Beyond the Pleasure Principle, 2nd Edition

Beyond the Pleasure Principle (first published in German in 1920 as Jenseits des Lustprinzips) is an essay by Sigmund Freud marking a major turning point in his theoretical approach. Previously, Freud attributed most human behavior to the sexual instinct (Eros or libido). With this essay, Freud went "beyond" the simple pleasure principle, developing his theory of drives with the addition of the death drive(s) (Todestrieb[e]) (often referred to as "Thanatos"). The essay describes humans as struggling between two opposing drives: Eros, which produces creativity, harmony, sexual connection, reproduction, and self-preservation; and Thanatos, which brings destruction, repetition, aggression, compulsion, and self-destruction.