Was sigmund Freud a Saint or Sinner? I think he was a bit of a pervert and a showman.?

Up to the point where he let his ego get involved, he was very insightful. he seems to have had a very negative over reaction to occultism, which was very prevalent at the time, and reasoned that his new science needed some kind of core phenomenon to relate issues to. Its almost like he wanted to politicize it. He had a similar thing about making sure that psychology wasn't perceived as just some Jew Science- since most of his fellow psychologists were Jewish. It is apparently why he was so anxious to have Carl Jung on his side. So he definitely went a bit over the top trying to relate everything to sex and oedipus, but once you get past that you have to admit the simplicity and insight of his explanations are very impressive.

The relation to sex has become a relation of cognitive objects, but its the same idea. The raw theory is quite sophisticated, and can be hard to read, but if you are learning psychology, it would do you very well to read as much Freud, Jung and Adler as you can. Slog through that and the rest is gravy.

He was a great guy in that he actually asked really good questions. Can you come up with a detailed theory of mind that applies to most people? Can you talk someone out of being crazy? Is morphine dope (he pushed hard for it to treat everything).

He was a genius. Yes, he focused too much on sexuality and repressed agression but he paved the way for future theorists. I can't imagine the field of psychology without him to be honest with you.

When you are wrong far more times than you are right you are practising religion not science.