Psychoanalytic Fundamental Texts: Beyond the Pleasure Principle (1920) by Sigmund Freud

Abstract

This paper presents a review of Beyond the Pleasure Principle, a metapsychological text published in 1920 by Sigmund Freud. The importance of that work lies in the introduction of the life drives – death drives duality in psychoanalytical theory, which substituted for the sexual drives – ego drives dichotomy. The last section presents a reflection that comes out more from doubts and questions than from conclusions about the subject. Despite the great advances in psychoanalytic theory, there are still fundamental aspect that need to be cleared. This is the first of a series of essays that will be aimed at presenting fundamental texts of psychoanalysis, not only by Freud, but also by other psychoanalysts that have made essential contributions to psychoanalytic theory.