190051 VO PaKG 3: Basics of and Approaches in Psychoanalytic Theories of Society (2025S)

From the very beginning, Sigmund Freud's concern was not only to understand psychoanalysis as a clinical practice, but also to make it productive for cultural and social theoretical questions. Although Freud did not develop a systematic psychoanalytic theory of society, his work contains a continuous examination of anti-Semitism, war and social aggression, the formation of mass movements, identification with a leader figure, the effect of family and social structures on the individual, etc. These approaches were taken up in a very differentiated and varied manner by subsequent psychoanalysts but also by the humanities and social sciences, especially in the period after National Socialism and in the socio-critical approaches of the 1960s and 70s.
With recourse to psychoanalytical concepts and terms such as the unconscious, affects, the imaginary, identifications, projections, enjoyment, the death drive, sadism, narcissism, etc., the course deals with approaches of psychoanalytical social theories and their further development in critical theory, in poststructural, Marxist and ideology-critical discourses in the social sciences and humanities, in gender theories and within transcultural and postcolonial approaches. Beginning with the works of Sigmund Freud and extending to contemporary socio-critical debates, the course presents approaches to discuss and understand social phenomena such as anti-Semitism, racism, fascism, homophobia, mass formation and group identity, problems related to authority, the relationship between society and psyche, the appropriation of gender, questions of identity, fear of the foreign/other, etc. from a psychoanalytical perspective.

Learning-Objectives:
- To become familiar with psychoanalytic theories that help in understanding social phenomena
- To provide the basic approaches to discuss and analyze selected social phenomena from a psychoanalytic point of view
- Provide basic psychoanalytic terminology and central psychoanalytic theoretical approaches

Method and type of course:
The course is held as a lecture. Besides the lecture there will be time for questions and for discussion on the Moodle-Platform.

The detailed course program will be presented at the beginning of the semester and will be accessible via the Moodle learning platform.