Psychology : why can freud’s conception of consciousness be compared to an iceberg?

In Freud’s conception, consciousness can be broken up into three distinct bands: the conscious level, the preconscious level, and the unconscious level.  The conscious level, where we process our perceptions and thoughts, is like the part of the iceberg that is above the water.  We are aware of our conscious level, just as we are aware of the top layer of an iceberg. The next level of consciousness, the preconscious level, is just below the surface of our consciousness and can be accessed when it is needed to recall memories and facts. This is similar to the level of the iceberg directly under the water: you can perceive it if you look carefully and are close enough. The last level of consciousness is the unconscious level, which a person has no active knowledge of.  Like the vast underwater portion of an iceberg, the unconscious level is unseen but can be very influential.  The unconscious mind has many urges, instincts, and desires, which it is constantly demanding be met. The unconscious mind can influence the behavior of an individual, sometimes in the disastrous ways an iceberg can threaten a ship.

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bacteria that live on the ocean floor are sustained by phytoplankton. phytoplankton, microscopic marine photosynthetic organisms, have a vastly significant role to play not only in the marine food web of which they’re part of, but also on a more global scale. despite their infinitely small size in comparison to other marine organisms, these tiny creatures occupy an immensely important ecological niche: they are the foundation of the marine food web, and as primary producers, play key roles in supporting all other organisms in the marine environment, as well as in the regulation of the earth’s climate through the sequestration of carbon, oxygen production, and other related processes. phytoplankton account for roughly half of all global primary productivity; therefore, their significance extends far beyond the marine environment alone. there is an intriguing sense of irony in the realization that these tiny living beings that often live out their existence unnoticed and undetected by the rest of the world, have such a far-reaching impact on the lives of virtually all other living organisms on the planet, particularly on those in the marine environment. the world that we have become accustomed to has been and is continuously shaped by the workings of these miniscule yet vital “plants of the sea”.

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