NOTE: Free essay sample provided on this page should be used for references or sample purposes only. The sample essay is available to anyone, so any direct quoting without mentioning the source will be considered plagiarism by schools, colleges and universities that use plagiarism detection software. To get a completely brand-new, plagiarism-free essay, please use our essay writing service.
One click instant price quote
In Freud's theory described above conscious, preconscious, id, ego and defense mechanism all play a predominated role in the life of Rachel Cameron in, The Jest of God. Freud had concluded that a person is always aware of their conscious state. In regard to the Jest of God, the main character Rachel is always aware of her thoughts and feelings. Even though she does not express the thoughts and feelings outwardly in the verbal or non-verbal manner. Freud believed that memories could come through from the preconscious to the conscious state by reliving and thinking about past memories. The preconscious state is refereed to in the book when she is trying to resurface her thoughts about her father when she leaves and talks to the funeral director Hector.
Rachel released her memories from her preconscious at that time. While Hector is talking, my eyes are searching the room, and yet this is senseless. Nothing is as it use to be, and there is nothing left from than, nothing of him not a clue (A Jest of God, pg. 129). Freud referred to the ID as the pleasure principle. An example of Rachel living out her id is when she is having sex with Nick and not using any protection regardless of the consequences that may occur. This occurs because Rachel cant find a balance between her ID and her superego.
As mentioned above the superego is refered to as what society wants and the ID is refered to the pleasure principle in the book she repeated had a sexual encounter with Nick even with the high risk of becoming pregnant. In the book Rachel's main conflict is creating a balance between her ID and her superego. Rachel's need to have pleasure in her life, as well as, continuing to up hold the highest of moral standards that her mother deems absolutely necessary. There are several defense mechanisms she uses to survive, the first one being rationalization. In rationalization the theory states that a person takes a bad action and justifies that action taken. An example of this is when Rachel hits James in the nose with the ruler for not letting her see his math work.
Once his nose starts to bleed and she realizes what she has done, she than justifies her action because she feels that to do otherwise would be detrimental to her authority as the teacher to the students. She also shows rationalization when it comes to her mother and the way the mother treats her. Rachel figures that the reason her mothers behaviour toward her seems rational is because of the fact that her heart is weak and that she is aloud some leniency and that she has no one else to take care of her. (The Jest of God. 1966). The second defense mechanism and the most abundantly used are the reaction formation.
She never states what she really means or wants when someone asks. It usually ends up being the opposite that her behavior or verbal language shows. Rachel always tries to appease everyone else but herself at any cost to herself. An example of this is when Calla wanted her to go to the Tabernacle with her, even though she did not want to go with Calla, she had said that she would because it would look bad if she didnt attend. Instead of saying no that she didnt agree with the way the people acted when they were confessing their beliefs. In the phallic stage Freud's theory states that a dysfunctional personality may result when the females father does not want her around and the mother is extremely famine and wants her daughter to be the same way as her.
Rachel starves to find out what her father was like and why he was the way he was towards her. An example of this is when Rachel's father was saying This is no place for you (Jest of God, p 126), he father was telling her to go away. Than Rachel's mother replies with Your fathers not feeling well (Jest of God, p 126) In this time period Rachel's mother was standing up for her husband and acting in a feminine way. This situation reflects Freud's phallic stage.
Free research essays on topics related to: phallic stage, freud theory, thoughts and feelings, pleasure principle, defense mechanism
Research essay sample on Thoughts And Feelings Pleasure Principle
