This study focuses on accounts of the dynamic processes of drives, instincts and affects and specifically on the ways in which they have been considered by two writers who have greatly contributed to debates on these issues in the twentieth century, Nietzsche and Freud. The works of both authors have appeared in important Italian editions: respectively, the Colli/Montinari critical edition of Nietzsche’s Works and Letters published by Adelphi, and the Italian translation of Sigmund Freud’s works edited by Cesare Musatti and published by Boringhieri. It is remarkable that the Italian editions were based on a reconstituted text that had not yet been published in German in a critical edition. Both Nietzsche and Freud explored largely new territory and view the process of the drives pressing towards consciousness in terms of a text and its translation. The act of translation assumes an extensive and multifaceted significance. Both Nietzsche and Freud are generally more interpreted than really read. Reflecting on aspects of the translations of their works may provide an insight into the movement of their thought.
Keywords: Nietzsche, Freud, Drives, Instincts, Affects, Translation, Editions.