Sigmund Freud is known as the father of psychoanalysis and is perhaps the most significant figure in the history of psychology. He was the first to have recognized the influence of the unconscious and to have developed a theory of the structure of the mind that took it into account. Freud's ideas, including coping mechanisms, repression, denial, libido, and ego have become household terms, key elements of the modern understanding of the human experience. At the same time, we cannot explore Freud's perspective without encountering the biases, shortcomings, and historical limitations that each person of genius has worked to overcome. These limitations are clear and evident in Freud's perspective, including his extreme emphasis on sexuality as the cause of all psychological dysfunction and his perception of the feminine nature. Without his exploration and description of these elements of contemporary thought, however, a number of these perspectives would likely have persisted to this day.

The works of Sigmund Freud are the foundation of modern psychology. They display a brilliance and insight into the mind which overshadows the understanding of many of those to follow. This insight is demonstrated beautifully in Three Contributions to the Theory of Sex , one of the first serious psychological examinations of the role of sexuality in the human experience.

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