PS390 Study Guide - Final Guide: Romanticism, Sigmund Freud, Arthur Schopenhauer
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Describe the Romantic Movement including contributions of Arthur Schopenhauer and
explain how his ideas influenced Sigmund Freud
The Romantic Movement of the 19th century emphasized individual freedom and creative arts
and was a response to the Enlightenment which espoused mechanism. Romantics stressed the
role of nature and said humans are not permanent and fixed (in constant flux) and irrational
phenomena (feelings, intuition) were valid pathways to truth. They also contended that nature is
fundamentally disordered and mystical (not amnenable to mechanistic explanations) and
celebrated the unique power of creative individuals who challenged cultural conventions.
Romantics held that spontaneous action and natural feelings were the best guide to knowledge
and strongly believed in the power of inspiration and intuition. Thus, their methods were
irrational, subjective, and mystical. Schopenhauer argued that the irrational is primary, desire
leads to life long suffering, and human will is the core of mental life. He believed humans are
capable only of minimizing irrational forces on our actions, which greatly influenced Freud, who
credited Schopenhaur with the concepts of repression and resistence.
Describe new enlightenment values and beliefs including Auguste Comte’s Positivism, John
Stuart Mills Utilitarianism, and Karl Marx’s Dialectical Materialism; detail how new
enlightenment ideas influence psychology
Comte's Positivism stated that all that is known is what is observable and he argued that
society should be reformed to align with science. Additionally, he argued psychology should be
studied like anatonmy and physiology. His ideas heavily influenced psychology and science in
general as society came to believe that science could create a more informed, enlightened society
and scientists held great prestige. Furthermore, his belief that psychology should be studied like a