Freudian slip

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A Freudian slip, or parapraxia, is an error in human action, speech or memory that is believed to be caused by the unconscious mind. Some errors, such as a man accidentally calling his wife by the name of the woman with whom he is having an affair, seem to represent relatively clear cases of Freudian slips. In other cases, the error might appear to be trivial, bizarre, or even nonsensical, but may show some deeper significance on analysis.

The Freudian slip is named after Sigmund Freud, who described the phenomenon he called faulty action (Fehlleistung or parapraxis) in his 1901 book The Psychopathology of Everyday Life. Freud gives several examples of seemingly trivial, bizarre or nonsensical Freudian slips in Psychopathology; the analysis is often quite lengthy and complex, as was the case with many of the dreams in The Interpretation of Dreams.

Popularization of the term has diluted its technical meaning in some contexts to include any slip-of-the-tongue phenomenon, often in an attempt by the user to humorously assign hidden motives or sexual innuendo to the mistake. It is not clear, however, what Freud considered an "innocent" mistake, or if he thought that there were any innocent mistakes. The enormous quantity of slips analyzed in Psychopathology, many of which are banal or apparently trivial, would seem to indicate that Freud felt almost any seemingly tiny slip or hesitation would respond to analysis.

One way to remember the concept behind the Freudian Slip is a common word play based on Freud's Oedipus complex.

"You know what a Freudian slip is, right?"

"No."

"Well, it's when you think one thing and say your mother."

This plays on the common phrase "think one thing and say another."

[edit] Notable Examples

On March 22, 2006, Dave Lenihan, a radio news anchor in St. Louis, was fired after uttering a racial slur while discussing Condoleeza Rice's potential to become commissioner of the National Football League on the air. He had meant to say "coup", but accidentally uttered the word "coon". Lenihan's firing is widely controversial. Some think that Lenihan's slip of the tongue was an honest mistake, while others believe that Lenihan is racist, and that he had subconsciously intended to utter the racial slur.de:Freudscher Versprecher

fr:Lapsus he:טעות פרוידיאנית it:Lapsus freudiano nl:Freudiaanse verspreking pl:Freudowska pomyłka