Sensations of a pleasurable nature are not characterized by any inherently impelling quality, whereas “painful” ones possess this quality in a high degree. The latter impel towards change, towards discharge, and that is why we interpret “pain” as implying a heightening and pleasure a lowering of energic cathexis. Suppose we describe what becomes conscious in the shape of pleasure and “pain” as an undetermined quantitative and qualitative element in the mind; the question then is whether that element can become conscious where it actually is, or whether it must first be transmitted into the
...more
