Freud's Free Clinics

1938
and Its Discontents, arguably his most overt discussion of political thought,
Freud outlines the way in which the human quest for instinctual satisfaction
is constantly frustrated by—and yet requires—the external constraints of
culture. Far from proving that Freud’s view of human nature was negative or
pessimistic, the little volume, written a few years before Hitler’s ascent to
power, asserts precisely that human survival does not lie solely in individual
strength or free will. “The replacement of the power of the individual by the
power of a community constitutes the decisive step of civilization.“ 22 Suggesting
that social life should be regulated only if it benefits the collective,
Freud states that the “first requisite of civilization is that of justice—that is,
the assurance that a law will not be broken in favor of an individual.” He has
prefaced this with a contention about human nature, that “human life in
common is only made possible when a majority comes together which is
stronger than any separate individual and which remains united against all
separate individuals.” The autonomous ego exists, but it is mutable and driven
to reach out to others in order to survive. In his wide-ranging speculations
on the relationship between individuals and culture, he affirms interdependency,
attachment, and collectivity as the appropriate—and most effective—
vehicles for human emancipation. As Freud had said in 1918, “the poor man
should have just as much right to assistance for his mind as he now has to the
life-saving help offered by surgery . . . and can be left as little as the latter to
the impotent care of individual members of the community.” Until 1938, at
least, the community had cared.
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