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and why there was apparently no family tradition for why the move occurred. Finally, it would explain why the
Jakob Freud family split up permanently.
The existence of this (probable) affair at the heart of the family also allows another interpretation of why the nanny was so suddenly fired, and why she obviously aroused so much emotion and somewhat confused testimony from Amalia. The one adult most likely to know about this affair would have been Freud’s “Anna.” Her normal duties would have made her privy to such a situation, and young Sigmund could easily have raised questions directly with the nanny as well. If the nanny knew of this situation, she would have been a most threatening presence. Any public notice of such an incestuous relationship would have had grave repercussions for the reputations of all involved. Getting rid of the nanny would almost have been a necessity. We may recall that in Amalia’s story, it was Philipp who was present and who went to the police. It is very strange that such an official action was not handled by the older Jakob, the husband and Philipp’s father. If Jakob had been at home, this would have been most unusual indeed. One must assume that he was out of town at the time. Jakob’s absence would almost have been necessary in order to arrange the whole thing with a minimum of danger from the nanny. Of course, they could not just dismiss her; to do so would invite her to retaliate by talking about the Philipp-Amalia affair. A charge of thievery would thus protect them from her talking, for then if she should talk, that could be discounted as motivated by revenge. (It is even possible that she was paid to leave Freiberg for a few months, until the Freuds left.) The Hannibal Complex: Freud’s Siding with RomeWe return to Freud’s more direct relationship to Christianity. Throughout his life, Freud was drawn to admire and to identify with strong, successful historical figures. His biographers have mentioned that his heroes in his teenage years, most of whom were military figures, included Napoleon and Napoleon’s general Massena, commonly believed to be a Jew Other examples of such positively viewed figures were Oliver Cromwell,12 after whom he named one of his sons, and the just-discussed Alexander the Great. The most frequently mentioned and emphasized of these militaristic heroes with whom Freud identified was Hannibal, the great Carthaginian general. Hannibal’s relationship with his father, Hamilcar Barca, provides another example of a strong, positive father-son relationship like that between Philip and Alexander the Great. In The Interpretation of Dreams (1900), Freud wrote of this identification: |