into several positions:
Position one. Actions taken by mistake.
Position two. Hiding and losing things.
Position three. Forgetting, for example, one’s impressions, intentions, other people’s words, names.
Position four. Mishearings, misspellings, typos.
The reason for such a reservation according to Freud there may be either a secret intention that runs counter to the statement for one reason or another, or internal disagreement with the information that is being conveyed to the public.
Thus, people very often make mistakes in their statements, as a result of which all their carefully guarded secrets become apparent. In this case, all their hidden desires and motives “come out”, showing others what they really think.
After reading this short article, you learned According to Freud, what does this mean?, and you won't get there again
No matter how much his opponents scold or admire Sigmund Freud, I am convinced over and over again that the grandfather of psychoanalysis saw and knew a lot. His theories have their place. His theory of reservations has attracted considerable interest for many decades. After all, what is a Freudian slip?
Freudian slip nothing more than “speaking out loud” of our unconscious. Freud believed that various unconscious desires often cause mental problems that a person is unable to talk about in any way; sometimes these problems are not even recognized by a person on a conscious level.
So the term “Freudian slip” is nothing more than: this is the release of a hidden desire to the surface. A person is not always aware that he wants something, and the subconscious, as the true guardian of a person’s mental health, through random slips or slips, brings hidden thoughts to the surface. A Freudian slip is not just a trivial, meaningless mistake, it is the release of hidden desires, and sometimes a request for help from an unconscious person.
The trouble is that sometimes it is difficult to understand the nature of their appearance. However: nothing is impossible. If you wish, you can try to find out.
Sigmund Freud created the theory of slips of the tongue.
According to this theory, all errors in human speech can be divided into:
1 - all slips of the tongue, misspellings, mishearings and typos;
2 - all problems with memory: forgetting names, plans, impressions, words, hiding things and other erroneous actions;
3 – gestures and facial expressions that do not correspond to the purpose.
If these problems occur, then they must have a reason. There are no accidents in the world, there are only patterns. Another thing is that not all of them are subject to understanding. The further a person tries to push aside his desires and needs, the more clearly they come out, expressed in words, actions, deeds.
It often seems to us that they can occur during periods of fatigue, depression, or, conversely, mental overexcitation, that they mean absolutely nothing. However: “Accidents are not accidental,” Chinese sages echo Sigmund Freud.
If you look at the question of why a person made just such a mistake, you will notice that it did not happen by chance and every action has a certain hidden meaning.
To understand the full meaning of Freudian slips, try to listen carefully and, most importantly, watch the speeches of politicians of any rank. You will be surprised to notice that words, gestures and the way phrases are constructed often do not coincide at all. Of course, many politicians know about this and control themselves, but not everyone can be controlled.
During a televised address, Senator Ted Kennedy wanted to say that "The national interest should be to reward the 'best' and the brightest." Instead, Kennedy blurted out “breast,” even as he cupped his hand. He also quickly recovered and continued his speech, but this incident affected his reputation.
Observations of ordinary people further confirm Freud's theory. For example, if you tell guests you didn’t particularly want to see on your doorstep that you “don’t welcome their visit,” instead of “we welcome your visit,” then you shouldn’t be surprised at their short stay in your home.
Another popular mistake is forgetting names. We most often forget the names of those who are not interesting to us. We forget and cannot remember words that our unconscious would not like to repeat. Here, for some reason, the plot of the film “You and I met somewhere” comes to mind, where Vasily Merkuryev’s hero, the theater director, forgot the “s” word - conscience.
Grandfather Freud believed that all these “accidents” arose in human society precisely because of its development. Civilization was built in such a way that all natural, read animal, impulses had to be suppressed. Suppressed, they hid deep in the subconscious and periodically begin to “rebel”, breaking out.
And if your subconscious began to “express” unflatteringly about one thing or another. Your inner censor has released your long-hidden desires.
If you begin to notice frequent slips of the tongue, typos, or mistakes, please contact us. I will always be happy to help you understand what they are telling you.
