Freud was canny in describing death. He believed that none of us can accept our own death.
“at bottom no one believes in his own death”. and “in the unconscious every one of us is convinced of his own immortality”.
The “secret of heroism” encapsulates the idea that we all believe we are immortal. To protect ourselves against the idea of death. Religion and its beliefs are a clever defense against death. Our efforts at life are defined by our fear of death.
With the death of parents the child/adult is left abandoned, bereft of the creator. Creators cannot be forgotten or resolved. Their death gives us the burden of being the next in line. The invisible movement of being pushed forward to the front row. Unprotected by the row of creators ahead of you – the wind of existence has a unique chill.
Like on the edge of a cliff, or tall building. The death instinct wants you to fall – the life instinct holds you back.
The self destruct button gets pushed when the life instinct loses its power to balance. Like two opposing magnets the life and death instincts fight for dominance. We fight the death instinct as we know that it will eventually win. Not if but when.
As Freud said after all “everyone owes nature a death”
Copyright Adrian Scott
North London Counsellor Blog 2022
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Disclaimer: This weblog is the view of the writer and for general information only
This article is designed to provoke argument and critique