Karen Horney

A detailed Summary of Karen Horney

Karen Horney was born in Hamburg, Germany to Captain and Mrs. Berndt

Wackels Danielson on September 16, 1885. Captain Danielson was a religious man with

an authoritarian parenting style, he was referred to as "the Bible thrower". Although her

father brought her gifts from around the world and let her accompany him on three sea

excursions, Karen felt that he favored her older brother Berndt. The lack of a connection

with her father made Karen become extremely close with her mother, Clotilde aka Sonni.

Clotilde was Captain Danielson's second wife, 19 years seperated the cosmopolitan wife

When Karen was nine she changed her approach to life and became more bold and

ambitious. At the same time, Karen's crush on her beloved teenage brother led him to

distance himself from her uncomfortable attentions. Berndt's rejection made Karen

depressed, the first of many bouts of depression throughout her life. In 1904 Clotilde

divorced Karen's father and left both Berndt and Karen in his care.

In 1906, Karen Horney decided to attend medical school against her parents

wishes. Contrary to societal norms, Horney attended the universities of Freiburg and

child. Parental indifference is shown by favoring one child over another, placing

unwarranted blame, leaving promises unfulfilled, making fun of a child's thinking, etc.

Many parents are under a lot of pressure, and may have a neurosis of their own, that

Everyone wants to feel appreciated, but some need to be recognized more often. In the

and Institute. Later she left Berlin to join the Chicago Institute for Psychoanalysis. During

learning about such a unique, strong woman.

was there that Horney developed her most important contribution to the field of

ideal self is an unrealistic goal, leading the neurotic to ignore their true selves and to never

Although most children react to parental indifference with basic hostility, most are worried

Horney began to follow Freudian analysis with Karl Abraham in 1915. By 1919,

with appearances and notoriety, with an overwhelming fear of being labeled as outcasts or

Approximate Word count = 1563
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)

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