The early development is dependent on the stimuli that they receive during this period. As a result, parents are urged to cultivate positive habits within their children. The reason for this is linked to children and their thought processes, it is most likely that if they are taught these habits early, they will unconsciously continue to follow them. By the same token, Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s Confessions, is an autobiography, detailing his early childhood to a startling degree. Rousseau’s childhood was marked by the influence of the lack of a motherly figure for part of his life. He found that he could confide within the motherly guise of Mademoiselle Lambercier. It was the Mademoiselle that cultivated his ways, but while it offered solace in …show more content…
the mind of Rousseau, it would never occur to her that his predilection in women would become one of her likeness. This indicates a rising oedipal complex within Rousseau. In a study conducted by Leichty, the disappearance of the mother and father in the early stages of Rousseau’s life could’ve directed him towards this. Supporting this is research conducted by Van Zeijl, whose findings conclude that Jean Jacques-Rousseau’s early development was affected by the Mademoiselle due to her disciplinary measures. Rather than reacting adversely to the disciplinary measures of the Mademoiselle’s, he instead yearned for them. While the beatings that Mademoiselle Lambercier delivered upon Rousseau were delivered with good intentions, they may have had lasting influences that he carried with him through the rest of his life. Lost at childbirth, Suzanne Bernard wouldn’t live long enough to see her son Rousseau grow.
His father Issac, saw too much of Suzanne in the young Rousseau and was summarily sent away to Mademoiselle Lambercier. Yearning for a direction in his life, he began following in the footsteps of the Mademoiselle. His admiration grew into a desire to become noticed, and with this the intensity of his oedipal complex began to grow. As indicated in the Leichty study, “More of the young male adults who were separated from their fathers during the Oedipal period showed strong Oedipal intensity than did those in a similar group who were not separated…the separated group tended to a greater degree to choose someone other than the father as their ego ideal.”(Leichty, 216) Leichty’s case in point is shown as Rousseau indicates that the beatings had only intensified this Oedipal intensity. “…what is even more bizarre, that this punishment had made me even fonder of the woman who had administered it…even in the shame that accompanied it, an element of sensuality which left me with more desire than fear at the prospect of experiencing it again by the same hand.” (pp.394) Rousseau was conscious in his actions, willingly committing acts to be punished but at the same time careful to not exceed her patience. But as
Mademoiselle began to notice that the discipline was ineffective, she abruptly stopped her treatment. Rousseau felt that he had been changed, his tastes in women had been changed to that the Mademoiselle that he had been stricken by. This predilection that he had women persisted throughout the rest of his adolescence and into his adulthood. Van Zeijl states that the stubbornness of Rousseau’s complex is due to the ineffectuality of her discipline. As aforementioned, Rousseau’s chief goal in the matter was to receive discipline from her through various means. This would mean that he was completely lucid in his actions. The conclusion of Van Zeijl’s study reports that the receptivity of a child to discipline is directly linked to their temperaments. The physical aggression of a child of difficult temperament and easygoing child when in response to maternal positive discipline are within the same range. While the child of a difficult temperament is shown to have toned down their physical aggression levels, the child of an easier temperament shows a complete opposite. A child of easy temperament’s physical aggression is actually shown to increase in response to positive maternal discipline. Mademoiselle Lambercier’s use of positive discipline, warning him to not incur her wrath had the opposite effect. It instead taunted him into committing the acts that would eventually lead him to enjoy the discipline. In effect, the discipline that Mademoiselle Lambercier was by in large ineffective but rather it propelled the young Rousseau’s mental state and age ahead of his time. In conclusion, Rousseau’s actions were within the line of reason due to the ineffectuality of Mademoiselle Lambercier’s disciplinary measures. However, the effectiveness of her actions are questionable as they did inhibit his natural growth, but their persistence was what kept him well-preserved and chaste, befitting that of a nobleman. Indeed, while her actions may not have proven effective to the young Rousseau then, they certainly had a lasting impact for the duration of his young adulthood and forthwith.
The chapter “A Fathers Influence” is constructed with several techniques including selection of detail, choice of language, characterization, structure and writers point of view to reveal Blackburn’s values of social acceptance, parenting, family love, and a father’s influence. Consequently revealing her attitude that a child’s upbringing and there parents influence alter the characterization of a child significantly.
In John Connolly’s novel, The Book of Lost Things, he writes, “for in every adult there dwells the child that was, and in every child there lies the adult that will be”. Does one’s childhood truly have an effect on the person one someday becomes? In Jeannette Walls’ memoir The Glass Castle and Khaled Hosseini’s novel The Kite Runner, this question is tackled through the recounting of Jeannette and Amir’s childhoods from the perspectives of their older, more developed selves. In the novels, an emphasis is placed on the dynamics of the relationships Jeannette and Amir have with their fathers while growing up, and the effects that these relations have on the people they each become. The environment to which they are both exposed as children is also described, and proves to have an influence on the characteristics of Jeannette and Amir’s adult personalities. Finally, through the journeys of other people in Jeannette and Amir’s lives, it is demonstrated that the sustainment of traumatic experiences as a child also has a large influence on the development of one’s character while become an adult. Therefore, through the analysis of the effects of these factors on various characters’ development, it is proven that the experiences and realities that one endures as a child ultimately shape one’s identity in the future.
Jean Jacques Rousseau in On Education writes about how to properly raise and educate a child. Rousseau's opinion is based on his own upbringing and lack of formal education at a young age. Rousseau depicts humanity as naturally good and becomes evil because humans tamper with nature, their greatest deficiency, but also possess the ability to transform into self-reliant individuals. Because of the context of the time, it can be seen that Rousseau was influenced by the idea of self-preservation, individual freedom, and the Enlightenment, which concerned the operation of reason, and the idea of human progress. Rousseau was unaware of psychology and the study of human development. This paper will argue that Rousseau theorizes that humanity is naturally good by birth, but can become evil through tampering and interfering with nature.
The greatest influence on a growing girl is her mother, and in some cases, like Sula, her grandmother. In order to fully grasp the connection between Nel and Sula, one must examine who and what their mothers were and what traits and beliefs they handed down to their daughters. Nel's mother, Helene, sought to teach her daughter the ways to be a stereotypical "good woman," a supportive wife and a caring mother. As an example to her daughter, Helene took great pleasure in raising Nel and found in her "more comfort and purpose than she had ever hoped to find" in her life (2105). Helene took pride in motherhood and was proudest when someone complemented on how "obedient and polite" Nel was (2105). Helene's embracing of these qualities, an accommodation to the sta...
In spite of the fear which propels him, there is finally hope for Ignatius. Waddling fearfully into the world, he can now learn to accept his common fate with the rest of humanity--his own humanness and inherent vulnerability in a world over which he has no control. In her frustration and resignation, Ignatius' little mother, an unusual Earth Mother at best, once sadly and plaintively tells her son, "You learnt everything, Ignatius, except how to be a human being" (375). Therein lies a lesson for us all.
Madeleine Neveu eloquently gives words of wisdom to her daughter Catherine in her piece entitled, "Epistle to My Daughter." Madeleine is quite aware of the attitude surrounding educated women in her time period. Yet, she abandons those opinions to express her own for her daughter. Her epistle embraces the need for a woman to be true to herself and to stand on her own two feet, as opposed to relying on a man to hold her up.
Things in the Middle East, Syria and Iran are in some complex situations right now, Mr. President, with the outcome of the Arab Spring and the issues the United States has with its allies and enemies. The United States needs to repair its alliances, make peace with its enemies and cautiously tread into understanding and gathering knowledge with the situation in the Middle East before declaring any actions to be taken.
The Freedom of Individual Citizens in Rousseau’s State “While uniting himself with all, [each associate] may still obey himself alone, and remain as free as before."[1 ] While Rousseau would claim that citizens in his state are free, much of the criticism levelled against him is precisely because his state is seen as authoritarian and against individual diversity. Rousseau’s state is one created by all citizens in their own interests and therefore guided by the ‘general will’, whereby laws are made to promote the public rather than the private good. All citizens take an active part in decision-making and are required to adhere to the ‘general will’. Sovereignty is a key word in examining Rousseau’s state as it is held by the inalienable and indivisible body politic that acts in accordance with the ‘general will’.
The political philosophy of Jean-Jacques Rousseau and Karl Marx examined the role that the state played and its relationship to its citizen’s participation and access to the political economy during different struggles and tumultuous times. Rousseau was a believer of the concept of social contract with limits established by the good will and community participation of citizens while government receives its powers given to it. Karl Marx believed that power was to be taken by the people through the elimination of the upper class bourgeois’ personal property and capital. While both philosophers created a different approach to establishing the governing principles of their beliefs they do share a similar concept of eliminating ownership of capital and distributions from the government. Studying the different approaches will let us show the similarities of principles that eliminate abuse of power and concentration of wealth by few, and allow access for all. To further evaluate these similarities, we must first understand the primary principles of each of the philosophers’ concepts.
Somewhere around the beginning of the seventeenth century, the perception of the nature of childhood -- its duration, its perceived purpose, its requirements, its quality -- changed rather significantly in the Eurocentric world, a period Valerie Suransky identifies as a watershed for the modern notion of childhood (1982, p. 6). Actually, two things seemed to have happened: first, the idea of childhood as a separate developmental stage began to arise; second, the idea of who was deserving of childhood also began to broaden. The pattern was similar in Europe and America, with some minor variations which resulted from geography, religion, etc., but the differences are inconsequential. Generally speaking, the factors which influenced this change are the view of the nature of humankind, the development of industry, urbanization, parents themselves, and the women's movement.
“Said he, ‘I beg of you, for my sake and for our child’s sake,as well as for your own, that you will never for one instant let that idea enter your mind!’”(Gilman, 774) shows John begging her to withhold all feelings to save herself, him, and their child from any further pain. This suppression of feeling caused the mental confinement that the narrator felt. He hadn’t known in asking her to do so, it would cause such a reaction. While, Brently Mallard’s consistent pressure of being a perfect wife on Mrs. Mallard caused her conflicting ideas on his death as her being set free. “And yet she had loved him-sometimes. Often she had not.” (Chopin, 785) shows Mrs. Mallard's rethinking of her feelings towards her husband. The release of pressure caused by her husband death caused her to rethink and find her true feelings towards him. Mr. Mallard had unknowingly applied this pressure upon his wife because it was simply what he had always thought a woman should be which is learned from society. Meanwhile, Henry Allen consistently ridicules and rejects Elisa’s ideas of breaking free of the set standards of what a woman should be not knowing the effects it had on her. “Oh, sure, some. What’s the matter, Elisa? Do you want to
Throughout his life, Rousseau suffered from severe emotional distress, and feelings of deep inferiority and guilt. Rousseau's actions and writings reflect his attempts to overcome this sense of inadequacy and to find a place in world that only seemed to reject him. His political philosophy influenced the development of the French Revolution, and his theories have had a great impact on education and literature.
Rousseau, Jean Jacques. 1761. Of the Social Contract, Or, Principles of Political Right. Edited By NK Singh. Global Vision Publishing.
The persuasive attempts in both literary works produce different results. The effectiveness of the mother’s guidance to her daughter is questioned since the girl cannot recognize the essence of her mother’s lesson. Despite that, the mother’s beneficial instruction serves as a standard for the daughter to reflect her future behaviors in order to live up to the community’s expectations. On the other hand, Anne’s value of candid expression and lasting relationship dissuades her from obliging to her family’s meaningless duty to place her love and interest above to experience fulfillment in life.
The concept of childhood innocence began with the Romantic view of childhood, where children were seen as pure and sin free. The concept was greatly influenced by the eighteenth-century French philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778). Rousseau, (1765) believed that children are born good and guiltless, and through life experiences, they learn badness and guilt. Most parents see their children as innocent and want to protect them from the bad world we live in. This is not always easy, especially when the country they live in is at war and children take part in it, or they live in a poor country. The war and lack of sufficient money are some of the challenges the childhood innocence faces in today's world.