The Uncanny

Freud, Sigmund, 1856-1939Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

4.5

Word count: 83K words
Chapters: 9

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.Das Unheimliche by Sigmund FreudAuthor: Freud, Sigmund, 1856-1939,Language: German, Class: BF: Philosophy, Psychology, Religion: Psychology, Philosophy, Psychoanalysis, Release Date: Nov 6, 2010

Editor's review

This is Freud's classic German essay on the "uncanny," available as a public-domain ebook from Project Gutenberg. Starting from a semantic analysis and drawing on literary material such as Hoffmann's "The Sandman," it examines how "the familiar becomes strange and unsettling." A key text at the intersection of psychoanalytic aesthetics and literary criticism, it is short but conceptually dense: suitable as a primary source for understanding the term "Unheimliche" and for reading alongside literary works. The German original preserves Freud's argumentative tone and rhetorical layering, giving it documentary value for researchers. Read slowly: first grasp the structure of the argument, then examine the examples in detail.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Psychology and psychoanalysis students with good German reading ability
University faculty and students studying Freudian aesthetics or literary critical theory
Readers interested in the theoretical roots of horror literature and the aesthetics of the uncanny
Advanced readers who wish to check concepts against a Chinese translation

Not a good fit for

Complete beginners with no German reading ability and no access to a parallel translation
General readers expecting light, popular psychology
Readers seeking only plot-driven literary stories

Reading tips

Read through once to grasp the line of argument, then check terminology and examples paragraph by paragraph.
Read alongside Hoffmann's "The Sandman" to understand the literary analysis.
Keep pen and paper handy to mark core concepts, and restate the definition in your own words after reading.
If German is difficult, first read a Chinese translation to build a framework, then return to the original to verify key passages.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Is this book the German original, and what language level is required?

The metadata lists the language as German; this is Freud's original essay. Good German reading ability is recommended, sufficient to handle academic long sentences and abstract concepts. If your language foundation is insufficient, first use a Chinese translation to build a framework of understanding, then check key terms against the original.

What problem does this essay mainly discuss?

The essay centers on "Unheimliche" (the uncanny), analyzing the meaning of the concept and drawing on literary works and other materials to examine why the familiar turns into an unsettling strangeness. It is a discussion of aesthetics and literary criticism from a psychoanalytic perspective; it is conceptually demanding and requires careful close reading.

What are the features of this edition?

This edition is released by Project Gutenberg as a free public-domain ebook, and the metadata classifies it under psychology and psychoanalysis. It provides the original text without a modern introduction or notes, making it suitable for readers with some background knowledge who wish to engage directly with the primary source.

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About the author

Freud, Sigmund, 1856-1939 Author

Sigmund Freud (1856–1939) was the founder of psychoanalysis, and his writings have had a profound influence on modern psychology and on cultural and intellectual history. The library holds 29 of his works, covering the interpretation of dreams, introductory lectures on psychoanalysis, theories of sexuality, the psychopathology of everyday life, and themes such as beyond the pleasure principle, the uncanny, group psychology, and the analysis of the ego, as well as a beginner's reader on dream psychology. These works generally combine clinical observation with theoretical reasoning; their style is clear and speculative, and they often begin from everyday slips, dreams, and neurotic phenomena to reveal the mechanisms of unconscious activity. Freud's writing spans both the professional and the popular, establishing a new framework of questions for psychology and deeply influencing literature, art, and the humanities. Because public information is limited, his specific biography and academic career are not elaborated here.