At the end of last year, the Year 13 RS and Psychology classes went on a trip to the Freud Museum – the final home of Sigmund Freud, the founder of psychoanalysis, and his daughter Anna Freud, a pioneering child psychoanalyst.
On our trip we had a session with a Freudian expert, and he opened up a discussion of Freud and psychoanalysis for us to partake in. We had an engaging session, with stories told about Freud’s origins – did you know Freud was born to Jewish parents, and his family came to England as refugees following the Nazi movement? Fortunately, the Freuds were able to bring all their belongings to London – including his scholarly work. Freud spent the last year of his life in the house, which possess his famous ‘psychoanalytic couch’.
Freud used the couch in his practice. He would ask a patient to lie down, without making eye contact, and to say whatever came to their head. The couch was an environment that was intimate, and this encouraged the patient to freely explore ideas. Freud charged mind blowing fees – a typical session costing approximately £6,000! (in today’s equivalent)
Freud founded many therapeutic techniques that one can see traces of in today’s practice, and also had many theories surrounding sexual stages in children – and this was something that made him more controversial. Furthermore, Freud had extensive theories on dreams and the symbolism of them. Have you ever had a dream about a chicken? This can be thought to symbolise a desire to achieve one’s goals and be productive!
We paired the trip with a visit to a local Kosher Bakery, where we tried some typical Jewish sandwiches and snacks. We would definitely recommend visiting the Freud Museum if you are interested in psychology or religion, or simply curious!!
