Ego ideal

In Freudian psychoanalysis, the ego ideal (German: Ichideal) is the inner image of oneself as one wants to become.^[1] It consists of "the individual's conscious and unconscious images of what he would like to be, patterned after certain people whom ... he regards as ideal."^[2]

In French psychoanalysis, the concept of the ego ideal is distinguished from that of the ideal ego. According to Jacques Lacan, it is the ideal ego, generated at the time of the infant's identification with its own unified specular image, that becomes the foundation for the ego's constant striving for perfection. In contrast, the ego ideal is when the ego views itself from that imaginary point of perfection, seeing its normal life as vain and futile.^[3]

^ Salman Akhtar, Comprehensive Dictionary of Psychoanalysis (2009) p. 89
^ Eric Berne, A Layman's Guide to Psychiatry and Psychoanalysis (Penguin 1976) p. 96
^ Feluga, Dino Franco. "Ego Ideal and Ideal Ego". Introductory Guide to Critical Theory. Retrieved 29 June 2023.

[1] Salman Akhtar, Comprehensive Dictionary of Psychoanalysis (2009) p. 89

[2] Eric Berne, A Layman's Guide to Psychiatry and Psychoanalysis (Penguin 1976) p. 96

[3] Feluga, Dino Franco. "Ego Ideal and Ideal Ego". Introductory Guide to Critical Theory. Retrieved 29 June 2023.

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