Student 11

May. 2, 2000

We have studied various theories of the self in this course. Each one has had a different impact in observing the self. The first theory that we discussed was that of Freuds'. He teaches of three parts that make up the mind including the id, ego, and the superego. He feels that the self should fully develop in a natural way, out of the ego as it is the central commanding unit of the soul. The id is believed to control all the natural, animalistic instincts. the superego controls human's morals, values, and conscience. The ego is considered to balance between the devil id and the angel superego. The ego is also thought to take charge. Freud also believes the mind has a defense mechanism, which uses rationality, regression, repression, suppression, and sublimation to deal with tasks and problemsthat may occur. Repression is the act of holding problems inside until they build up. this is a habit that I have. I portrayed this in my self portrait by using black,broken glass, and dead flowers because this is how I feel when I keep thoughts balled up inside.

The Jungian self is an archetype that expresses itself through varios symbols, the main one being the mandala, a magic circle that repressents unity. Jung believes total unity is the self. The self is considered central and the mid-point, which holds all systems together. I agree with Jung in that myself holds all of my different feelings together which make up my personality. Jung feels that religious or spiritual experience is perhaps the closest one will ever come to unity. due to the completeness of Jung's self, it is thought to not be able to be complete until the middle years. Jung believes in two concepts: extraversion and introversion. The former is oriented towards the external world while the latter toward the inner world. the two attitudes are thought to exist in everyone, although one is more dominant. As one's self becomes more wholly developed, there is thought to be a balance between the two. He also believes one moves toward unity through four functions: sensing and intuiting, thinking and feeling. Sesing relies on facts, while intuiting relies more on unconscious processes. Thinking is intellectual and is balanced by feeling. From the feeling one gets the ability to experience anger, sadness, happiness, and fear. rilke seems like an introvert, trying to become an extrovert. the same is true for the older woman in the true identity. When the woman pulls away from her face showing her true identity, Rilke looks away because he does not want to see her for who she really is.

I can relate to this because sometimes I want my boyfriend to act the way that I want him to act and not like he really does, however this only pertains to a few things. This is an example of Rilke's belief that we all wear different faces for differernt occassions. Rilke believes that if we wear one face for too long we will cause holes to form in it and our true face will shine through.

During one phase in the Romantic Period great artists , philosophers, painters, and composers attempted to restore to art that which had been excluded as inappropriate during the Classical era: mystical religion, myth, history, and wild nature. Romantic music, of course, sought to express the emotions appropriate to these discarded areas of human experience. Romantic composers of the seminal phase, however, were divided in their attitudes towards the immediate past. Some, such as Liszt,Berlioz, and Wagner, wanted to create entirely new forms through which to express their Romantic messages, while others, such as Mendelssohn, schumann, and Brahms, sought to revive Beethoven's synthesis of Newtonian form with romantic content.

At the heart of Hinduism is the principle of Brahman, that all reality is a unity. The entire universe is one divine entity who is simultaneously at one with the universe and who transcends it as well. Brahma is the creator who is continuing to create new realities, Vishnuis the Preserver, who preserves these new creations,Whenever dharma, an enternal order, is threatened, Vishnu travels from heaven to earth in one of ten incarnations. Siva, the destroyer, is at times compassionate, erotic and destructive. Humans are preceived as being trapped in samsara, ameaningless cycle of birth, life, death, and rebirth. Karma is the accumulated sum of ones good and bad deeds. This determines how you will live your next life. My project reflected many aspects of my personality. I showed my sensitive side, my hard times, my peaceful quiet side, and the hard decisions, and also my active side. I used many different colors lines and shapes to portray myself.