Freud Transference
For Freud, transference theory was a direct result of his own therapy sessions, though he never did live long enough to see this theory in action.
When it comes to the conflicts set forth by Freud, transference relates to the emotional feeling that a patient experiences when they are speaking with their therapist. Freud noticed that many patients often felt a connection with him by making him into something that he was not. He believed that this was a reaction to something in particular that he may have said during the session. Confused?
Let’s clear up this theory for a moment before continuing. Say, for example, that someone has said or done something that makes you think of a moment in your past – a type of “time warp” if you will. Once you connect the person that you are speaking with to the moment in your past, all of those old emotions that you once felt will come rushing back and they are (in your mind) linked to the person in your present. This often happens with the therapist/patient relationship, but it also occurs in today’s internet world as well.
How can the Freud transference theory relate to our world today? Consider this scenario: you are currently undergoing an internet relationship with someone that you do not know. As you chat with this person, they bring up ideas, words, or emotions that you experienced in your past – suddenly, you either loathe or love this person based upon nothing concrete. In short, you want a person that you do not know to embody all that you lost at one point in your life. Make sense?
Often, we are not aware of this condition since we cannot see it. In order to really try and figure out if you like (or love) someone before you actually get to know them, think about whether or not you simply want them to fill a gap in your life. You may find that this person is not who you want them to be at all, and this will have been a case of the theory mentioned above.
It is quite clear to see that Freud was well ahead of his time when he discovered this notion. Sadly, he took his own life before he could see that his hypothesis was entirely correct. According to Freud, transference is simply a natural way of your subconscious trying to relate to a feeling that just isn’t there – now that’s something to think about.