In this letter I will briefly explain human nature, and therefore human drive. It is an exciting topic which quite many people have pretty strong opinions about. Psychology was founded by a theory of human nature, and it is this theory my discussion will be based on.
It was Sigmund Freud who wrote down the theory of human nature which came to rule psychology. He said that in humans, there is an ongoing battle between two giant powers, being a love drive and a death drive. The love drive is basically conscious, he said, and the death drive is basically subconscious. By the love drive we will do well. And by the death drive we will satisfy our deepest needs, often at the expense of others. The war between these two giant powers are terrible and is threatening to destroy the man. But in the man there is a third entity which controls the conflict, being a super-self. This super-self is an internalization of parental regulations, social norms and religious commandments, and this super-self governs both the love drive and the death drive. By this super self, the conflict between the two giant powers is solved, and Freud claimed it was a task of psychology to arrive at an understanding of how this super-self is created.
We may say the death drive is given by the plants on Earth. They are all green. And they all originate from the dark soil. The plants constitute the immediate power. And we may say the love drive is given by the animals of the field. They all move freely. They sleep when they are not awake. And they are all reasonable, when we interpret their behaviors. Freud surely believed that if the plants took over, it would strangle the animals. And if the animals took over, the earth would be a pretty boring place.
The super-self, then, is man. Man has control of both plants and animals, and the human being grows crops and tames and breeds animals. The man moves freely as animals do, but animals do not have human understanding. Man controls the earth.
That is Freud's theory of id, ego and super-ego. It is not that hard to grasp, really.
But it is really terrible that the plants and the animals is at war with each other! Besides, on earth also, there are fishes and birds. And the earth is both water and solid ground. The earth is in fact quite exciting! So I think I will explore the possibilities in myself rather than thinking I am in conflict with myself. The one who is in war with himself will never be ready, will never be clear. We need to be clear. That is a fine thing to be. Certainly, if the earth meets the expectations of heaven, the earth is ready and clear!
Christ alone cancels distortion. The Lord be praised!