Freud- Structure of the Personality

Sigmund Freud's psychoanalytical work is renowned worldwide as influential, most commonly the idea that everyone's personalities consist of 3 distinct parts: the Id; the ego, and the superego.

The Id:
This is the element of the psyche built on irrational desires, containing the libido, natural instincts and even aggression. This pat of the mind is unconscious, therefore we have no control over it.

The Ego:
This element represents the conscious mind, and the choice between rationality and irrationality, between control and the uncontrollable. The Ego represents the balance between right and wrong, and the balance between choosing between what is best for us and what we want to do

The Superego:
This part of the psyche is also unconscious, but this is the representation of moral authority, of a conscience. This is our grounding with the real world, and is often developed based on what a child's parents tell them what is right and wrong.

In terms of in film, these elements can be seen throughout narrative cinema, often with characters in a film representing elements of the psyche. Often a film's protagonist will represent the Ego, and there will be a reckless character which often gets them into trouble, representing the Id, and a parent figure will often represent the Superego, as they often bring the character back to earth. This is clearly displayed in David Fincher's 'Fight Club', with The Narrator representing the Ego, Tyler Durden representing the Id, and at first the self help groups representing the Superego, as they give The Narrator a sense of security and allow him to sleep at night, with this Superego later developing into the various Fight Clubs. Another text which displays the theory of the Id, Ego and Superego is Ferris Bueller's Day Off. In this film there are 3 main characters, Ferris, Cameron and Sloane. Ferris represents the id, as he skips school and convince Cameron to borrow his dad's car, clearly showing the reckless traits of an Id. In contrast, Cameron represents the Superego, as he is shown to constantly be worried that their actions will get them into trouble and is constantly in fear of his clearly abusive father. Sloane therefore represents the ego, as she constantly bring the two together and comforts Cameron. A third text which displays Freud's theory is Enemy, in which a man finds his double whilst watching a film, so tracks him down, but the double turns out to be him, and he has created another personality in order to cheat on his wife. His alternate personality of Adam Bell is arguably the Ego, as he is a fairly timid character with not much real say in his own life, however this persona is used to cheat on his wife, whereas Anthony Claire represents the Id, because at the beginning of the film we see this persona go to a strip club, which could have been the start of his alternate personality forming, and he has a desire to sleep with 'Adam's' girlfriend. The women in his life, such as his wife and his mother are the Superego, as these people bring him back to earth, and his mother tells him to 'give up his dream of acting'