Just finished...August 9th, 2011...
There are a number of Freudian ideas that I wish to develop here this morning in congregation with a number of other ideas that I have either 're-cycled' from other philosophers and/or psycho-theorists and/or developed on my own.
One Freudian idea that I would like to develop is 'the psycho-sexual stages of development'. This idea has been largely discarded by most modern day psychologists but I wish to take another path with it.
Another is Freud's idea of 'unbound' and 'bound' instinctual (Id) energy which fits with a distinction that I have been trying to develop between 'free-floating or free-rising id energy' and 'restrained id energy' (within 'The Shadow-Id Vault).
An idea by Carl Jung that I have modified is the idea of 'The Collective Unconscious' that has never sat entirely well with me but which seemed to still have some theoretical, clinical, and pragmatic value.
In place of The Collective Unconscious which in Jungian conceptuology consists of the 'Unconsious Symbolism, Mythology, Gods, Heroes, Villains, and other Archetype-Figures shared by the whole human race' -- is my concept of 'The Genetic-(Biological-Existential) Self'.
There are a few different ideas in my own concept that I wish to distinguish from Jung's concept of The Collective Unconscious.
Firstly, every person's genetics is significantly unique. If the roots of my individual genetics come from Scotland, they are still going to be significantly different from another person who may also have his or her genetic roots in Scotland, and even more different than a person whose genetic roots come from, say, Israel or Iran.
The most unique part of our individual genetics are those individual talents and capabilities that belong to no other person alive other than to ourself.
I will refer to this aspect of our genetics as our 'Existential Genetics'.
This idea flys counter to what Jean Paul Sartre wrote in 'Being and Nothingness' and his famous principle of 'Existence Before Essence'....Well, I am an 'Essence Before Existence' theorist who follows in the footsteps of Erich Fromm in this regard rather than any of the 'tabula rasa' theorists such as 'the strict empiricists' and such as Sartre.
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From Wikipedia...
Tabula rasa is the epistemological theory that individuals are born without built-in mental content and that their knowledge comes from experience and perception. Generally proponents of the tabula rasa thesis favour the "nurture" side of the nature versus nurture debate, when it comes to aspects of one's personality, social and emotional behaviour, and intelligence. The term in Latin equates to the English "blank slate" (or more accurately, "erased slate") (which refers to writing on a slate sheet in chalk) but comes from the Roman tabula or wax tablet, used for notes, which was blanked by heating the wax and then smoothing it to give a tabula rasa.
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It is only because man has a 'genetic essence' that he can feel like 'A Stranger' when he becomes 'estranged' or 'dissociated' from his 'essence'. This is another type of 'fitting game' that man plays -- 'The Existential Fitting Game'....At some point in our life we are probably going to put ourselves 'On Trial' to 'accuse' and/or 'defend' ourselves relative to how well and/or how poorly we have played 'The Existential Fittting Game' during our life. I call it a 'game' but this game can be a deadly, serious one in which the 'consequences of Our Trial' can have a hugely drastic impact on our psyche and Self relative to how harshly, mildly, or supportively we (our Superego) end(s) up judging our life -- and our 'performance' within our life.
Also, from within the confines of our Genetic Self is the 'birth' and 'first appearance' of our 'Shadow-Id' which at this point can also be called our 'Narcissistic-Hedonistic-Existential Self'. Within the behavioral realm of a newborn baby we can see the beginning of both the 'oral' phase and the 'anal' phase. The 'oral phase' is connected with 'consuming nutrition' that the newborn baby needs to stay alive.
However, the baby's sole means of 'consuming nutrition' -- 'sucking' -- which has classically been viewed as the prototype of 'the oral phase' -- can also be viewed as the baby's first venture into 'the anal phase' which requires that the baby 'do some work' in order to 'consume the nutrition' that he or she needs to stay alive.
From a biological perspective, we can say that the mind-brain-body has five main functions:
1. Consuming nutrition (The 'oral' phase);
2. Metabolizing and circulating nutrition to the individual cells (the 'first dynamic' phase;
3. Expelling toxins (the 'anal' phase);
4. In the case of male biology, 'expelling genetic nutrition' (sperm) such that it is absorbed and integrated with female bio-genetics (the egg);
5. Making sure that the 'individual parts of the whole and their multi-dialectic interconnection with each other' engage in optimal functioning (the 'second dynamic' phase).
The same five principles -- metaphorically speaking -- can be viewed as applying equally importantly to the ongoing functioning of the mind-brain-psyche-Self'.
In the same way that 'the oral phase' can be viewed as consisting of our need to 'consume food and oxygen', so too can we say that our mind-brain-psyche-self needs to consume love, support, nurturing, encouragement, caring, empathy, social sensitivity, altruism, hope, optimism...
Without these 'different elements of essential psychological and emotional nutrition', the mind-brain-psyche-self (MBPS) will not evolve, grow, and function properly. Rather, it will continually be searching for what it feels that it is chronically and sometimes acutely missing. Call these 'Unfinished Positive-Oral Transference Gestalts' (UPOTGs).
On the 'anal' side of the ledger, the newborn baby is learning the first intitial steps towards being an 'active participant' (i.e., 'working') for the consumption of its food -- even though in Classic Freudian Conceptuology, this is still considered 'the oral phase' or 'the oral-sucking phase' of human 'psycho-sexual' development.
From my conceptual and theoretical perspective, the 'oral phase' of human psycho-physical development consists of the 'intake of proper physical and psychological nutrition' -- which on the 'psychological-emotional side' includes a sufficient and necessary threshold of love, affection, nurturing, caring, empathy, sensitivity, encouragement, hope, optimism, etc...as mentioned above...
Anything less than this, and the person's 'psychological self-esteem' (and 'narcissistic self-confidence') is going to be compromised, and throughout their adult life they are likely still going to be searching for their missing UPOTG's as also mentioned above...
Mainly in line with classic Freudian conceptuology, but a little different, I view the 'anal phase' of human growth as including the 'ability to work and to manifest one's (God-and/or-Creation given) talents and capabilities', the ability to protect and enhance one's own 'self-boundaries', and the ability to avoid and/or eliminate both physical and psychological-emotional 'toxins'.
The 'anal-phobic or anal-allergic' personality is the 'neat freak' and/or the 'hygiene freak', whereas the 'anal-obsessive-compulsive or anal-addictive or anal-explosive' personality is the 'Pigpen' from The Peanuts Comic Strip or 'Diogenes' from ancient Greek philosophy -- metaphorically and/or literally 'obsessed' with, and 'addicted to' dirt, mud, uncleanliness, disorder, choas, anarchy, and the like....
The 'anal-retentive' personality is the person who is just a little (or a lot) too 'morally uptight', 'prim and proper', 'Victorian', 'prudish', usually a 'neat freak', 'obsessed with being on time', an 'organization freak', very 'self-controlling', 'self-judgmental' and 'judgmental of others', a hard worker, often a 'workaholic', 'obsessed with schedules, planning', 'lacking in spontaneity', 'lacking in being able to relax', 'lacking in being able to let go of stresses', 'often lives alone with cats', or alternatively, is so consumed by 'social schedules' that they cannot get a minute to themselves....to breathe and relax and connect with their 'internal essence'....
These character types -- the oral and the anal type (and the derrivatives of each) -- were first brought to the light of day by the one and only Dr. Freud....and I have embellished some of these characteristics based on my own personal and social experience....
'The Oral-Narcissistic Personality' wants to be 'fed' and 'pampered like a King or Queen...or Prince or Princess...
'The Oral and/or Anal-Sadistic Personality' is mean, cruel, likes to hurt people...
'The Oral-Nurturing Pesonality' is the 'non-confrontational therapist type' -- the all loving, all caring, mother, father -- and/or therapist....
'The Oral-Approval-Seeking or Pleasing Personality' is the person who hates to be rejected and/or disapproved of, and constantly strives for 'love, acceptance, and approval'...
'The Anal-Rebellious Personality' rebels against authority figures and 'Establishment Rules, Laws, Values, Regulations, Ethics, Morals...'
'The Anal-Righteous Personality' is righteous and judgmental about almost everything...
'The Anal-Schizoid Personality' is a distance-seeker, a person who tends to avoid contact and/or intimacy with other people...
'The Borderline (Psychotic) Personality' is a person from my personal experience who is 'very tightly wound together', absolutely needs safety, security, routines, environmental saftey nets, social encouragement, and a lack of 'unpleasant surprises or shocks to the fragile narcissistic ego' because these can lead to 'narcissistic collapses', 'nervous (and/or psychotic) breakdowns', deep plunges into 'The Nietzschean Abyss' (like Nietzsche himself plunged into for the last 10 years of his life)...A person with a 'Borderline Personality' as I will use this concept is a person that walks on a very narrow plank between 'being' and 'nothingness', between security and insecurity, between 'having a precarious foothold on reality' and plunging into Nietzsche's Abyss...
'The Oral-Obsessive-Compulsive-Addictive Personality' is a person who easily falls prey to any number of possible 'oral addictions' such as food, alchohol, drugs, gambling, sex...In the 'food' department, 'anorexia' is the opposite of an 'oral obsessive food addiction' -- where food is despised, detested, as something that is going to make one 'fat'. 'Bulimia' splits the difference between addiction and phobia...usually a woman 'eating or even binging' -- and then 'vomitting' right afterwards...Both anorexia and bulimia -- in a post-Freudian sense -- can be viewed as 'anal eating disorders' in that food is viewed as a 'toxin' either to be avoided or vomitted out...
The 'Workaholic' is an 'anal personality disorder' where lack of balance in the rest of the person's life is dominantly suppressed by the amount of time and energy the person spends at work or with work....
Manic-Depression and other BiPolar Disorders....There are too many other types of bipolar disorders to list here -- I have listed them elsewhere -- but with what used to be called 'manic-depression' you have a cycle of 'mania' where a person 'runs wild' and 'does practically anything and everything'...excessive shopping, spending, drinking, breaking all routines, sexual encounters, you name it (sounds great until you get to the 'post-mania personal, social, economic, and family consequences')....and then finally plunges back to earth into a period of guilt and depression...before , after a given period of time, probably months, the 'mania' phase takes over again....('Sin and then pay for your sins'....seems to be one way of summing this type of 'two phase transference game' up....)
In the next part of this essay, we will follow the 'evolution' and/or 'de-evolution' of the id from 1. 'The Genetic-Biological-Existential (GBE) Self' into 2. 'Nietzsche's Abyss' (The Disorganized 'Caldron' of The Id) to 3. 'free-floating Shadow-Id Complexes' in The Subconscious to 4. 'The Experiential Learning and Transference Template' to 5. 'The Shadow-Id Vault' to 6. more 'free-floating Shadow-Id Complexes' to 7. 'The Dream and Nightmare Weaver' and then into 'The Pre-Conscious and Conscious Ego' which we will discuss in the next part of this essay afterwards...
Enough for now,
-- dgb, August 9th, 2011,
-- David Gordon Bain,
-- Dialectic Gap-Bridging Negotiations...
-- Are Still in Process....
