Prudentialism, Psychology, Morality

The combination of Pleasure Principle and Reality Principle marks Freud's theory as the variety of Hedonism often called Prudentialism, because in which the 'ought' is internal, i. e. a function of the Superego, is descriptive, not normative.  In other words, the theory reduces Morality to a Psychological function, a rival in that regard, to Aristotelian Eudaemonism, which, instead, locates the 'ought' in the Ego, as a homeostatic balancing function, independent of social relations, as has been previously discussed.  Now, one shortcoming in this reduction of Morality to Psychology is that while it might attribute the Univeralist dimension of Kantian Reason to the Superego, the imperative to treat an other as an end-in-itself does not as easily derive from mere Prudence.  However, the more fundamental problem for the theory is that Freud fails to consider that it itself is the product of his Superego--that such Prudentialism is not a fact, but is an internalized social norm.  That even the stratum of Primary Narcissism might be an expression of Capitalist ideology is a possibilty that Marcuse does not even consider as he takes it for an immutable fact of human nature.