Karl Abraham

Psychoanalyst

Karl Abraham was a pioneering psychoanalyst known for his work on dreams and the unconscious, significantly influencing the field of psychology.

Born
February 3, 1877
Died
December 25, 1925
Quotes
12
Rank
#3015

About Karl Abraham

Karl Abraham — Life and Legacy

Karl Abraham was a key figure in the early development of psychoanalysis, recognized for his innovative ideas about dreams and their role in understanding the human psyche. His work built upon Freud's theories, introducing the concept that dreams serve as a bridge to the unconscious, revealing deep-seated desires and conflicts. Abraham famously stated that 'dreams are the royal road to the unconscious,' emphasizing their importance in psychoanalytic practice. His key ideas challenged existing notions of sexuality and mental health, proposing that unresolved conflicts from childhood could manifest in adult behavior. Abraham's insights into the interplay between dreams and the unconscious mind provided a deeper understanding of human emotions and motivations. He argued that the analysis of dreams could lead to significant breakthroughs in therapy, allowing individuals to confront and integrate their hidden fears and desires. Today, Abraham's contributions remain relevant as they continue to inform contemporary psychoanalytic practice and the understanding of mental health. His emphasis on the complexities of the unconscious invites ongoing exploration of the human experience, making his quotes and ideas a lasting influence in psychology.

Quote collection

Karl Abraham quotes

12 quotes — follow a thought to its full quote page.

Karl Abraham Psychoanalyst
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"Both dreams and neurotic dream-states have as their function the avoidance of displeasure, but the dream-states also serve to provide a positive pleasure gain."

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Karl Abraham Psychoanalyst
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"When the depressive psychosis has become manifest, its cardinal feature seems to be a mental inhibition which renders a rapport between the patient and the external world more difficult."

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Karl Abraham Psychoanalyst
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"Even in my first analysis of a depressive psychosis, I was immediately struck by its structural similarity with obsessional neurosis."

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Karl Abraham Psychoanalyst
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"The onset of mania occurs when repression is no longer able to resist the assaults of the repressed instincts."

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Karl Abraham Psychoanalyst
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"The myth is a surviving fragment of the psychic life of the infancy of the race whilst the dream is the myth of the individual."

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Karl Abraham Psychoanalyst
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"Anyone who is interested in the psychology of children will have observed that whereas one child will resist temptation or seduction, another will easily yield to it. There are children who will hardly oppose any resistance to the invitation of an unknown person to follow him; others who react in an opposite way in the same circumstances."

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Karl Abraham Psychoanalyst
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"In neurotics, worm phobias are usually found as well as snake phobias."

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"A considerable number of persons are able to protect themselves against the outbreak of serious neurotic phenomena only through intense work."

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Karl Abraham Psychoanalyst
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"A person who suffers from severe locomotor anxiety finds himself in an almost permanent state of mental tension. He wakes in the morning with the anxious expectation of having to go out somewhere in the course of the day."

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Karl Abraham Psychoanalyst
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"Psychoanalytic investigation has shown that in mental patients excessive affection often turns to violent hostility."

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Karl Abraham Psychoanalyst
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"Whereas the melancholic exhibits a state of general inhibition, in the manic patient even normal inhibitions of the instincts are partly or wholly abolished."

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Karl Abraham Psychoanalyst
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"Psychoanalysts have been occupied for a long time with the difficult question of what the psychological conditions are which determine the form of the neurotic disease to which the individual will succumb. It is as though he had a choice between different illnesses and led by unknown impulses selected one or other of them."

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