desires. Symbolic actions pose no threat to the ego because they are not
perceived for what they are. But they may allow for the expression of uncon-scious impulses. An excellent example is found in the case of a client who
held a great deal of hostility toward his mother, although he would not con-
sciously acknowledge these feelings. To the therapist, the unconscious hostil-
ity was expressed through an interesting doormat the client purchased for his
home. The doormat was decorated with images of daisies. Not coincidentally,
the client ’s mother had a favorite flower, the daisy. She had daisies on her
dishes and pictures of daisies all around the house. In short, the daisies sym-
bolized the mother. The good son enjoyed rubbing his feet and stomping on
the daisies —symbolically acting out his hostility toward his mother —every
time he entered the house.
When we apply Freud ’s dream symbols to everyday acts, we can see psy-
chologically significant behavior seemingly everywhere. What can we sayabout the woman who joins the rifle team? The man who explores caves?
The person who constantly borrows pencils without returning them? It is in-
teresting to note that Freud was a habitual cigar smoker who, despite painfuloperations for cancer of the jaw, continued to smoke until his death. Al-
though the cigar is an obvious phallic symbol, Freud reportedly answered a
query about his habit by saying, “Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar. ”
APPLICATION: PSYCHOANALYSIS
Not only was Freud the father of psychoanalytic theory, but he was also the
first person to outline and advocate a system of psychotherapy. During his
early years with Breuer, Freud recognized that many disorders were psycho-logical rather than physical in origin. Through his experimentation with hyp-
nosis, he came to see that the causes of these disorders were buried in a part
of the mind not easily accessible to awareness. Slowly Freud developed vari-ous methods to get at this material, beginning with hypnosis and gradually
changing to free association. As he gained insights into the causes of his cli-
ents’disorders and the structure and functioning of human personality, Freud
developed a system of psychotherapy called psychoanalysis .
The primary goal of psychoanalysis is to bring crucial unconscious mate-
rial into consciousness where it can be examined in a rational manner. Oncethe unconscious material surfaces, it must be dealt with in such a way that it
does not manifest itself in some new disorder. The therapist and the client
work together to help the ego once again exercise appropriate control over
the id impulses and the oppressive superego. In some ways, the therapist and
the client are like explorers searching through the client ’s mind for crucial un-
conscious material. But the therapist also is like a detective, who must evalu-
ate cryptic messages about the underlying cause of the disorder as the client
unconsciously, and sometimes cunningly, works to mislead and frustrate the
therapist.
Typically, psychoanalysis clients lie on a couch while the therapist sits
behind them, out of sight. The client is encouraged to speak freely, without56 CHAPTER 3 The Psychoanalyt ic Approach