ABSTRACT
Psychoanalysis takes a developmental view of the emotional and mental health difficulties of the adult, seeing these as rooted, to a large extent, in the interpersonal experiences between child and parents. During psychoanalysis, the analyst endeavours to bring to the light of consciousness the patient's deep wishes, fantasies, and anxieties derived from childhood and to show how these are influencing the person unconsciously and contributing to difficulties that person is experiencing. Psychoanalysis is a field with many different points of view and emphasis, as groups of analysts have explored different clinical states using a variety of theoretical frameworks. Sigmund Freud originally gave particular emphasis to the Oedipus complex, wherein the child wishes to be close and special to one parent whilst feeling hostile and rivalrous with the other—giving rise to anxieties about retaliation. Through the use of free association, and also through attention to dreams, it becomes possible to understand the more unconscious parts of the mind.
