Freud, Sigmund: The Deviant Woman

Valerie Bell

Sigmund Freud has been called the “father of psychology.” It cannot be denied that his contributions to the field are vast. Whether we are aware of it or not, phrases such as Oedipal complex or anal can be traced directly to Freud and his theory of psychoanalysis. Freud had much to say about the psychology of man, but what about the psychology of woman? What did Freud say about the deviant woman? Freud addressed the issue in his essays, including “Female Sexuality” in 1931 and “Femininity” in 1932. For Freud, the deviance of woman can be traced back to her lack of a penis. Her troubles and her illnesses are the result of changes of the formation of the superego as a result of her castration. Her lack of a penis causes envy; she envies man and his superior genitalia. This envy, in turn, results in a woman being more ...

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