Abstract
One of the fundamental building blocks of psychodynamic psychology is the idea that deep
down in our psyche we harbour uncomfortable and repulsive unconscious desires which
originate in childhood. However, the majority of humankind does not act on these wishes and
instead acts in ways that are not only socially acceptable but which are frequently
constructive and aesthetically pleasing. These primeval urges have their origins in early
childhood according to thinkers like Melanie Klein (1929) and Sigmund Freud (1923)
amongst others. According to such psychodynamic theorists, the frustrations originating in
childhood never completely subside. However, in the reconciliation of these dissatisfactions,
the resulting energy can be transformed into the undertaking of creative endeavours. Though
we are ultimately fated not to get what we want in early childhood, these desires may find a
substitute in various creative modes of jouissance