ABSTRACT
This chapter explores on Sigmund Freud the man: that odd, contradictory and somewhat mysterious personality behind the theory and practice of psychoanalysis. There are two main features which characterize the myth of the hero in psychoanalytic history. The first is the emphasis on Freud's intellectual isolation during his crucial years of discovery, and the exaggeration of the hostile reception given to his theories by a world not prepared for these revelations. The second is the emphasis on Freud's 'absolute originality' as a man of science, crediting him with discoveries really made by his predecessors, contemporaries, rivals and followers. Freud himself was, of course, aware of this fact, and proclaimed that he was not a scientist, but a conquistador. The conflict was deeply embedded in his mind, and he often voiced contradictory opinions about the scientific status of psychoanalysis, and his work generally.
