| dc.description.abstract | Sigmund Freud is one of the most significant psychologists of the twentieth century. His discoveries in neurosis, dream interpretation, and personality led him to develop psychoanalysis, a form of psychotherapy that shaped modern day psychological thinking. Freud viewed all of society through a psychoanalytic lens, including religion. He believed that religion was an illusion created by man to fulfill his ultimate wishes. In coming to this conclusion though, Freud neglected to engage with counterarguments from theologians, used poor methodology, refused to blend religion and science, and relied too heavily on cultural assumptions. Through referencing thinkers, such as Dr. Volney Gay of Vanderbilt University, I challenge Freud's conclusion that religion is an illusion. Ultimately, since psychoanalysis, as a whole, is on the steady decline and has little new research, Freud's psychoanalytic way of understanding religion is no longer viable today. | |
