ABSTRACT
Psychoanalytic theory is Freud's creation; most modifications introduced by others have not only been minor but are elaborations of theoretical positions he had already explicitly introduced. This chapter examines the sexual theories of Freud alone. It is based on five concepts of sexuality that run through Freud's writings from almost the beginning of his great work-just before and after 1900-to his death, and tests each one against recent advances in sex research. The five concepts are bisexuality, infantile sexuality and the Oedipus complex, libido theory, the primacy of the penis, and conflict. Freud's theory of the causes of perversion is a combination of the five categories authors have been considering: bisexuality, Oedipus complex, the primacy of the penis, libido theory, and conflict. It is too soon to say whether this work on genetics and brain function tests psychoanalytic theory (though it should result in treatments that would make psychoanalytic therapy obsolete for some sexual disorders).
