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Psychology and Psychotechnics
Reference:

Krotovskaya N.G. Akhtar S. Matters of Life and Death. London, 2011, P. 241.

Abstract: Salman Akhtar is the American psychoanalyst, the winner of numerous scientific awards and the author of more than three hundred scientific publications. In his book "Matters of Life and Death", he, relaying on the teaching of Sigmund Freud about the two "basic instincts" and complementing later studies of other well-known psychoanalysts, considers human life as consisting of the two main components, life and death, from the point of view of their opposition and continuity. Viewing happiness as one of the basic life-related concepts, the author clarifies its meaning in the works of different authors. Combining the different scientific views on happiness, the author divides the latter into four categories: pleasure, joy, ecstasy and satisfaction by tracing their ontological roots, metapsychological correlates, as well as components associated with personal experience. In the present book the author offers a brief review of psychoanalytical researches on the problem of happiness. Starting from Freud's views, he proceeds to analyzing different psychoanalytical concepts of happiness and then offers his own view on the phenomena that relate to happiness. Based on the results of various researches and his own observations, the author defines the four types of happiness (pleasure, joy, ecstasy and satisfaction), describes their nature, specific features and in conclusion points out the spheres calling for further investigations. 


Keywords:

euphory, pleasure, civilization, instincts, suffering, happiness, psychoanalysis, ecstasy, satisfaction, culture


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