Erich Fromm and his two consciences

Erich Fromm believed that our moral centre came from those around us who exert their authority over us.

(For example: Parents, teachers, religious leaders ect.)

Their authority involves reward and punishment for our actions and over time we have internalised it and it has become central to our understanding of morality.

From believed that the guilty conscience was a result of displeasing those in authority therefore we fear some sort of rejection from them and influence that this has over us is what Fromm called the authoritarian conscience.

A good authoritarian conscience provides provides a sense of security and well-being as it provides a structure that we can work within to ennsure that both society and we are moral.

A negative authoritarian conscience can be seen from Fromm's own experiences in Nazi Germany.

The German people would feel guilt if they disobeyed their government and this weakened their pwoer and made them submissive to the demands of the Nazi party.

-The government…