Preview

Interpreter of Maladies

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
435 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Interpreter of Maladies
In the book of short stories, Interpreter of Maladies, by Jhumpa Lahiri, there are many flawed couples and relationships. Some of these are flaws that are incredibly annoying such as in "This Blessed House" where Twinkle is obsessed with religious symbols and statues, or flaws that are hard to overcome such as Mrs. Das in "Interpreter of Maladies" who experiences extreme guilt that she constantly works at pushing away. With the help of Freudian theory one can analyze the flaws in these people and observe that their already strained relationships are a result their struggles to balance their three personality aspects of id, ego, and superego. The Freudian theory is based on three terms the id, superego and ego. This theory was invented by Sigmund Freud, a psychiatrist and hypnotic expert of the late 1800s and early 1900's. The id is the unconscious desires of the human personality that strive to satisfy basic sexual and aggressive desires. The superego is the more realistic view and provides standards for judgment and represents internalized ideals. The ego is largely the conscience that mediates the id and superego. The ego satisfies the id's desires in ways that will realistically bring pleasure over pain. With the support of Sigmund Feud's theory, it is inevitable that these couples and relationships are doomed to fail if the id and superego are imbalanced. In "This Blessed House" Twinkle and Sanjeev are a perfect example of the id theory. The id is the subconscience and desires of ones personality. Twinkle has an imbalance of the id. She is spoiled, demanding and usually her desires are fullfilled. When she finds each symbol her obsetion is fullfilled until she finds the next one to fullfill what her suppressed desires need. Soon this gets very annoying to Sanjeev because his desires are getting replaced by her new obsession. Sanjeev married Twinkle because he was lonely. "Sanjeev was lonely,with an excessively generous income for a single man, and had

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    SOCI 310 Mid Term

    • 878 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Freud’s theory viewed patients as personality as an endless series of psychic conflicts and compromises. Late in his career he created an order to the psyche by creating a framework of three basic structural components known is the Id, the Ego and the Superego. Freud felt that these three components were in a constant state of flux to create equilibrium within the self. The Id was entirely is entirely unconscious and only concerned with the satisfaction of primal needs. The ego is the part of the psyche that is in contact with the external world. It stands for reason and good sense as well as controlling voluntary functions such as movement. The Superego is like a secret police department that serves as judge or censor over the activities and thoughts of the ego.…

    • 878 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Next, the theory of the id, ego, and superego that Sigmund Freud developed is very interesting and has been in media since the mid-1950s. The theory says that the id is the pleasure drive of your body and it seeks immediate pleasure for things you need like immediate satisfaction if you’re hungry, then the ego lives in reality and it is basically the person. The ego…

    • 729 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Better Essays

    Freud’s work is now the most heavily cited in all of psychology. Most of Freud’s patients did not need treatment so he resorted to using hypnosis. He used the technique of free association in order to understand the causes of mental and physical problems in his patients. Dreams to him were saw as pieces and hints of unconscious. The problems of inner conflict and tension are found in dreams. There are three structured parts in the mind according to Freud. The three parts are id, ego, and superego. Freud’s and Jung are compared by using unconscious sexuality in their theories. The id, das es in German means the it; it operates according to the demands of the pleasure principle to reduce inner tension. Ego is the Latin word for I. Personality that deals with the real world according to the reality principle to solve real problems. Superego rules over the ego and parts are unconscious, though it constrains our individual actions. Freud looked for meaning in minor connections thoughts and behaviors. Now 100 of years later there are no three levels id, ego, and superego. Freud was correct in concluding that certain parts of the mind are not subject to conscious awareness. His theories opened new approaches to human nature and psychotherapy.…

    • 1122 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Firstly, a brief account of psychodynamic theory. Freud proposed that there are three key elements to the structure of a personality; the id, ego and superego. Firstly the id is present from birth and represents the pleasure principle; in other words this aspect of the unconscious involves instinctive and primitive behaviours which seek immediate gratification. The superego on the other hand is the aspect of personality that holds our internalised moral standards, usually developing through experiences and teaching from parents, society and peers. The superego gives humans a sense of right and wrong. Lastly, the ego deals and seeks out reality – encapsulates the reality principle. The ego ensures the impulses of the id are expressed in an acceptable manner, in addition the ego balances the id and superego. The development of the ego and superego alongside the id is proposed via the psychosexual stages of development in which the individual becomes focus on erogenous zones and…

    • 1697 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Beowulf And Grendel Essay

    • 708 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Id is the personality component made up of unconscious energy that works to satisfy instant gratification of basic needs and drives. A person can be satisfied doing something for…

    • 708 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    One of such theories is the psychoanalysis. It lies in the researches of the human minds and the principles of its working. Main theorists, S. Freud and J. Breuer, emphasized the role of the childhood memories in explaining of different fears and psychological problems of the clients. In fact, S. Freud singled out three components of a human mind. They are id, ego, and superego. The Id is that part of the personality, on which the instinctual drives and needs have a great impact. This aspect is very unstable and dynamic. In other words, it is unmanageable as it is ready to satisfy all demands and avoid pain and problems in any way. Therefore, there is the other element called ego. It deals with the realistic purposes and tries to slow down the impulsiveness of the id. Ego balances between the instinctive drives and realistic principles trying to achieve as many benefits as possible. However, there is a third element superego. It deals with the morality principles. In fact, superego makes instinctive needs and drives reflect in the socially accepted ways. Morality principles and social laws limit the individual 's desires to satisfy basic needs (Masling, 1990).…

    • 1036 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Sigmund Freud, the father of Psychoanalysis, was a phenomenal man. Freud was a physiologist, medical doctor, psychologist, and one of the best influential thinkers of the early twentieth century. In this theory of psychoanalysis, Freud believed that the best way to view the human mind was through a sexual perspective. The main tenet of his theory was that the human mind consisted of three basic components: the Id, the ego, and the superego. Individually, Freud believed that when these components conflict, shaping personality, only therapeutic treatment would prevent neurosis (Putnam, 1917).…

    • 1463 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    The Psychodynamic Approach

    • 1779 Words
    • 8 Pages

    Psychodynamic theory focuses on the cause which drives or motivates personality development. He assumed the behaviour of humans were similar to animals, for instance humans just like animals are driven by basic needs and motives. Freud had stated that the personality had three unique parts and that these three parts were always at continuous odds which each other which lead to conflict. The factor which motivates individual’s behaviour was the conflict which is created within the minds of individuals. The three unique parts are: Id- instinct and desires, Ego- reality/ balancer and Super ego- morality. The id is the only part of the personality which is current from birth. This phase of personality is completely unconscious and involves the natural and primal behaviours. Freud suggested that the Id is the basis of all psychic energy (the concept of a theory of action powering the operation of the mind) which makes it the principal element of personality.…

    • 1779 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Psychodynamic Perspective

    • 420 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Freud proposed that the adult personality has three parts the id, ego and superego. The id is the combination of pleasure seeking desires and we are born with it. The ego develops later and it controls the desires of the id. The superego is the moralistic part of personality which develops as a child interacts with significant others such as its parents. The superego can be seen as the conscience. It is the role of the ego to maintain a balance between the id and the superego.…

    • 420 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    The Freud's structural theory (Freud, 1923, 1926) dispenses with the concepts of a fixed id, ego and superego, and point out unconscious and conscious conflict among wishes:dependent,Controlling,Sexual,Aggressive,guilt,shame,emotions (especially anxiety and depressive affect), And defensive operations that shut off from consciousness some aspect of the others. Id, ego, and super-ego are the three parts of the " Psychic apparatus " of Freud 's structural model of Moreover, healthy functioning (adaptive) is also determined, to a great extent, by resolutions of conflict.…

    • 1673 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Better Essays

    Sigmund Freud is called “The Father of Psychology”, not because he first discovered or invented it but because he was one of the first important psychologists. (Kasschau 109) He came up with different ideas and theories, which all are important and essential in psychology today. Freud concentrated basically on human drives, the unconscious mind and the personality. Even though Freud is believed to think humans were useless beings, Kim Griffin rejected this idea: “. . . he believed that all humans had a natural “bad” side. Every human has aggressive, animalistic and destructive impulses.” According to Enduring Issues in Psychology, Freud found three different aspects of our personality and psyche. He named them id, ego and super-ego. The id is our biological part, like instincts, which is given to us at birth. We cannot control the id, and it seeks for release based on unconscious motives. The super ego is simply our conscience, the part of out personality which is formed by norms and rules in society. The ego exists as a balance between the id and the super ego. The ego “strives after pleasure and seeks to avoid unpleasure”(Blake 65), which is the egos main task. In other words, the ego tries to please the id while not going as far as causing unpleasure, by doing something the super ego and our morals are against.…

    • 1085 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Interpreter Of Maladies

    • 672 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Jhumpa Lahiri's “Interpreter of Maladies” in Interpreter of Maladies begins with Mr. and Mrs. Das bickering about who should take Tina to the toilet. This first sentence already sets up the idea that their relationship is bound to end. Mr. and Mrs. Das have three children together, Ronny, Bobby, and Tina, and they met each other in high school. Despite this, their relationship will fail because they are childish and lack communication.…

    • 672 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Freud stressed that human behavior is a result of “intrapsychic forces in conflict” and that in order to analyze these forces he had to find ways of tapping into the unconscious of his patients. He believed that there are three elements of personality: the id, the ego, and the super-ego. The id is the only component of personality that is present from birth. This aspect of personality is completely unconscious and includes instinctive behavior, and is the primary component of your personality. The id strives for immediate gratification of all desires, wants and needs. The ego on the other hand, is a component of personality that is responsible for dealing with reality. Freud Believed that the ego develops from the id and makes sure that the impulses of the id can be expressed in a way that is acceptable in the real world. The last component of personality is the superego. The superego holds internalized moral standards and ideals and ideas of right and wrong that we acquire from our society. It is important to note, that it is not a separation of the mind into three structures and functions, they separate aspects and elements of the single structure of the mind.…

    • 805 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Interpreter of Maladies

    • 916 Words
    • 4 Pages

    7. ‘Lahiri’s stories show that all people face challenges no matter where they live in the world.’ To what extent do you agree?…

    • 916 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    The id is representative of the pleasure seeking, instinctual part of the mind. The superego represents the quadrant of the mind, which represses the id's impulses, and often reflects one’s parental influences. The ego is referred to as the quadrant of the mind that controls but does not contain the impulses of the id, allowing them to be released in a productive but not damaging manner. Freudian lenses often draw attention to the sexual implications of symbols and imagery; this is because Freud believed that all human behavior is motivated by…

    • 1100 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays