The Freud Series: What Is Real And What Is Not?

People continue to take an interest in the life of Sigmund Freud. Wherever you go, you can certainly find someone to discuss Freud with. Because of this, Netflix decided to create the series Freud , in which they reflect on the life and work of this Austrian neurologist. However, there are many things that it does not solve. Rather, it contributes to further confusion.

In reality, the series is historical fiction. For this reason, there is very little accurate historical, biographical and academic data. This series really depicts a different reality and reflects how Freud could have used his psychoanalytic skills to solve crimes.

The director of the series, Marvin Kren, said that he wanted the series to arouse the interest of the young and modern audience, which explains why he did not want it to be too historical.

The Freud series is also a mixture of modern, provocative and historical elements. Why mix the father of psychoanalysis with crime and spiritualism? Wasn’t there already enough controversy and confusion around this man?

We do not think so. This interest in converting him into a character mixed with fiction is in fact nothing new. In this article, we will talk about Freud’s previous “expeditions in film and art” and clarify the truth of this new Netflix original.

The great film interest behind Freud

Nowadays, Freud’s work is studied more in the world of humanity than in scientific departments. His popularity does not exactly come from his scientific rigor. However, Freud had the advantage of being an incredibly good writer who illustrated psychoanalysis and referred to the work of great artists, such as Shakespeare, Dostoyevsky and Leonardo da Vinci.

In a way, it is thanks to art and film that his work and theoretical assumptions reach the audience with interest. In fact, Stefan Marianski said, from the Freud Museum in London, “You do not have to read Freud to live in a world where he is important or to think in a Freudian way”.

On the other hand, Nicholas Ray, a professor at the University of Leeds, confirms that his works were adapted to make them softer and a cozy and reassuring fantasy. In this way, it would fit into our current popular culture.

This has not only happened with Freud’s work. It’s also remarkable when it comes to virtually the entire work of Woody Allen or in the father-son dynamics of Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back or Back to the Future ; as well as many novels by Virginia Woolf and James Joyce. Als, Salvador Dalí and the Surrealists. Sopranos, Frasier and A Dangerous Method from 2011 with Viggo Mortensen.

Previous attempts to make a detective series with Freud

The 2006 novel The Interpretation of Murder (Jed Rubenfeld) was about Freud who solved a murder case. The idea was Freud’s first and last visit to New York in 1909.

In 2014, Frank Spotnitz, the director of X-Files , was ready to write Freud: The Secret Casebook . There he had intended to use his theories to solve unresolved issues. However, there was never any of that series.

Freud series: What is true and what is not?

Freud was born in Freiberg (a town now called Pribor in the Czech Republic). His family moved to Leipzig and then settled in Vienna for good.

There is very little data that can be extracted from this series. We’ll take a closer look at some of that.

Dates of his medical studies

He studied medicine at the University of Vienna and worked at the hospital in the city. He graduated from this university as a physician in 1881. Later, in 1885, he completed his habilitation and began his career as a professor of neuropathology at the same university.

The series is set for the year 1886, so it seems to agree with his interesting theory and review of the first real cases.

Cocaine addiction

Freud tried cocaine for the first time when he was very young. He actually called it “a miracle cure”. In 1884 he wrote an article entitled “Über coca” in which he expressed his love for this drug when he was surprised by its physical and mental effects. Only later did he discover that he was actually addicted to it.

Netflix’s eight-episode series does a good job of showing off his cocaine addiction.

His early psychoanalytic practice with Breuer

In 1886 he began private practice in Vienna and began to use hypnosis in his work. We must note that hypnosis was an unpopular approach at the time.

What is interesting is that the series Freud shows this part of his life. It actually takes the approach of his friend, Josef Breuer, who was a doctor he collaborated with to write Studies in Hysteria .

His work highlights Breuer’s experiences of treating his patient Anna O, who suffered from hysteria. Due to discrepancies in the results, Freud eventually gave up the hypnosis technique and then developed what he called “free association”. It is also important to note that the series does not clarify his entire relationship with Breuer.

His romance with Fleur Salomé, an aspect depicted in the Freud series

In this series, there is another aspect that seems to be based on an event from his life. We are talking about the character Fleur Salomé, a medium who joins in to help solve cases. The inspiration for this character is the psychoanalyst Lou Andreas-Salomé.

There have always been rumors that Freud and Lou Andreas-Salomé had feelings for each other. However, no one has been able to prove this. In terms of accuracy, the series takes place in the 1880s, and historians confirm that they did not know each other until 1911.

Murder detective

Sigmund Freud was never responsible for any criminal investigation and was never involved in solving crimes of any kind. This series also depicts him getting into dark sessions with spiritualism. However, there are no documents regarding this.

Still , he loved reading detective novels, including those about Sherlock Holmes. Although he did not solve crimes in his real life, he was definitely a supporter of this type of work.

As you can see, there is very little about Freudian theories in the eight episodes of the series Freud . Perhaps some of his concepts gave rise to the imagination and construction of such fiction.