Overdetermination, the idea that a single observed effect is determined by multiple causes at once (any one of which alone might be enough to account for the effect), was originally a key concept of Sigmund Freud's psychoanalysis. Sigmund Freud, 1907 Sigmund Freud, around 1921 Sigmund Freud (IPA: []) (May 6, 1856 – September 23, 1939) was an Austrian neurologist and the founder of the psychoanalytic school of psychology. ... This article is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ...

For Freud and Psychoanalysis

Freud wrote in The Interpretation of Dreams that many features of dreams were usually "overdetermined," in that they were caused by multiple factors in the life of the dreamer, from the "residue of the day" (superficial memories of recent life) to deeply repressed traumas and unconscious wishes, these being "potent thoughts". Freud favored interpretations which accounted for such features not only once, but many times, in the context of various levels and complexes of the dreamer's psyche. The Interpretation of Dreams is a book by Sigmund Freud, the first edition of which came out in 1900. ...

The concept was later borrowed for a variety of other realms of thought.

For Richards and literature

The New Critic I.A. Richards used the idea of overdetermination in order to explain the importance of ambiguity: in rhetoric, the philosophy of language, and literary criticism. New Criticism was the dominant trend in English and American literary criticism of the early twentieth century, from the 1920s to the early 1960s. ... Ivor Armstrong Richards (February 26, 1893-1979) was an influential literary critic and rhetorician. ... Look up ambiguity in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Rhetoric from Greek ρήτωρ, rhêtôr, orator) is the art or technique of persuasion, usually through the use of language. ... Philosophy of language is the branch of philosophy that studies language. ... Literary criticism is the study, discussion, evaluation, and interpretation of literature. ...

For Althusser and Structuralist Marxism

The Marxist philosopher Louis Althusser imported the concept into Marxist politics in an influential essay, "Contradiction and Overdetermination." Drawing, in an unusual combination, from both Freud and Mao Zedong, Althusser used the idea of overdetermination as a way of thinking about the multiple, often opposed, forces active at once in any political situation, without falling into an over-simple idea of these forces being simply "contradictory." Brewster, in Althusser et al's Reading Capital defines overdetermination as such: Work in philosophy which is strongly influenced by Marxist theory, or which is written by Marxists, can be called Marxist philosophy. ... Louis Pierre Althusser (October 16, 1918 - October 23, 1990) was a Marxist philosopher. ... Marxism is the political practice and social theory based on the works of Karl Marx, a 19th century philosopher, economist, journalist, and revolutionary, along with Friedrich Engels. ... Politics, sometimes defined as the art and science of government[1], is a process by which collective decisions are made within groups. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Reading Capital is a 1970 work by dominant structuralist Marxist Louis Althusser and students Etienne Balibur and Ben Brewster. ...

"the representation of dream thoughts in images privileged by their condensation of a number of thoughts in a single image (condensation), or by the transference of psychic energy from a particularly potent thought to apparently trivial things ... [For Althusser] overdetermination of a contradiction is the reflection in it of its conditions of existence within the complex whole."

Thus, for Althusser's reiterating of Marxist thought, overdetermination is what [concealed/unaccepted] "determinant contradictions", or capital-economic incongruities(i.e., abstract labour resulting in "isolation" -- the class struggle), which are analogous to Freud's "potent thoughts", apply to instances that are more really, slight, understandable. An instance of a popular riot calling for revolution could exemplify this. The event has to it, in capitalist culture, an over-application(determination) of agitation. The determinant contradictions(the reasons for popular revolt) are not addressed and so their great mass is "displaced" onto the singular event.

For Baudrillard and Theoretical Sociology towards a Theory of Hyperreality

Another conception of overdetermination is present in the later writings of Jean Baudrillard. His derives from Althusser's conception, but breaks with it just as Baudrillard breaks with structural Marxism in general. Jean Baudrillard (born July 29, 1929) is a cultural theorist, philosopher, and sociologist. ... Louis Pierre Althusser (October 16, 1918 - October 23, 1990) was a Marxist philosopher. ... The structure of a thing is how the parts of it relate to each other, how it is put together. This contrast with process, which is how the thing works; but process requires a viable structure. ... Marxism is the philosophy, social theory and political practice based on the works of Karl Marx, a 19th century German socialist philosopher, economist, journalist, and revolutionary. ...

In mathematics

A system of linear equations is considered overdetermined if there are more equations than unknowns.[1] In mathematics and linear algebra, a system of linear equations is a set of linear equations such as 3x1 + 2x2 − x3 = 1 2x1 − 2x2 + 4x3 = −2 −x1 + ½x2 − x3 = 0. ...

References

• Louis Althusser. "Contradiction and Overdetermination." In For Marx Verso 1985 ISBN 0902308793
• Louis Althusser et al. Reading Capital Verso 1993 ISBN 1859841643
• Sigmund Freud. The Interpretation of Dreams HarperCollins 1976 ISBN 0899664415 (Hardcover) ISBN 0380010003 (Paperback)
• I.A. Richards. The Philosophy of Rhetoric Oxford University Press 1965 ISBN 0415217385 (Library Binding) ISBN 0195007158 (Paperback)

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