Our short review of the principal points concerned in this controversy (so far as they touch our present purpose) has led us to the conclusion that the sexual aspects with which we were dealing8 in Chapters II and III possess more than a mere9 symbolical10 significance—that they must in fact be looked upon as, for the most part, actually being that which they appear to be, i. e. manifestations11 of (relatively12) infantile tendencies which, as regards their nature and origin, are continuous with, and comparable to, the fully13 developed sexual tendencies of adult life.
[41]
We concluded also, however, that besides these sexual aspects there are other important aspects of family life, which may legitimately14 be looked upon as fundamental factors in the psychic15 growth and development of individuality. These factors it is now our duty to study somewhat more closely, before we pass on (as we shall do in the next chapter) to consider the variations and abnormalities that may occur in the development of the individual's mental attitude towards the other members of his family.
Apart altogether from the questions of mysticism and Difficulties of individual development symbolism, with which Jung and his followers16 have tended to surround the whole matter, it is I think, abundantly clear that normal psychic development involves a gradual emergence17 from a condition of dependence5 on parental18 authority and care to one in which the individual is dependent to a greater or less extent upon his own efforts as regards his livelihood19, and upon his own judgment20 as regards his conduct[29]. Failure in such development will result in a relatively feeble adult personality—one which still seeks the support of its parents (or their substitutes), when it should have learnt to stand alone. Such failures are, however, (as all psycho-analysts will admit) of very frequent occurrence. Normal development in this respect appears to be at least as difficult as in the case of the sexual tendencies we have already considered, and is liable, as in their case also, to arrests and retardations at various points and to regressions to earlier stages of development, whenever serious obstacles and difficulties are encountered.
It would seem possible to distinguish two main aspects of Self-preservation this process of development, though in real life these two aspects are, it is almost needless to say, throughout intimately connected with one another. The first, and more primitive21[42] aspect, is that which is concerned with the actual manifestations of vital activity for the purpose of self-preservation and for bringing about the fulfilment of the individual's aims and desires. During babyhood the child is almost entirely22 dependent on his parents or other grown-up persons for the accomplishment23 of these objects: at best he can only indicate by cries or gestures the nature of his wants, in order that others may satisfy them. As he grows older however, he has to learn to fulfil an ever increasing number of these wants himself—to feed, to wash, to clothe himself and to satisfy his other bodily needs, to walk abroad without the protection and guidance of his elders, and generally to attain24 his desires by his own efforts rather than to wait for the attentions of others. To keep pace with the ever growing wants and desires of the individual, a continuous output of energy is required, and it will sometimes happen that the motive25 force immediately available (the strength of the conation) is not sufficient to overcome the obstacles which prevent the fulfilment of a want. When this is the case, the individual may react in a variety of ways. If the conation is a relatively weak one, he may abandon his attempts to attain the desired end, at least in its original form; or he may content himself with an imaginary fulfilment of his desire. If the conation is sufficiently27 strong, however, it may continue to manifest itself in different ways; if the first means of approach is unsuccessful, other means will be tried, until the end is eventually attained28. Of these other means, one that is frequently among the most effectual is to call in the assistance of others. Especially is this the case in infancy29 when many feats30 that are difficult or impossible to the child are easily performed by its parents or other adult persons, and when such persons (especially the parents) often take a delight in assisting the child in this way. That the child should receive such assistance is natural and inevitable at a certain stage of development, but it is easy to see that help thus given may constitute a source of danger to the child's development, if it is granted not only in cases of real difficulty (having regard to the child's age and capabilities31) but in cases where, by the expenditure32 of a little additional effort, the child could attain his end unaided. If assistance is given indiscriminately the child may acquire the habit of relying upon the help of others whenever any difficulty[43] arises; and this habit may persist throughout life, rendering33 the individual a relatively useless and helpless member of society, incapable34 of any prolonged or intensive effort[30]. Normal development, however, implies that the occasions on which assistance is required should grow fewer and fewer as ability and experience increase, so that the adult should finally be able to transact35 the ordinary business of life and to maintain himself, entirely by his own efforts, except of course in unusual or exceptionally difficult circumstances, or where the economic principle of the division of labour makes it desirable to call in the assistance of other persons possessing ability or training of a different nature to his own.
The other main aspect of the principle of development Self-determination that we are considering, is concerned with the matter of self-guidance rather than with that of self-help. In this respect also, normal development implies a change from dependence upon others to dependence upon self. In infancy a very great part of the individual's mode of life is determined36 by others, and especially by his parents. Just as he is dependent upon the efforts of his parents for the necessaries of life, so is he also dependent upon their decision as to how and when he shall enjoy these necessaries. He feeds, walks, sleeps, works and plays very largely according to their pleasure. At most the nature of his play activities is left to his own discretion37. Later on during the school period the authority of the parents is to some extent exchanged for that of his teachers, but it is not till a comparatively late stage of development that an individual is allowed to dispose of the bulk of his time as he himself thinks fit.
On the moral side, again, he is at first almost entirely dependent on the judgment of others. He hears certain tendencies, activities and sentiments condemned38 as wicked, others upheld[44] as praiseworthy, and even when he begins to pronounce moral judgments39 on his own account, these judgments must, for a long period, consist for the most part merely of fresh applications of the moral code that he has learnt from others.
This subservience40 to the will and opinion of others (and especially to those of the parents) is a necessary and natural condition of early childhood, but it is plain that the successful development of mind and character must demand a gradually increasing degree of autonomy as regards both thought and conduct, as capabilities mature and experience widens. Success in adult life requires the capacity for determining for oneself the nature and course of the principal activities—indeed, the degree of success that is attained is to a very considerable extent dependent on the amount of such capacity. He who can only carry out the instructions of others, however obediently and skilfully41, is only fitted to occupy an inferior position in the economic or the social scale. Hence, one who has never progressed far from the infantile condition of dependence on the commands and opinions of others will be lacking in one of the character qualities which are essential for the attainment42 of any high degree of individuality or of social and economic responsibility.
On the moral side also, he is debarred from the higher Autonomy and Moral Development levels of ethical43 development. At the best, his morality will be one of hard and fast rules, the dictates44 of parental, ecclesiastical, legal or social authority, incapable of enlightened growth or modification45 to suit the ever changing flow of circumstances and the widening experience of life. At the worst, he may grow up destitute46 of all true moral consciousness whatsoever47, morality being regarded by him as a certain (usually unpleasant) kind of conduct, arbitrarily imposed by external authority, and only fit to be abandoned as soon as the pressure of this authority is relaxed.
Sound moral development is characterised by an ever increasing degree of autonomy in place of the heteronomy which distinguishes the immature48, and to some extent, the primitive mind generally. At first the child learns to act in accordance with the desires of its parents, as expressed in threats, punishments or rewards. Thereafter, the idea of "good," as signifying conduct in accordance with these desires, becomes[45] operative as an inner motive force in the mind of the child, independently of the occurrence of the rewards or other incentives49. This is the first stage of autonomy. As development proceeds, the ideas concerning right conduct (continually enlarged by the experience of new persons and new situations) become more and more dissociated from their original authoritative50 sanctions, new "inner" sanctions being substituted for the old "external" ones which are abandoned. These inner sanctions are themselves capable of many different levels of development, ranging from the simple idea of the individual's own benefit in the immediate26 future, to the desire for the ultimate benefit of humanity as a whole or the concept of action in conformity51 with the general principles of the Universe. If the individual is to progress satisfactorily from the stage of outer sanctions to that of inner sanctions and to attain in due course to the higher levels of these inner sanctions, he must have opportunities for the gradual development of his own powers of initiation52, deliberation and self-control; this implying a corresponding gradual emancipation53 from the jurisdiction54 of the parents and their substitutes in later life (teachers, advisers55, superiors, etc.), until there is obtained at full growth the completest possible autonomy of thought and action that is compatible with the individual's position in the society to which he belongs.
In these considerations we have throughout laid the Autonomy should come about gradually principal emphasis upon the desirability and necessity of the acquirement of self help and self guidance on the part of the individual. This has been chiefly because the results of psycho-analytic work have indicated that the danger lies most frequently in the direction of too great, rather than of too little, dependence on the efforts and guidance of the parents or their substitutes. This fact must not however be allowed to blind us to the existence of a danger of an opposite character—that of a too rapid or too complete emancipation from parental authority. Such emancipation would, it is true, seem to occur seldom enough as a direct consequence of the unfolding of the child's individual capabilities and desires: the attitude of dependence necessarily adopted in childhood and early youth, together with the respect almost inevitably56 inspired in the very young by the greater power, knowledge and experience of the parents,[46] effectually prevents this in the majority of cases. But it may easily come about as the result of a reaction against a too and not suddenly as the consequence of a revolt against parental authority insistent57 or despotic use of the parental power. Parents who are too severe, too repressive, or even too careful, as regards the upbringing of their children, will—especially if the latter happen to possess strong tendencies to self-assertion—often bring about a state of revolt against their own authority, in which all that may be good and wise in that authority is deliberately58 neglected or condemned, since the children have grown to look upon their parents as tyrants59 and taskmasters rather than as helpers and protectors. A stern or bullying60 father, a nagging61 or over anxious mother, will thus frequently produce a rebellious62 son or daughter, who will respect neither the advice or commands of the parents themselves nor those of their (mental) substitutes in later life. Such children, as they grow up, may be prevented from profiting to the desirable extent by the wisdom and experience of past ages, as represented in the traditions and dictates of authority, and (what is worse) may even become unfit for taking their place in any scheme of harmonious63 social life, through inability to submit to the degree of individual subordination, which such social life inevitably demands[31].
These considerations with reference to the growth of the The wider social bearings of this subject individual personality in relation to the family environment are indeed, as we have already pointed64 out, for the most part of a sufficiently obvious character and, in their more general bearings at any rate, have for some time been commonplaces in certain schools of social, ethical, and educational thought. Where modern psychology (and particularly the work of the Zürich school) has been of service, is in drawing attention to the importance of the family as the environment in which the first steps in the path of self help and self guidance must take place—steps upon the direction and extent of which subsequent progress in the wider spheres of scholastic65, social and political life very greatly depends. The rapidity with which, and the extent to which, a child attains66 to independence in relation to[47] his family, are to a large extent prophetic of the subsequent attainment of independence towards the world at large. A too close reliance upon the ideals, standards, conventions and protective power of the family circle may hinder all initiative and originality67 in individual thought and action. On the other hand, a too sudden or too complete revolt from the parental guidance and tradition may be productive of a bias68 against, and disrespect for, every kind of authority and convention, that will tend to prevent all use and enjoyment69 of the experience of the past and all orderly co-operation in the social life of the present. With these possibilities as the result of failure, the task of the proper upbringing of the child in relation to his family environment becomes indeed one the importance of which can scarcely be exaggerated.
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1
inevitable
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| adj.不可避免的，必然发生的 | |
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controversy
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| n.争论，辩论，争吵 | |
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exponents
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| n.倡导者( exponent的名词复数 )；说明者；指数；能手 | |
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inquiry
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| n.打听，询问，调查，查问 | |
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dependence
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| n.依靠，依赖；信任，信赖；隶属 | |
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indirectly
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| adv.间接地，不直接了当地 | |
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psychology
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| n.心理，心理学，心理状态 | |
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dealing
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| n.经商方法，待人态度 | |
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mere
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| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
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symbolical
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| a.象征性的 | |
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manifestations
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| n.表示，显示（manifestation的复数形式） | |
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relatively
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| adv.比较...地，相对地 | |
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fully
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| adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地 | |
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legitimately
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| ad.合法地；正当地，合理地 | |
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psychic
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| n.对超自然力敏感的人；adj.有超自然力的 | |
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followers
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| 追随者( follower的名词复数 )； 用户； 契据的附面； 从动件 | |
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emergence
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| n.浮现，显现，出现，（植物）突出体 | |
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parental
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| adj.父母的；父的；母的 | |
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livelihood
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| n.生计，谋生之道 | |
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judgment
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| n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见 | |
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primitive
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| adj.原始的；简单的；n.原(始)人，原始事物 | |
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entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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accomplishment
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| n.完成，成就，（pl.）造诣，技能 | |
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attain
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| vt.达到，获得，完成 | |
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motive
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| n.动机，目的；adv.发动的，运动的 | |
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immediate
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| adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的 | |
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sufficiently
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| adv.足够地，充分地 | |
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attained
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| （通常经过努力）实现( attain的过去式和过去分词 )； 达到； 获得； 达到（某年龄、水平、状况） | |
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infancy
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| n.婴儿期；幼年期；初期 | |
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feats
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| 功绩，伟业，技艺( feat的名词复数 ) | |
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capabilities
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| n.能力( capability的名词复数 )；可能；容量；[复数]潜在能力 | |
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expenditure
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| n.(时间、劳力、金钱等)支出；使用，消耗 | |
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rendering
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| n.表现，描写 | |
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incapable
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| adj.无能力的，不能做某事的 | |
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transact
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| v.处理；做交易；谈判 | |
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determined
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| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
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discretion
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| n.谨慎；随意处理 | |
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condemned
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| adj. 被责难的, 被宣告有罪的 动词condemn的过去式和过去分词 | |
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judgments
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| 判断( judgment的名词复数 )； 鉴定； 评价； 审判 | |
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40
subservience
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| n.有利，有益；从属（地位），附属性；屈从，恭顺；媚态 | |
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skilfully
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| adv. (美skillfully)熟练地 | |
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42
attainment
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| n.达到，到达；［常pl.］成就，造诣 | |
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ethical
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| adj.伦理的，道德的，合乎道德的 | |
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dictates
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| n.命令，规定，要求( dictate的名词复数 )v.大声讲或读( dictate的第三人称单数 )；口授；支配；摆布 | |
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modification
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| n.修改，改进，缓和，减轻 | |
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destitute
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| adj.缺乏的；穷困的 | |
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whatsoever
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| adv.（用于否定句中以加强语气）任何；pron.无论什么 | |
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immature
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| adj.未成熟的，发育未全的，未充分发展的 | |
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49
incentives
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| 激励某人做某事的事物( incentive的名词复数 )； 刺激； 诱因； 动机 | |
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50
authoritative
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| adj.有权威的，可相信的；命令式的；官方的 | |
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51
conformity
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| n.一致，遵从，顺从 | |
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52
initiation
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| n.开始 | |
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53
emancipation
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| n.（从束缚、支配下）解放 | |
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54
jurisdiction
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| n.司法权，审判权，管辖权，控制权 | |
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55
advisers
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| 顾问，劝告者( adviser的名词复数 )； （指导大学新生学科问题等的）指导教授 | |
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56
inevitably
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| adv.不可避免地；必然发生地 | |
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57
insistent
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| adj.迫切的，坚持的 | |
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deliberately
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| adv.审慎地；蓄意地；故意地 | |
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59
tyrants
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| 专制统治者( tyrant的名词复数 )； 暴君似的人； （古希腊的）僭主； 严酷的事物 | |
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60
bullying
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| v.恐吓，威逼( bully的现在分词 )；豪；跋扈 | |
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61
nagging
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| adj.唠叨的，挑剔的；使人不得安宁的v.不断地挑剔或批评（某人）( nag的现在分词 )；不断地烦扰或伤害（某人）；无休止地抱怨；不断指责 | |
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62
rebellious
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| adj.造反的，反抗的，难控制的 | |
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harmonious
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| adj.和睦的，调和的，和谐的，协调的 | |
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pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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65
scholastic
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| adj.学校的，学院的，学术上的 | |
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66
attains
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| （通常经过努力）实现( attain的第三人称单数 )； 达到； 获得； 达到（某年龄、水平、状况） | |
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67
originality
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| n.创造力，独创性；新颖 | |
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68
bias
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| n.偏见，偏心，偏袒；vt.使有偏见 | |
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enjoyment
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| n.乐趣；享有；享用 | |
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