Psych explanations for knife love

A

atomic

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Oct 18, 2005
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Does anybody know anything about how a psychologist would explain the love of knives? And Freud?
I ask because I sometimes wonder what it says about us, and have no so-called scientific info on this.
I read that the fear of sharp objects in women means fear of the penis, etc, but this sounds like BS to me...
Any knowledge out there?
 
That is a really good question!! I would like to hear what a profeesional would say. Or maybe not!! I dunno. Do we really want to know what a psychologist would say? I AM curious!
 
My wife's has a pretty straightforward theory, and that is that I am crazy. Probably not too different from what a non - knife loving psychologist would say. ;)
 
IMHO the fact that we collect knives (and other weapons) is a part of primitive male behaviour, where we subcontious are drawn to certain objects that give us an edge to other men.

In the not so long ago past the best male got the best survival rate, the best female and the most offspring. Having the right tool to become the best male was important.
The fact that we evolved from using a sharpened stick to the H-bomb can all be traced back to this primitive response. Having a better hunting/defense tool made the difference. That's why these tools have evolved in such a way.

This behaviour is inherent to all males, although the amount of attraction toward these objects can differ.

Just like maternal instincts have a way more profound effect on females, knives, guns, survival equipment have a more profound effect on males.

This is not a bad instinct, untill a few hundred years ago these skills where needed to survive.

Now, unlike primitive female behaviour (taking care for infants) male primitive behaviour (war mongering/ survival skills) is been frowned upon by the society because primitive male behaviour is seen as troublesome in modern society.

Only in a true survival situation where we have to fall back on our own survival skills these objects become again important.

Once the whole public services are distorted ( say in case of a hurricane/war/famine) the male survival instinct is awakened and typical primitive male behaviour is regarded positive.

When everything is bought back to "normal" we have to supress these primitive reflexes.

I believe that we as knife collectors have a stronger then average primitive response to survival tools ( knives, axes, firearms, survival equipment).
 
No, but really... Maybe one could find something on internet. With me, the passion struck at a young age, and then left for a while, waited until I could afford nice (I mean spendy) knifes, and then hit again, but hard!
Do knife addicts generally like guns? Some threads seem to indicate that yes, they do. I do, but it's not a passion.
But what do people think when they walk into our homes and see the display cases? What does it say to the layperson? My girl also thinks I'm nuts, but that's related to my spending, not the passion in itself.
I ask the question separate of the cost. Let's assume we all had Scagels and Brends and Dunkerleys and Zowadas, and all these combined had cost us $15.35, and so we had bought hundreds, and our houses were covered in knives, and then let the question stand: What does it mean to a shrink?
One thing I've noticed is that the level of debate, vocabulary, and intellect on this forum is very, very high, compared to others I've stumbled across.
Does this mean that knife people are geniuses?
 
Mongo-Man, that's an interesting point, one which I understand, but what can we conclude? That we knife guys are less evolved than shoe men? Than Playstation men. Would the shrinks call us insecure in fulfilling the need for an edge (pun intended) over other men?
 
Well the shrinks could call us that, but smart shrinks understand primitive male behaviour :D

Why do men cheat on their wife? Because they are always looking for a better candidate to carry there offspring. Why do women love large succesfull men? Because they give the best possible security to her children.

The funny thing is that most wives/GF don't mind their husbands/boyfriend collecting these tools persé, but it is the amount of money that flows into the collecting itself.

Women have a hard time to understand why we have the need for a new knife ( we are subcontious drawn too it) while we wonder why our spouses pay a lot off money for clothing, jewellery and make-up.

I believe that a lot of people who work in the field of human behaviour don't object to the fact that you collect these types of tools as long as they stay social acceptable.

i.e. they don't mind you having 10 knives, but buying 10 knives per month and spending all your money is deviant behaviour.

Just like the fact that some women invest a lot of money in remodelling their body is seen upon as deviant behaviour.

Now please realise that everyone has deviant behaviour in one way or another, and as long as the behaviour doesn't become a problem ( financial or social) no mental health professional is going to oppose it.

Is having 200 knives in a collection unhealthy? No, as long as these knives don't interfere with normal human interaction.

Once the knifecollectors starts losing his friends/ partner, losing his job or gets into financial trouble or with the legal system it is seen upon as a problem.

So this is the question we should ask ourself, is my knife hobby grown in such a way that it hinders me in interacting in a normal way with other people?

When the answer is no, there is no problem
 
atomic said:
......One thing I've noticed is that the level of debate, vocabulary, and intellect on this forum is very, very high.......
Click to expand...

I agree. Everyone here seems to like books, which is a good indication of intelligence IMO. I've also noticed a high level of interest in guns, gadgets in general and survival gear.

I think everyone here just simply wants to be prepared for whatever comes. It's as simple as that. If I need to cut something, a knife works better than my teeth. If you're wandering around in a dark place, a flashlight is indispensable. If you need to pry something loose, one of Mr. Atwood's little tools is the ticket. If you need to defend yourself, only a gun will do. On and on.

I think most of the folks who frequent this site are just "what if" people. What if the SHTF? Better have a bug out bag handy. Maybe we've all been in too many situations where we didn't have what we needed and didn't like the inconvenience, or the trouble that ensued from being unprepared. I'd be willing to bet that well over half the members of this forum who post regularly have knives, guns, flashlights (the good ones, like Surefires), Leatherman-type tools, keychain gadgets, Fisher pens and a well stocked personal library.
 
I don't mean this in a snide sense, but if that were the long and short of it, we would all own a spyderco or Ka-Bar, and that would be it. And of course, taken to the extreme, anything becomes deviant... Even Bladeforums!
I'm going to do some research, although I'm pretty sure of what Freud would have to say about all this...
I have to say that I think the statistics on knife OWNERSHIP are pretty bland: cut vegetables, cut envelopes, filet a fish, skin a deer. In fact, most authorities concur that there was never a time when the knife was the principal or preferable fighting tool. There was always something better for fighting, and in terms of combat troop preferences, today most pack folders. so the Fighter/combat knife categories themselves are a sort of luxury we indulge. And the bowie? The dagger? You can't even field-use a dagger, unless you're W.E. Fairbairn. And how does one explain the purchase of a $3.000 folder? Given that you can afford it without starving the dog, WHY buy one?
Maybe the answer is that you can't hold a stamp for too long, or holding a coin gets boring, or Split-Window Corvettes are too expensive...?
 
We are mostly gear freaks, which is survival oriented; specifically, it is a real world preoccupation. Knife knuts are probably less theory-oriented.

Anyway, why would we think there is any one, even predominant reason for collecting knives? Some collect for utility, some for the art of a fine design, some because of the availability of such a variety of interesting and diverse objects.

I wouldn't worry about a professional psychology or psychiatry point of view. As Freud is said to have said: "Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar." Of course, Freud said a lot of things that contradict himself and contradict the way other, equally perspicacious people see reality.
 
"We are mostly gear freaks" There you go. What gear is the most useful? A knife.. the most basic and essential tool/gadget imho that can help you get all else... food, shelter, clothing, fire, and defense. I would generally characterize us as tool users, screwed solidly into reality with a willingness to be self reliant. ;)
 
I think it's pretty obvious about what Freud would say about knife fascination, but... **** his strange theories. I would be interested in what modern science might say.
 
Mostly the affection for knives is a respondent conditioning by associating a knife with mystery, excitement or a 'no no'. These associations form at an early age usually. Most of us can thank our parents for our love affairs with cutlery. Surely you recall: "Don't touch that it can cut you!" Now you leave this alone!" Such things become attractive to normal youngsters both male and female. We are not supposed to have it so it must be good kind of thing. :D

In psychoanalytic theory love of cutlery would probably go something like:

It is the primitive side of man coming out; the sum of biological drives in man coming out in the instinctive energy of the 'id' from a time when a fight for survival was a daily occurance. The unconscious material of dream and fantasy being expressed in life through the ego by the symbols of 'authenticity' carried with us through life in disquised fashion as we try to live out our vision of truth and necessity from our fantasy and dream life as well as our moral standards in society held in the super ego.

Hows that for scary?
 
Personally I think Sigmund Freud was a goofball and more of a weirdo than most "normal" men.

I have made the following observations during the last many months both here and at KF:

1. They like to be prepared. (what if they need to cut a seatbelt to help someone get out of a car they are stuck in?)

2. They like gear.

3. They are fairly meticulate and organized.

4. They are somewhat anal (I'm very anal).

5. They like computers and books.

6. They are pretty much almost the complete opposite of what a non-knife person would think about someone who likes knives.

7. They don't like math.

8. They like history.

9. They like to read stuff like National Geographic and Popular Science.

10. They are just good all around folks.

Cheers,
SAKguy :D
 
I believe that Freud compared collectors, specifically coin collectors, to infants playing with their feces.


I tend to buy in to Mongo-man's explanation in part from what I know about psychology, though I don't think it entirely explains it. Some people buy things like expensive (but unnecessary) wheels for their cars for the same reason, or buy large expensive homes.

Yes, I think some people are also attracted to knives and guns because of the "forbidden fruit" factor. Much of society is afraid of them and perhaps our parents wouldn't let us touch them from a young age.

I would also say that collecting things is akin to hoarding resources like food and various other things.

I think a strong part is also cultural. Specifically, we have advertising that creates a "need" in the consumer for things we may not necessarily need. In some respects this forum serves as advertising.
 
STR said:
Mostly the affection for knives is a respondent conditioning by associating a knife with mystery, excitement or a 'no no'. These associations form at an early age usually. Most of us can thank our parents for our love affairs with cutlery. Surely you recall: "Don't touch that it can cut you!" Now you leave this alone!" Such things become attractive to normal youngsters both male and female. We are not supposed to have it so it must be good kind of thing. :D
Click to expand...
Just about the opposite of what I grew up with. No mystery at all, given knives as soon as I could handle them, and when I cut myself, 'go wash it off and I'll get you a bandaid'. No big deal.

Oh, and we were all expected to have a knife. What did you think we'd play mumblypeg with, a spoon? :)
 
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