Constancy Principle [Konstanzprinzip]

Literary/ Cultural Context Note

Litencyc Editors (Independent Scholar - Europe)
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  • The Literary Encyclopedia. WORLD HISTORY AND IDEAS: A CROSS-CULTURAL VOLUME.

Domains

  • Biology
  • Concept (psychoanalysis)

Dates

  • Date of occurrence 1850

Places

The constancy principle is central to Freud's theory of the human being as a biological organism which strives to maintain its excitation at a comfortable level. To achieve this goal involves avoiding external stimuli which are likely to prove excessive, and seeking those likely to be sufficient to affirm our awareness of being; internally, in the conscious and unconscious mind, we seek to discharge or block stimuli which threaten our equilibrium condition.

Freud's conception of this principle was developed during his collaboration with Josef Breuer (1892-5) and influenced by the work of Gustav Theodor Fechner (1801-87) – see “ The Pleasure Principle” �…

249 words

Citation: Editors, Litencyc. "Constancy Principle [Konstanzprinzip]". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 22 October 2005 [https://staging.litencyc.com/php/stopics.php?rec=true&UID=1609, accessed 23 November 2024.]

1609 Constancy Principle [Konstanzprinzip] 2 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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