Mortido
Encyclopedia
Mortido is a term used in Freudian psychoanalysis
to refer to 'a form of energy belonging to the death instinct and analogous to libido
'. 'The term "mortido", which is nowadays rarely used...designates here the destructive mode of psychic energy'.
's pupil Paul Federn
, 'to denote the psychic energy of the death instinct', following a lead from Edoardo Weiss: ' Weiss calls it destrudo
' or mortudo.
'In "The Reality of the Death Instinct" of 1930, he [Federn] reported that he found in certain self-destructive manifestations of severely melancholic patients an inescapable evidence of the existence of the death instinct...which he later called "mortido"'.
However 'neither version of the term was liked by Sigmund Freud
, and therefore they never gained popularity in psychoanalytic literature'.
study, The Mind in Action (1947). As he wrote in the Foreword to the third (renamed) edition of 1967, 'I have followed the "strict" version of Freud, which separates the sex instinct from the death instinct, and have given equal weight to Eros
and Thanatos
. That makes everything much easier to explain, and certainly fits in better with the historical events of the last thirty years, which...become much clearer by introducing Paul Federn's concept of mortido'.
In Berne's words, 'the destructive urge activates hostility and hate, blind anger, and the uncanny pleasures of cruelty and decay. The tension which lends force to such feelings may be called mortido '.
Berne considered that 'guilt and the need for punishment mean...the unsatisfied tension of inwardly directed mortido', and that when the latter gets out of hand 'the mortido inwardly directed caus[es] a depressive or melancholic episode'.
He also believed 'on careful investigation that in some ways the sexual act gratifies mortido as well as libido', and that sometimes 'the mortidinous satisfactions in the sexual relationship become more important to the individual than the libidinous ones...men and women who manage to arrange their love relationships so that again and again they get active or passive mortido gratification'.
has returned to this question of terminology (1970, 1986)', and of how far a distinctive instinct of destruction can be identified in parallel to the forces of libido - eventually seeing 'the death drive as a modality or regimen of the only true drive, which is the sexual drive'.
Psychoanalysis
Psychoanalysis is a psychological theory developed in the late 19th and early 20th centuries by Austrian neurologist Sigmund Freud. Psychoanalysis has expanded, been criticized and developed in different directions, mostly by some of Freud's former students, such as Alfred Adler and Carl Gustav...
to refer to 'a form of energy belonging to the death instinct and analogous to libido
Libido
Libido refers to a person's sex drive or desire for sexual activity. The desire for sex is an aspect of a person's sexuality, but varies enormously from one person to another, and it also varies depending on circumstances at a particular time. A person who has extremely frequent or a suddenly...
'. 'The term "mortido", which is nowadays rarely used...designates here the destructive mode of psychic energy'.
Origins: Federn
The term was introduced by FreudSigmund Freud
Sigmund Freud , born Sigismund Schlomo Freud , was an Austrian neurologist who founded the discipline of psychoanalysis...
's pupil Paul Federn
Paul Federn
Paul Federn was an Austrian-American psychologist who was a native of Vienna. Federn is largely remembered for his theories involving ego psychology and therapeutic treatment of psychosis....
, 'to denote the psychic energy of the death instinct', following a lead from Edoardo Weiss: ' Weiss calls it destrudo
Destrudo
Destrudo is a term introduced by Italian psychoanalyst Edoardo Weiss in 1935 to denote the energy of the death instinct, on the analogy of libido' - and thus to cover the energy of the destructive impulse in Freudian psychology.-Libido:...
' or mortudo.
'In "The Reality of the Death Instinct" of 1930, he [Federn] reported that he found in certain self-destructive manifestations of severely melancholic patients an inescapable evidence of the existence of the death instinct...which he later called "mortido"'.
However 'neither version of the term was liked by Sigmund Freud
Sigmund Freud
Sigmund Freud , born Sigismund Schlomo Freud , was an Austrian neurologist who founded the discipline of psychoanalysis...
, and therefore they never gained popularity in psychoanalytic literature'.
Eric Berne
Eric Berne, who was a pupil of Federn's, made extensive use of the term mortido in his pre-Transactional AnalysisTransactional analysis
Transactional analysis, commonly known as TA to its adherents, is an integrative approach to the theory of psychology and psychotherapy. It is described as integrative because it has elements of psychoanalytic, humanist and cognitive approaches...
study, The Mind in Action (1947). As he wrote in the Foreword to the third (renamed) edition of 1967, 'I have followed the "strict" version of Freud, which separates the sex instinct from the death instinct, and have given equal weight to Eros
Eros
Eros , in Greek mythology, was the Greek god of love. His Roman counterpart was Cupid . Some myths make him a primordial god, while in other myths, he is the son of Aphrodite....
and Thanatos
Thanatos
In Greek mythology, Thanatos was the daemon personification of death. He was a minor figure in Greek mythology, often referred to but rarely appearing in person...
. That makes everything much easier to explain, and certainly fits in better with the historical events of the last thirty years, which...become much clearer by introducing Paul Federn's concept of mortido'.
In Berne's words, 'the destructive urge activates hostility and hate, blind anger, and the uncanny pleasures of cruelty and decay. The tension which lends force to such feelings may be called mortido '.
Berne considered that 'guilt and the need for punishment mean...the unsatisfied tension of inwardly directed mortido', and that when the latter gets out of hand 'the mortido inwardly directed caus[es] a depressive or melancholic episode'.
He also believed 'on careful investigation that in some ways the sexual act gratifies mortido as well as libido', and that sometimes 'the mortidinous satisfactions in the sexual relationship become more important to the individual than the libidinous ones...men and women who manage to arrange their love relationships so that again and again they get active or passive mortido gratification'.
Laplanche and the death drive
'On several occasions Jean LaplancheJean Laplanche
Jean Laplanche is a French author, theorist and psychoanalyst. Laplanche is best known for his work on psychosexual development and Sigmund Freud's seduction theory, and has written more than a dozen books on psychoanalytic theory...
has returned to this question of terminology (1970, 1986)', and of how far a distinctive instinct of destruction can be identified in parallel to the forces of libido - eventually seeing 'the death drive as a modality or regimen of the only true drive, which is the sexual drive'.