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Autographs from a private Japanese collection
Sigmund Freud (1856-1939)
Autograph manuscript, 'Ueberschriften' (running titles) for Das Unbehagen in der Kultur (Civilization and Its Discontents), [Vienna, 1930]
Details
Sigmund Freud (1856-1939)
Autograph manuscript, 'Ueberschriften' (running titles) for Das Unbehagen in der Kultur (Civilization and Its Discontents), [Vienna, 1930]
In German. Two pages on two leaves, 398 x 247mm and 97 x 247mm. Framed and glazed. Provenance: Hauswedell & Nolte, May 22, 1987, lot 3011a.
Freud's 'most famous and most brilliant work' on the conflicts at the root of modern culture: running titles for the first edition of Civilization and Its Discontents. The running titles cover the first 64 pages (of a total 136 pages) of the first edition of Das Unbehagen in der Kultur. Known in English as Civilization and Its Discontents, the work is Freud's provocative meditation on religion and the significance of being human in modern society, theorising that conflict, guilt, and dissatisfaction are not flaws of society, but its very foundation: in attempting to maintain order, the conscience turns our forbidden impulses inward. Freud argues that civilisation depends on the creative tension at the core of modern life, which derives from the suppression of our deepest instincts. The running titles provide a thematic guide to the first section of the work, highlighting the initial meditation on the purpose of life, happiness and beauty, Freud's examination of feelings of libido, love and a 'demand for beauty', and the conclusion that human life is driven by the 'pleasure principle' in which society uses Eros to bind communities together at the cost of sexual freedom.
Das Unbehagen in der Kultur was published by Internationaler Psychoanalytischer Verlag, Vienna, in 1930 (although its first definitive English translation was not until James Strachey's Standard Edition of 1953). Written in the aftermath of the First World War, and amid growing political uncertainty across Europe, Freud’s work speaks to a society marked by disillusionment, anxiety, and the loss of traditional moral anchors. The book's clarity and directness, and the force of its diagnosis of personal dissatisfaction as a core feature of modern life, have given it a lasting appeal.
Autograph manuscript, 'Ueberschriften' (running titles) for Das Unbehagen in der Kultur (Civilization and Its Discontents), [Vienna, 1930]
In German. Two pages on two leaves, 398 x 247mm and 97 x 247mm. Framed and glazed. Provenance: Hauswedell & Nolte, May 22, 1987, lot 3011a.
Freud's 'most famous and most brilliant work' on the conflicts at the root of modern culture: running titles for the first edition of Civilization and Its Discontents. The running titles cover the first 64 pages (of a total 136 pages) of the first edition of Das Unbehagen in der Kultur. Known in English as Civilization and Its Discontents, the work is Freud's provocative meditation on religion and the significance of being human in modern society, theorising that conflict, guilt, and dissatisfaction are not flaws of society, but its very foundation: in attempting to maintain order, the conscience turns our forbidden impulses inward. Freud argues that civilisation depends on the creative tension at the core of modern life, which derives from the suppression of our deepest instincts. The running titles provide a thematic guide to the first section of the work, highlighting the initial meditation on the purpose of life, happiness and beauty, Freud's examination of feelings of libido, love and a 'demand for beauty', and the conclusion that human life is driven by the 'pleasure principle' in which society uses Eros to bind communities together at the cost of sexual freedom.
Das Unbehagen in der Kultur was published by Internationaler Psychoanalytischer Verlag, Vienna, in 1930 (although its first definitive English translation was not until James Strachey's Standard Edition of 1953). Written in the aftermath of the First World War, and amid growing political uncertainty across Europe, Freud’s work speaks to a society marked by disillusionment, anxiety, and the loss of traditional moral anchors. The book's clarity and directness, and the force of its diagnosis of personal dissatisfaction as a core feature of modern life, have given it a lasting appeal.
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Eugenio Donadoni
Senior Specialist, Medieval & Renaissance Manuscripts