Running clockwise from the empty circle at the bottom left, we see here a rare instance of Freud experimenting with how to best describe the psyche in five iterations.

The five versions differ primarily with respect to the relation between the Ego (Ich) and the Preconscious (Vorbewusst or VBW), as well as the relation between the Ego and the Id (Es).

In each diagram, Freud slightly alters the space allotted to each element in the psyche.

Repression (Verdrängung) is represented as a truncated double line on each diagram’s right side.

The dotted lines that run vertically through three of the diagrams mark the divide between the perceptual consciousness (Wahrnehmungs-Bewusstein or W-Bw) and the unconscious.