For the conquest of the resistance of the super-ego, we must appeal to the rigour of the conscience; that is, to forces beyond the pleasure principle, in Freud's words, to the death-impulse. In direct opposition to this, we apply to the battle against the barriers of narcissism, the motive force of the pleasure principle, in its highest form the reality principle. We appeal here to the life-impulse, to God, Eros, while we present the prospect of healing and happiness of a higher kind. In the psycho-analytic sense we help to build up a higher narcissistic ego-ideal, and here we are in agreement with religion, in which the motives of love and human longing for happiness are of the greatest significance.

The scheme of the opposition described here between ethical and religious behaviour requires some modification and our psycho-analytic considerations show us at once the way to it.