Erick fromm

Neo psychoanalyst

1. PSYCHOANALYSIS THEORY AND PRACTICE

TOPIC
WORK OF ERICH FROMM

SUBMITTED TO: DR.MASOOD NADEEM
SUBMITTED BY: UZMA BATOOL
ROLL NO. 01
PROGRAM: M.PHIL
SEMESTER: SECOND
DATED: 12-02-2018


DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL WORK

2. CONTENTS
1…ERICH FROMM LIFE HISTORY
 Family life
 Neo-freudian school of psychoanalytical thought:
 Influences:
 First major publication
 Academics
2…ERICH CONCEPT OF FREEDOM AND SECURITY
 In pre-freedom
 Negative freedom
 Positive freedom
3…THE MIDDLE AGES: THE LAST ERA OF STABILITY
4…PSYCHIC ESCAPE MECHANISM
 Authoritarianism
a) Masochistic strivings
b) Sadistic tendencies
 Destructiveness
 Automaton Conformity
5…PRODUCTIVE AND NON PRODUCTIVE CHARACTER TYPES
 Productive orientation
a) Necrophilous orientation
b) Biophilous orientation
c) Having orientation
d) Being orientation

 Nonproductive orientation
a) Receptive orientation
b) Exploitative orientation
c) Hoarding orientation
d) Marketing orientation


6…ERICH CONCEPT OF BASIC NEEDS
7…BOOKS BY ERICH FROMM

3. ERICH FROMM LIFE HISTORY
Born: Erich Seligmann Fromm March 23, 1900 Frankfurt German.
Died: March 18, 1980 (aged 79) Switzerland
Era: 20th century philosophy
Region: Western philosophy
School: Frankfurt School, critical theory, psychoanalysis, humanistic Judaism
Main interests:
Humanism, Social theory, Marxism
Notable ideas:
Being and Having as modes of existence, security versus freedom, social character,
Character orientation
FAMILY LIFE
Erich Fromm, born as Erich Seligman Fromm, was one of the world’s leading psychoanalysts.
He was also attributed as a social behaviorist, a philosopher, historian, anthropologist and a
sociologist.
He was born in Frankfurt Germany on March 23, 1900 to orthodox Jewish parents. His father
was a Jewish and moody in nature and his mother was frequently depressed. The fact that his
mother was afflicted with depression and his father was characteristically a temperamental man
did not really create an ideal childhood situation for him.
The single child of a wine merchant, Fromm was reportedly a somewhat intolerable, phobic and
neurotic child.
Neo-Freudian school of psychoanalytical thought
Fromm belongs to a Neo-Freudian school of psychoanalytical thought.

4. Influences
In this aspect of his thinking he was influenced by the ideas of Karl Marx—specifically Marx’s
early “humanistic” thought.
He was influenced by work of Alfred Weber. Was a German economist, geographer, sociologist
and theoretician of culture whose work was influential in the development of modern economic
geography.
His philosophical work he was associated with what became known as the Frankfurt School of
critical thinkers.
First Major Publication
Fromm’s first major publication was Escape from Freedom in the year 1942. Its central argument
was “freedom from the traditional bonds of medieval society, though giving the individual a new
feeling of independence, at the same time made him feel alone and isolated, filled him with
doubt and anxiety, and drove him into new submission and into a compulsive and irrational
activity”. This isolation from society and its people, along with the uncertainties and doubts
involved, enables to illuminate the manner and ways in which the general public seek the place
of safety and incentives of totalitarian societies like fascism. Escape from Freedom is perceived
as one of the origins of political psychology.
Academics
Fromm received his PhD in sociology from Heidelberg in 1922
He began his own clinical practice in 1927.
In 1930 he joined the Frankfurt Institute for Social Research and completed his psychoanalytical
training.
After the Nazi takeover of power in Germany, Fromm moved first to Geneva and then, in
1934, Fromm helped form the New York branch of the Washington School of Psychiatry in
1943, and in 1946 co-founded the William Alanson White Institute of Psychiatry,
Psychoanalysis, and Psychology.
He was taught courses at the New School for Social Research in New York from 1941 to 1959.
When Fromm moved to Mexico City in 1949, he became a professor at the National
Autonomous University of Mexico
Meanwhile, he taught as a professor of psychology at Michigan State University from 1957 to
1961.
In 1974 he moved from Mexico City to Switzerland, and died at his home in 1980.

5. ERICH CONCEPT OF FREEDOM AND SECURITY
Fromm’s theory of freedom in three stages:
The title of Fromm’s first book, Escape from Freedom (1941), indicates his vision of the human
condition: In the history of Western civilization, as people have achieved more freedom, they
have come to feel more lonely, insignificant, and alienated. Conversely, the less freedom people
had, the greater their feelings of belonging and security. Fromm contended that in the 20th
century people had achieved greater freedom than in any other era yet felt more lonely, alienated,
and insignificant than people did in centuries past.
Pre-freedom, negative freedom and positive freedom in his works especially in “The Fear of
Freedom” or “The Escape of Freedom”. Fromm's ideas about three concepts and the distinction
between pre-freedom, negative freedom and positive freedom. It seems that Fromm’s conception
of positive freedom as the rational pursuit of self-interest translates into an idea of independence
or opposite pre-freedom in his social philosophy; moreover, Fromm's idea of negative freedom is
not just the absence of constraints, since the word "negative" has a twofold aspect. However, his
idea of positive freedom involves a certain degree of independence from other people as an
individual; in other words, the maximization of everyone's independence from other people is the
very important core of positive freedom for Fromm in his works. In short, it can be clearly seen
in Fromm’s conception that positive freedom is, however, constructed independently from his
doctrine: it is built on the assumption of the process of growth in human freedom
 In pre-freedom a person is conscious of himself only as a member of community, race,
party, corporation, etc. In this case, the person's action is not based on self realization,
self identification, and so on. In other words, the person is still related to the world by
primary ties. He/she does not yet conceive of him/herself as an individual except through
the medium of his/her social role.
 Negative freedom It showed that freedom from the traditional bonds of medieval
society, though giving the individual a new feeling of independence, at the same time
made him feel alone and isolated, filled him with doubt and anxiety, and drove him into
new submission and into a compulsive and irrational activity
 Positive freedom The process of growing freedom does not constitute a vicious cycle,
and that man can be free and yet not alone, critical and yet not filled with doubts,
independent and yet an integral part of mankind. This freedom man can attain by the
realization of his self, by being himself. Positive freedom is identical with the full
realization of the individual’s potentialities, together with his ability to live actively and
spontaneously”

6. The Middle Ages: The Last Era of Stability

 Fromm designated the Middle Ages (about A . D . 400–1400) as the last era of
stability, security, and belonging. It was a time of virtually no individual freedom
because the feudal system determined everyone’s place in society. People remained in the
role and class status to which they were born.


 There was no geographic or social mobility and little choice of occupation, social
customs, or habits of dress. Although people were not free, they were also not alienated
from others. The rigid social structure meant that a person’s place in society was clear.
There was no doubt or indecision about where, or to whom, one belonged.


 People began to have more choice and more power over their lives. However, they
achieved this freedom at the expense of the societal ties that had provided security and a
sense of belonging. As a result, they were beset by feelings of insecurity, insignificance,
and doubts about the meaning of life.

7. PSYCHIC ESCAPE MECHANISM
Fromm proposed three psychic mechanisms for escaping from negative aspects of freedom and
regaining our lost security.
1. Authoritarianism
 Masochistic strivings
 Sadistic tendencies
2. Destructiveness
3. Automaton Conformity
Authoritarianism
Masochistic is a person who gets pleasure from being hurt by another person .The most frequent
forms in which masochistic strivings appear are feelings of inferiority, powerlessness, individual
insignificance. The analyses of persons who are obsessed by these feelings shows that, while
they consciously complain about these feelings and want to get rid of them, unconsciously some
power within themselves drives them to feel inferior or insignificant. Their feelings are more
than realizations of actual shortcomings and weaknesses (although they are usually rationalized
as though they were); these persons show a tendency to belittle themselves, to make themselves
weak, and not to master things. Often they are quite incapable of experiencing the feeling “I
want” or “I am.” Life, as a whole, is felt by them as something overwhelmingly powerful, which
they cannot master or control
Sadist is a person who gets pleasure, sometimes sexual, by being cruel to or hurting another
person. One is to make others dependent on oneself and to have absolute and unrestricted power
over them, so as to make of them nothing but instruments, "clay in the potter's hand.” This desire
can refer to material things as well as to immaterial ones, such as the emotional or intellectual
qualities a person has to offer. A third kind of sadistic tendency is the wish to make others suffer
or to see them suffer. This suffering can be physical, but more often it is mental suffering. Its aim
is to hurt actively, to humiliate, embarrass others, or to see them in embarrassing and humiliating
situations. Sadistic tendencies for obvious reasons are usually less conscious and more
rationalized than the socially more harmless masochistic trends. Often they are entirely covered
up by reaction formations of over-goodness or over-concern for others. Some of the most
frequent rationalizations are the following: “I rule over you because I know what is best for you,
and in your own interest you should follow me without opposition.” Or, “I am so wonderful and
unique, that I have a right to expect that other people become dependent on me.” Another
rationalization which often covers the exploiting tendencies is: “I have done so much for you,
and now I am entitled to take from you what I want.”

8. Destructiveness
We have assumed that destructiveness is an escape from the unbearable feeling of
powerlessness, since it aims at the removal of all objects with which the individual has to
compare himself. But in view of the tremendous role that destructive tendencies play in human
behaviour, this interpretation does not seem to be a sufficient explanation; the very conditions of
isolation and powerlessness are responsible for two other sources of destructiveness: anxiety and
the discomfort of life.
Automaton Conformity
This particular mechanism is the solution that the majority of normal individuals find in modern
society. To put it briefly, the individual ceases to be himself; he adopts entirely the kind of
personality offered to him by cultural patterns; and he therefore becomes exactly as all others are
and as they expect him to be. The discrepancy between “I” and the world disappears and with it
the conscious fear of aloneness and powerlessness.

9. PRODUCTIVE AND NON PRODUCTIVE CHARACTER TYPES

1. Productive orientation
2. Nonproductive orientation

Productive orientation

The productive character type is the ideal and represents the ultimate goal of human
development. Fromm believed that through social and cultural change, the productive
orientation could become dominant. Fromm also outlined other productive and non-
productive types, of which several of these types could be combined.

1. Necrophilous orientation

The necrophilous character type (a nonproductive orientation) is attracted to death, corpses,
decay, feces, and dirt. Such people seem happiest when talking about illness, death, and
burials. Their dreams center on murder, blood, and skulls. Fromm suggested that Adolf
Hitler was an example of the necrophilous type. These types may also have a passion for
technology and tend to surround themselves with appliances, computers, and stereos just
to manipulate them.

2. Biophilous orientation

The opposite productive type would be biophilous. These people are in love with life and
are attracted to growth, creation, and construction. They try to influence others, not by
force or power, but by love, reason, and example. They are concerned with the
development of the self and of others, and their view is toward the future.

3.Having orientation

The having character type is defined by what the person owns and possesses. This could
mean the idea of owning people and even ideas. Fromm believed that this character type was
similar to Freud’s anal retentive personality.

4.Being orientation

Being types are not as competitive as the having types and participate in life, experience
living in the present, and being at one with their self and society. Fromm also proposed an
ideal society, which he called humanistic communitarian socialism; where love brotherhood,
and solidarity characterize all human relationships. Humanistic communitarian socialism;
He proposed an ideal society, which he called humanistic communitarian socialism, and
described it as one in which love, brotherhood, and solidarity characterize all human
relationships. The productive orientation will become dominant, and all feelings of
loneliness, insignificance, and alienation will disappear.

10. Nonproductive orientation

According to Fromm, there are four nonproductive orientations that are unhealthy ways of
relating to the world.


1. Receptive orientation;

A character type that is highly dependent on others. Individuals with receptive characters
expect to get whatever they want—for example, love, knowledge, or pleasure—from
some outside source, usually another person. People of this type are receivers in their
relations with others, needing to be identity need. They need to achieve an awareness of
our unique abilities and characteristics. Receptive orientation a character type that is
highly dependent on others. Loved rather than loving, taking rather than creating. Such
people are highly dependent on others and feel paralyzed when left on their own; they
feel incapable of doing the smallest thing without outside help.
2. Exploitative orientation

The exploitative character type only wants to belong and is valued by others, whether it is
a spouse, an object, or an idea. In the exploitative character type, the person is also
directed toward others for what he or she wants. However, instead of expecting to receive
from others, people of this type take, either by force or by cunning. If something is given
to them, they see it as worthless. They want only what belongs to and is valued by others,
whether it be a spouse, an object, or an idea. To this type of person, what has to be stolen
or appropriated has greater value than what is given freely


3. Hoarding orientation

In the hoarding type, the person derives security from what he or she can hoard and save.
This parallels Freud’s anal retentive type and Horney’s detached type (moving away from
people). Such people build walls around themselves and sit surrounded by all they have
amassed, protecting it from outside intruders and letting out as little as possible.


4. Marketing orientation

The marketing character type develops through capitalist societies, according to Fromm.
This type has a set of values the same for personalities as for goods; one’s personality
becomes simply a commodity to be sold. Thus, it is not our personal qualities, skills,
knowledge, or integrity that counts, but rather how nice a package we are. Superficial
qualities such as smiling, being agreeable, and laughing at the boss’s jokes become more
important than inner characteristics and abilities

11. ERICH CONCEPT OF BA SIC NEEDS
Erich Fromm postulated eight basic needs:
1. Relatedness
Relationships with others, care, respect, knowledge.
2. Transcendence
Being thrown into the world without their consent, humans have to transcend their nature by destroying or
creating people or things. Humans can destroy through malignant aggression, or killing for reasons other
than survival, but they can also create and care about their creations.
3. Rootedness
Rootedness is the need to establish roots and to feel at home again in the world. Productively, rootedness
enables us to grow beyond the security of our mother and establish ties with the outside world. With the
nonproductive strategy, we become fixated and afraid to move beyond the security and safety of our
mother or a mother substitute.
4. Sense of Identity
The drive for a sense of identity is expressed nonproductively as conformity to a group and productively
as individuality.
5. Frame of orientation
Understanding the world and our place in it.
6. Excitation and Stimulation
Actively striving for a goal rather than simply responding.
7. Unity
A sense of oneness between one person and the "natural and human world outside."
8. Effectiveness
The need to feel accomplished

12. Books by Erich Fromm
1. Escape from Freedom (1941)
2. Man for Himself (1947)
3. The Art of Loving (1956)
4. Sigmund Freud's Mission; an Analysis of his Personality and Influence (1959)
5. Zen Buddhism and Psychoanalysis (1960)
6. May Man Prevail? An Inquiry into the Facts and Fictions of Foreign Policy (1961)
7. Marx's Concept of Man (1961)
8. Beyond the Chains of Illusion: My Encounter with Marx and Freud (1962)
9. Socialist Humanism (1965)
10. The Nature of Man (1968)
11. The Crisis of Psychoanalysis (1970)
12. The Anatomy of Human Destructiveness (1973)
13. To Have or to Be? (1976)
14. Greatness and Limitation of Freud's Thought (1979)
15. The Art of Being (1993)
16. The Art of Listening (1994)
17. On Being Human (1997)

13. REFERENCES
http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Erich_Fromm
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erich_Fromm
https://www.goodtherapy.org/famous-psychologists/erich-fromm.html
https://www.panarchy.org/fromm/escapefreedom.html
http://studypsychologyonline.blogspot.com/2014/03/the-productive-and-nonproductive.html