ABSTRACT
The sexual and death drives were thought to be mostly in conflict with each other, nonetheless often acting in concert within the conception of a dualistic theory. By defining culture as the institution of all efforts to reduce and limit the excess of drive forces, it follows that all drives have to undergo a process of transformation or domestication, since all drives are characterized by a tendency towards self-consummation, insofar as they aim at immediate satisfaction by way of rapidly dismounting tension thus concurrently fighting resistance against postponement and diversion. Still, Freud felt compelled to relativize this position, which is consistent with a monistic drive conception, thus renewing his inclination towards a dualistic drive theory marked by the dichotomy of sexual drives and death drives. Enjoyment/jouissance as well as pleasure are beyond the ethics of good and evil, beyond constructive and destructive conscious thoughts and acts. Therefore, a dualistic drive theory is dispensable.
