Eros: what the life drive is according to Sigmund Freud and psychoanalysis

For Freud, the life drive is opposed to Thanatos, or the death drive, forming a balance.

Although the concept of eroticism is generally related to sex, the truth is that it is not limited to it: eroticism also includes a part of sensuality, falling in love, bonding, play and vitality. And in fact, it is something that does not even have to refer to a human being: a theme, an idea or even a landscape can seem erotic in a certain sense. Eroticism is an aspect that has been worked on by numerous authors, probably one of the best known being Sigmund Freud, who identified Eros and sexual energy or libido as the fundamental parts of psychic life.. And it is about this author's vision of the concept that we are going to talk about throughout this article.

The drives as a fundamental element of psychic life

To understand the concept of Eros from the psychoanalytic perspective it is first of all necessary to know the concept of drive and its importance in the human psyche.

The name of drive is given to any impulse or force that leads the subject to carry out some kind of action, generally with the aim of satisfying some kind of need. They are powerful forces that arise in the face of a state of bodily tension, which seeks to be resolved.

The drive is ultimately the origin of all mental activity.It is the psychic representative of the somatic stimuli of the body, and consists of source (organ from which the drive originates), force (degree of drive to action), goal (satisfaction of the excitation) and object (that which satisfies it).

It is therefore one of the fundamental concepts of psychoanalysis, together with the unconscious, when it comes to explaining psychic life. Specifically, it is part of the so-called economic model of Freud's personality, which attempts to explain human behavior as a product of the attempt to resolve states of bodily tension.

The author considered that the psychic energy that governs our behavior was based on sexual impulsesThese are integrated in the concept of libido (which does not include only sex but is considered as the main force) and linked to the search for satisfaction and pleasure. From this idea, which would later include not only the sexual energy but also the energy dedicated to self-preservation, arises the notion of life drive, also known as Eros.

Eros: life drive

It receives the name of Eros or life drive the generating impulse of activation and excitation at the organic level that appears with the main objective of to guarantee the survival and to maintain the living matter united and integrated, generally seeking toIt generally seeks to generate more and more complex unions and the satisfaction of needs, especially sexual ones.

This type of drive integrates two concepts that Freud initially considered separate: the sexual drive and the drive for self-construction. It is a force that generates dynamism and activity, leading to behavior and the search for satisfaction.

This principle is based on the pleasure principle, according to which the psyche's main function is to seek pleasure and avoid displeasure. seek pleasure and avoid displeasure. This is achieved by seeking to reduce tension. It is also influenced and mediated by the reality principle: depending on the consideration that the drive may be inadequate or unrealizable (something that is linked to the ego and the superego), we can sublimate it and reach a partial gratification through a detour.

Eros also leads us to maintain relationships both with ourselves and with others, allowing the appearance of approximation and identification with others.

There are multiple acts in which Eros expresses itself.The life drive is easily visible: in addition to sex, eating, defecation, kisses and caresses or dreams are examples of this. It requires an object to be addressed and from which to obtain gratification.

A fundamental concept in psychoanalysis

The concept of life drive and Eros is one of the nuclear elements of Freud's theory, along with the ideas of the unconscious and intrapsychic conflicts..

One of the elements in which it greatly influences is the Freudian vision of psychosexual development, in which the focus of sexual gratification varies throughout development (passing through the mouth, the anus, the phallus and the genitals) and there may be fixations that produce pathological difficulties. It is also basic in the generation of conflicts between the Ego (unconscious desires and impulses) and the Ego, making the latter apply the principle of reality and produce a balance between censure and censorship. a balance between the censorship and the satisfaction of the impulses..

Its relation to Thanatos

Although the idea of the libido and the sexual drive existed long before in Freud's thought, the concept of Eros was born at the same time as that of a type of drive opposed to it: the death drive or Thanatos.

Both concepts are complete opposites: Eros is life and vitality, dynamism, sexuality, and the search for pleasure and survival, while Thanatos represents the unconscious desire of death, of return to the inorganic, of regression, rest and dissolution.of regression, rest and dissolution. Eros is union and Thanatos disintegration.

However, they are interdependent drives that appear together and even merge in part, leading us to different types of behavior. In fact, there is no human action in which both components do not exist. In conclusion: there is no death without life and no life without death.

Bibliographical references:

• Freud, S. (1976). Beyond the pleasure principle OC XVIII 1920; 1-62.