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I began this monograph with the purpose of clarifying and, if possible, eliminating certain ambiguities in the concept id. This required a detailed discussion of the development of this concept, as well as others which are intrinsic to it, such as the instinctual drives, the primary process, the pleasure-unpleasure principles, and so forth. It soon became apparent that the latter two concepts, particularly the second, transcended the original topic and required a semi-independent discussion. This monograph, therefore, consists of two parts.
The genetic point of view and the concept of a continuum have been the cornerstone of my considerations about the id. When I postulate that the id and the instinctual drives are both phylogenetically and ontogenetically the product of evolution, maturation, and development, I am merely drawing logical conclusions from the many formulations of Freud, extensively quoted by me. I am also drawing the necessary conclusions from the concept of an undifferentiated phase (Hartmann, 1950; Hartmann and Kris, 1945; Hartmann, Kris, and Loewenstein, 1946). I also find myself in agreement with Gill (1963), Rapaport (1960b), and Kestenberg (1953), among others.
I assume that certain autonomous apparatuses serve the development not only of the ego but of the id as well. This also applies to the apparatuses serving the functions of perception and memory. The concept “wish” and its development