The Lady Or The Tiger Ethical Analysis

As the part of the personality that identifies wants and needs, “the id doesn’t care about reality, about the needs of anyone else, only it’s own satisfaction.” (Heffner). People that manipulate others for their own personal gain are typically powered by their id, as it considers only it’s own long-term benefits, ignoring the outcome for anyone else. The princess in the short story, “The Lady Or The Tiger?” by Frank Stockton embodies the id specifically, with little portrayal of the ego or superego. In the setting of Stockton’s short story, trials are public events held in an arena with two identical doors, one concealing a tiger, the other a lady. If the man on trial opens the door with the tiger, he is deemed guilty and immediately mauled to death. On the contrary, if the door chosen withholds a lady, the accused is innocent and wed immediately, despite all potential conflicts. It is his duty to pick a door “subject to no guidance or influence,” leaving only him responsible for the

Any person with a fully functioning superego, or moral ethics, would decide that their love marrying someone else, while not ideal, is the better option. Her indecision puts not only her vindictive nature on full display, but her selfish side also. She believes that being the cause for the death of another human being is comparable to her lover living a happy and fulfilling life with another. Along the same lines, the princess hates the woman behind the door as she believes she has seen her admiring her lover, and on more than one occasion has caught the two talking. Undeterred by the knowledge that they may be talking of frivolous topics, she responds as though they are having an affair (Stockton 3). In response to her jealousy, the id takes full control, silencing the ego and any rational thoughts about the