| dc.description.abstract | The purpose of this study is to explore how the postmodern era may have altered the functioning of the super-ego. Authors such as Žižek, George Frankl, Lieberman and other contemporary psychoanalysts have produced several hypotheses to describe how the Freudian super-ego has been modified by the postmodern era, creating a new, postmodern super-ego. The aim is to create a discussion about which super-ego features may have disappeared, which may have been modified and which may have remained unaltered. The following propositions are considered: the break of the bond with the authority; the empowerment of the ego-ideal; the lack of a moral compass; the exemption from guilt; and the liberation of the instincts of the id. Each proposal is discussed while bearing in mind the difficulty of disturbing what is intrapsychic and the challenge of distinguishing mere cultural modifications from changes in the functioning of a psychic agency. Some of the hypotheses concerning the postmodern super-ego are illustrated through the discussion of the George Floyd protests. The analysis of the proposals and the discussion of the civil protests suggest that certain structural functions of the super-ego are no longer active, namely, the repression of the aggression towards paternal or authoritarian figures and the acquisition or application of firm notions of right and wrong, good and bad. On the other hand, it also suggests that the ego-ideal remains active, possibly even more active than before and that the feelings of guilt and shame persevere. In sum, the end of prohibitions and obligations brought upon by postmodernity is likely to have modified certain aspects of the super-ego, promoting emancipation and the reduction of repression. However, it seems to have generated uncertainty, new anxieties and an unconditional obligation to conform to an unrealistic ideal of happiness and freedom. | en |
