Seeing is Not Always Believing

Seeing is not always believing- Martin Luther King Jr.

Can we believe what we can't see? Sigmund Freud, an early psychologist largely disregarded by today's scientifically driven psychologists, sure did. Most of Freud's findings had no scientific evidence, yet his concepts were and still are widely accepted. One might not think to challenge the existence of the Id, Ego and Superego, but they can't really be proven to exist either. Besides his focus on the sexual energy of children in the psychosexual stages (many psychologists believe Freud was wrong about children being driven by sexual energy as well), I haven't come across many of Freud's ideas that strike me as completely illogical. This is why I was surprised about how uncomfortable psychoanalytic literary criticism makes me. 

A few days ago in English, we discussed the psychoanalytic lens pertaining to Hamlet. We discovered that the Psychoanalytic theory is based off of a few of Freud's ideas: 

The Unconscious Mind

Id, Ego, Superego

Psychosexual Stages

Repression

and The Oedipus Complex

According to the Psychoanalytic theory, the Oedipus Complex can be seen in Hamlet. The Oedipus complex is a fixation (a result of unresolved conflict in a particular stage) that can occur in the phallic stage of psychosexual development. Basically it results in a feeling of wanting to kill dad and be with mom. When Hamlet was young, his father was killed, and therefore part of his Oedipus complex was fulfilled. The problem was that his uncle Claudius married his mom, carrying out the rest of this "fantasy" for him. When Hamlet needs to kill his uncle and avenge his father, he delays because he feels somehow connected to his uncle for carrying out his unconscious desire to marry his mother. 

Now there are two things to take into consideration. The first is that Freud came after Shakespeare's time. He claims that this complex is found in most human men, but did their culture create this complex, or is it a biological function? Could it even have existed in Shakespeare's time? Many seem to think the time period is irrelevant, but I still believe it must be considered. The second problem I see with this evaluation of Hamlet is that none of this can be proved. The repressed feelings and motivation for killing his uncle are being extrapolated by the reader. Shakespeare never says Hamlet's journey is a result of the Oedipus complex. Can we believe what we cannot see? 

Since the idea of an unconscious mind does not bother me, and that cannot be seen or proven, I was surprised to find that an interpretation of Hamlet that is based off of an idea that cannot be proven from the text itself did bother me. I can't say I would completely disregard the Psychoanalytic literary theory, but I don't see myself using this very often in the future.

The Moment a Little Boy is Concerned With Which is a Jay and Which is a Sparrow, He Can No Longer See the Birds or Hear Them Sing

“The moment a little boy is concerned with which is a jay and which is a sparrow, he can no longer see the birds or hear them sing.” -Eric Berne

Discrimination is an unfortunate reality in today's world, and it truly blinds each and every one of us. Some may think that we treat each other equally, but others are painfully aware that the opposite is true.  I recently took a test though Harvard University's Project Implicit. This webiste provides Implicit Association Tests , free for anybody to take. The test proved to me that no matter how many times I say I don't discriminate, and no matter how much I believe in equal rights, I still have automatic associations. 

I chose to take the Weight Implicit Associations Test to see what would happen. I was instructed to do a number of tasks, as quickly as possible.

At the end of the test, I saw that it was harder for me to associate good with fat than good with thin... and I wasn't the only one. 70% of people naturally associated good with thin, 19% had no preference and only 12% associated good with fat. 






There are many more Implicit Association tests covering topics such as....

Gender-Career
Gender-Science
Age
Weapons
Race 
Sexuality
Skin Tone
Disability
and More


The point of these tests is not to shame the person, but rather to make that person self-aware of his or her natural or automatic associations. The more self-aware someone is, the more likely they are to change their behavior. This is the beginning to ending discrimination. Discrimination of all types exist all around the world. America is known as the land of the free, but are we free? Free to express ourselves and our beliefs without being judged? Not always. A common example of oppression in the United States is gay marriage. Homosexual men and women are often shamed and excluded from society because of their sexual orientation. In many states, they are not even allowed to get married. Another example of discrimination is the unwarranted fear instilled in American people of Middle Eastern men and/or women. Americans commonly associate Middle Easterners with terrorists. It has been a major problem that skyrocketed after 9/11 and one that America continues to struggle with today. I am by no means saying that every American is homophobic or prejudiced against Middle Easterners. I am however pointing out that as humans, we tend to lean towards either one group or another. Rarely do we show no preference to any group of people. There will always be associations that we have, but it is our duty to continue fighting for equality, because many will attest that we have not reached it yet. 

Knowing Others is Intelligence; Knowing Yourself is True Wisdom

"Knowing others is intelligence; knowing yourself is true wisdom. Mastering others is strength, mastering yourself is true power" - Lao-Tzu

Yesterday in English class, we talked about our own "shadows". My teacher explained that when we were young children, our parents most likely told us encouraging things like "You're so much calmer than other children. You're the best." or "You're so much more outgoing that the other children. You're the best". These adjectives are opposites. So while the calm child is rewarded for being calm, they are also being told not to be outgoing. While the outgoing child is rewarded for being outgoing, he or she is also being told not to be calm. These things that "we are not" become our shadows. Our feelings towards people that represent our shadows fall into one of two categories, both of which are intense. You either find yourself being incredible bothered and annoyed by these people, or you fall in love with them. Remember, opposites attract! In class we were asked to make a T-Chart of what we are and what we are not. Below is my chart.

    I am                                                I am not
__________________________________________

                                                                                 

* strong                                        *weak

* rule-follower                                *funny

*clumsy                                        *focused

* smart                                         *outgoing

*forgetful                                       *productive

*stubborn                                     *a quitter

*quiet                                           *wild

*determined                                  *troublemaker

                                                                       

                                                                           

                                                                              

After class, I decided to take a personality test to see how well it matches up with the list I made. The results from this test told me I had the personality type ISTJ. All personality types fit into four 'temperments'. I was classified as a Guardian, and more specifically, an Inspector. An Inspector in a nutshell is superdependable, responsible, patient, dedicated, quiet, are most likely involved in community service, and follow the rules. As I read the description of an Inspector, it mentioned that because these people follow the rules, they are often musjudged as "having ice in thier veins" or "being hard-hearted". I couldn't stop laughing as I read this because my dad is always saying I'm cold-hearted. Most of the description was amazingly similar to the list I developed in class. Keep in mind that I had about 5 minutes to compile this list. While I seem to know myself pretty well, I still find it's helpful to read a description about yourself. Some personality traits seemed annoying as I read about them, and now I realize that other people that have a different personality than me might think so too. I encourage everyone to take this  test and find out more about themselves. Improving your understanding of yourself can help you maintain the relationships you have and your relationship with yourself.

A Trap is Only a Trap If You Don't Know About It

“A trap is only a trap if you don't know about it. If you know about it, it's a challenge" -China Miêville

Why do we do what we do? Do the poorest countries in the world choose to be trapped in a continuous struggle of internal conflict? Recently, I've been reading The Bottom Billion by Paul Collier. It focuses on the poorest countries on the planet and explores their past and present economic and political situations. Each of these counties has fallen into one of four traps that keeps them in an endless cycle of internal struggles. These countries fell victim to a certain set of circumstances and cannot seem to find a way out. Conflict, natural resources, bad governance and being landlocked are the four traps identified by Collier. I'm going to explore how Russia does, or does not, fall into these traps. 

The Conflict Trap

The Russia-Georgia conflict, the 1st and 2nd Chechen Wars, and the current conflict in Syria are on the list of major conflicts Russia has been involved in since it's establishment in 1991. Russia has generally remained strong internally, and has avoided civil war since branching off from the USSR. Not one of these major conflicts, nor any others, have caused Russia to collapse economically and fall into the Conflict Trap. 

The Natural Resource Trap

Some people that natural resources automatically means wealth. Natural resources can be profitable if used correctly, but if a country has an abundance of natural resources and fails to manage them effectively, they can fall into the natural resource trap. Some countries fight about resources within their own country, while others can't figure out how to export and distribute them effectively. Russia is rich in oil, gas, coal, and timber. Most of these resources are located in remote areas that are difficult to reach, but Russia has managed to extract them and remain a leading producer and exporter of minerals, gold and fuel. In 2010, Russia exported $376.7 billion worth of natural resources and imported $191.8 billion. Being such a strong exporter in the world economy, it would be hard to imagine Russia falling victim to the Natural Resource Trap explained by Collier. 


The Bad Governance Trap


Collier makes the claim that countries that have bad governance can grow and maintain reasonable economic policies, like Bangladesh, the most corrupt country in the world. Bad governance can also cause a crash an economy in the blink of an eye. Still, it's important to note that having a good government can only do so much. The economic growth rate plateaus around 10%, no matter how good your government is. For bad governance to drag the nation into the bottom billion, it needs "qualifiers". Bad governance alone will most likely not cause a country to fall into a continuous cycle of struggle. 

Russia, no matter how bad it's government is, does not meet these other qualifications. Russia has a population of 142,517,670 and became independent of the USSR when the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991. Russia's education system is ranked 20th in the recent ranking published by the Economist and has produced nearly 100% literacy. Its per capita GDP is $17,000. The variables that keep a country from falling into the Bad Governance trap include a large population, high income, and a greater proportion of people with a substantial education. Judging by the statistics, Russia probably won't be falling into this trap anytime soon. 


The Landlocked Trap

Being surrounded by poor neighbors can be detrimental to a country's international trade and growth. Being as large as it is, Russia has many neighbors. Some of these neighbors include Kazakhstan, Georgia, Ukraine, Belarus, and Finland. None of these neighbors have had enough of an economic impact on Russia to cause an economic collapse or any significant impact on trade. Like i mentioned in the Natural Resource Trap, Russia is one of the world's largest exporters. 

While Russia may be gradually falling into other traps not explained by Collier in the Bottom Billion, it has managed steered clear of these four major traps. Russia is a strong nation internally and has healthy international relationships. For now, the Russians are optimistic about their future as a successful country. The countries that have found themselves in the bottom billion have most likely developed learned helplessness, and will need help seeing a way out. So does this mean they're choosing to stay in the Bottom Billion? I believe they are truly trapped and will need help unlearning this helplessness some of these poor countries have developed. 

Immigration is the Sincerest Form of Flattery

"Immigration is the sincerest form of flattery" - Jack Paar

A hot topic in the United States in recent years has been immigration, particularly illegal immigration. Some Americans whine and cry and do everything they can to establish a secure border between the U.S. and Mexico. When these Americans think of immigration they think about "hopping the border". These people might identify with the quote, “a nation that cannot control its borders is not a nation”, said by Ronald Reagan.

What they don't usually think about are people who do not choose to come to America. People who would rather stay in their homelands, but can't because of political turmoil. People classified as refugees.

In life, there are a number of needs we, as human beings, need to satisfy. According to Abraham Maslow, those needs can be assembled in a pyramid that looks like this:

Photo Source

At the base of the pyramid we can find physiological needs. These needs include hunger, thirst, bodily comforts, etc.. In countries with great amounts of political turmoil, people's basic physiological needs are often not being met. This creates an atmosphere of distress, and forces the country's people to seek refuge. If they can't satisfy their physiological needs, at least partially, they can't go on to satisfy safety needs. Safety and physiological needs are especially vital to survival, and without proper access to the resources needed to satisfy those needs, these people will be forced to find them elsewhere.

America welcomes refugees with a different attitude than is given towards illegal immigrants. But is this fair? Illegal immigrants are leaving their home for some reason. Some of their needs aren't being satisfied in their homeland. Chances are those needs don't have to do with self-actualizaion or trancendence. More likely, they have to do with safety or maybe even physiological needs. Illegal immigrants come to America not only to find the "American Dream", but they come to America to satisfy their basic needs. Keeping this in mind, does the connotation of "Illegal Immigrant" become more like that of a "Refugee"?

If life was good where they lived, people wouldn't go to such great lengths to come to America. Instead of viewing these people as "invaders" in our land, maybe people can start viewing them as human beings trying to thrive. Just people trying to meet their biological needs in the land of opportunity.

So like I said earlier through the words of Jack Paar, "Immigration is the sincerest form of flattery".