Freudian . . .

Posted by R. Berg on November 28, 2002

In Reply to: Freudian . . . posted by D. B. Prell on November 28, 2002

: To be accurate, most Freudian slips do not reveal ones true intention. They are merle slips of the tongue, but we all enjoy the fun of pointing out the sexual connotation. Such as: "Boy was that a Freudian-slip!"

: On Thanksgiving day one might say: "What a big breast" and then blush because he is looking at someone and not at the turkey. It would only become a Freudian-slip if someone at the table were to say, "and just what were YOU looking at?"

I have a different understanding of what a Freudian slip is. If the speaker really doesn't have human female bosoms on his mind (to a degree that exceeds the norm for human males), what he says isn't a Freudian slip at all. It doesn't become one when someone else asks what he was looking at, although the second person's question makes the first person's remark sound like a faux pas.