The Discursive Format of “Social Warming”

2021 ◽  
pp. 202-218
Author(s):  
Giuseppe Mininni
Keyword(s):  
Social Psychology ◽  
Social Representations ◽  
The Self ◽  
The Other ◽  
Critical Psychology ◽  
Process Of Change ◽  
Human Relationships ◽  
Meeting Point ◽  
Ongoing Process ◽  
Mixed Families

This chapter deals with human relationships that currently come up against increasingly overheated communication. Combining the perspective of social representations with that of discursive acts, Giuseppe Mininni relaunches his diatextual approach, placing social psychology at the meeting point between the epistemological axes of cultural, discursive, and critical psychology. Studies on mixed families illustrate the issue. Mixed families seem fundamentally diatextual because their texts are embedded within enunciative contexts animated by multifarious dynamics of perennial change. The author’s analysis shows that these families activate three kinds of social-epistemic rhetoric, focusing on distinction, mediation, and integration. The interplay between the Self and the Other is thus explained, acknowledging the vital impulse toward hybridization. The hyphenated identities produced in mixed families show the Self that the best way to save its own identity may be by strewing it in the Other’s, in an ongoing process of change.

The Sacred Fount: The Narrator and the Vampires

PMLA ◽  
1961 ◽  
Vol 76 (4-Part1) ◽  
pp. 407-412 ◽  
Author(s):  
Norma Phillips
Keyword(s):  
Henry James ◽  
The Self ◽  
The Other ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Fictional World ◽  
Rebecca West ◽  
Human Relationships

Criticism of Henry James's controversial novel The Sacred Fount has tended rather insistently to take one of two interpretive directions. Since Edmund Wilson's famous essay “The Ambiguity of Henry James” appeared in 1934 and made everyone more aware of the potential complexity of James's handling of the focus of narration, the perhaps more frequently encountered approach to the novel has been one which regards it, like The Turn of the Screw and In the Cage, as principally another Jamesian experiment with a narrator of doubtful omniscience. The other approach, one still found in many treatments of the novel, tends rather to accept completely the narrator's version of events at Newmarch and looks for the meaning and significance of the work in his most obvious preoccupation during the weekend in which those events occur, the vampire theme of fulfillment and depletion in intense human relationships. Both approaches are valid. Indeed, one of the impressive aspects of the serious criticism of The Sacred Fount is that nearly all of the important attempts at analysis have been and remain true to some degree. Leon Edel, following and building on the hints of Wilson, has shown that the novel clearly is about “appearance and reality,” and R. P. Blackmur has pointed out the parabolic nature of the story and called attention to The Sacred Fount as the “nightmare nexus” in the Jamesian struggle “to portray the integrity of the artist and… the integrity of the self.” Even Rebecca West, in her witty dismissal of the book some years ago, was correct—more correct than she knew perhaps since she gives James no credit for a deliberate and skillfully manipulated irony—-in recognizing and mocking the disparity between the passion, pride, and labor expended by the incredibly egocentric, narcissistic narrator and the, if not completely trivial, at least gossamer issues involved. But the irony, like the ambiguity, is both constant and conscious. Unlike the narrator, to whom James has frequently been compared, James presides confidently over his fictional world like, in Lady John's words, “a real providence,” who “knows” (p. 176).

Promoting Peace through Democratizing Schools on Gandhian Vision

2016 ◽  
pp. 212-227
Author(s):  
Abdul Gafoor K. ◽  
Mini Narayanan
Keyword(s):  
Problem Solving ◽  
Peace Education ◽  
Classroom Practices ◽  
The Self ◽  
The Other ◽  
Discussion Forums ◽  
Student Centered ◽  
Human Relationships ◽  
Unity In Diversity ◽  
Problem Solving Strategies

The more one realizes about himself, the more he appreciates about the other. The need of having a harmonious mind and life with the nature through an education powered by peace and non-violence is stressed in this chapter. An attempt is made to advocate ways to prepare children in accomplishing peace through instructional principles implied by Gandhian philosophy. Classroom practices proposed herein embrace peace education strategies to develop tolerance in children for the survival in the global society. It also deals with the classroom practices that can be designed to find the “self” in a child to make him self-sufficient, natural and complete. A student-centered approach, which comprises strategies like collaborative learning, cooperative learning, discussion forums, and problem solving strategies not only strengthens the human relationships but also creates a sense of unity in diversity.

The Self as a Center of Ethical Gravity: A Constructive Dialogue Between Søren Kierkegaard and George Herbert Mead

2013 ◽  
Vol 2013 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Christian Hjortkjær ◽  
Søren Willert
Keyword(s):  
Social Psychology ◽  
The Self ◽  
The Other ◽  
Striking Similarity ◽  
George Herbert ◽  
George Herbert Mead ◽  
Constructive Dialogue ◽  
The Social ◽  
Dual Relation ◽  
Normative Aspect

AbstractThis paper examines the striking similarity between Kierkegaard’s and Mead’s theories of the self as relation, reflection and process as well as the normativity behind these theories. It is claimed that the theologian and the social psychologist share the view that the human being is an ethical being because its self is a dual relation; it relates to itself and in this relating it relates to an Other. Thus, regardless of their diverging views on the nature of this Other, they both define that of becoming a self as an unavoidable task: the task of standing in an ethical relation to oneself and to the Other. It is argued that differences in professions can be overcome: while reading Kierkegaard in the light of Mead helps to underline the relational character of Kierkegaard’s ethical notions, reading Mead in the light of Kierkegaard underlines the normative aspect of Mead’s social psychology.

scholarly journals In praise of strangeness. Exploring the hermeneutical potential of an unlikely source

2018 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Bernard C Lategan
Keyword(s):  
Communication Theory ◽  
The Self ◽  
The Other ◽  
Dark Side ◽  
Power Relationship ◽  
Human Relationships ◽  
Alternative Approach ◽  
Scale Down ◽  
Leading Question ◽  
The Stranger

In a field already investigated extensively, the article focuses on a particular aspect, namely on the nature of the interaction between the self and the other. The leading question is: What is the hermeneutical potential of the other and the stranger in relation to the self? The following dimensions are examined: the direction of flow of the interaction, the power relations involved in the process, the claim of the other on the self and the existential dimensions of strangeness.The first section examines various approaches to the other in a number of disciplines: anthropology and ethnology, art and art history, religion, philosophy, communication theory, and pedagogy. Several common traits are evident: The flow of action is pre-dominantly from the self to the other; the power relationship is unequal, skewed in favour of the self; the other is rarely perceived in his or her own right but is compared with the self who serves as norm; and strangeness is seen as inherently problematic and accompanied by negative connotations. There is consequently a constant attempt to scale down differences and to domesticate the other by various means.An alternative approach aims at reversing the normal power relationship and releasing the potential of change for the self in the encounter with the other. This requires a conscious decision to change the direction of action – from the other to the self and not vice versa. Furthermore, to break the binary hold of subject on object, the decentring of the subject is necessary. This requires the recognition of the “incompleteness” of human existence (Nyamnjoh) which opens the self for new possibilities. Acceptance of the radical openness of systems (in this case the “system” of human relationships) is the key to release the “excess” of potential available to the self in the encounter with the other and with what is strange and alien.In this context, the strategies of liberating and of enrichment through the other becomes important. Even when considering the dark side of strangeness, these strategies still apply and illustrate more clearly the existential necessity of strangeness. The potential of the other and of strangeness for liberating and enriching the self remains undervalued.

Providing Freshmen with a Good “Starting-Block”

2019 ◽  
Vol 78 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 69-75 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mikaël De Clercq ◽  
Charlotte Michel ◽  
Sophie Remy ◽  
Benoît Galand
Keyword(s):  
The Self ◽  
The Other ◽  
Student Adjustment ◽  
Social Psychological ◽  
Pivotal Phase ◽  
Study Program ◽  
Study Task ◽  
The Social ◽  
Social Belonging ◽  
Intention To Persist

Abstract. Grounded in social-psychological literature, this experimental study assessed the effects of two so-called “wise” interventions implemented in a student study program. The interventions took place during the very first week at university, a presumed pivotal phase of transition. A group of 375 freshmen in psychology were randomly assigned to three conditions: control, social belonging, and self-affirmation. Following the intervention, students in the social-belonging condition expressed less social apprehension, a higher social integration, and a stronger intention to persist one month later than the other participants. They also relied more on peers as a source of support when confronted with a study task. Students in the self-affirmation condition felt more self-affirmed at the end of the intervention but didn’t benefit from other lasting effects. The results suggest that some well-timed and well-targeted “wise” interventions could provide lasting positive consequences for student adjustment. The respective merits of social-belonging and self-affirmation interventions are also discussed.

Stories and the Self

2020 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 47-58 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stefan Krause ◽  
Markus Appel
Keyword(s):  
Meta Analysis ◽  
The Self ◽  
The Other ◽  
Lower Degree ◽  
Contrast Effects ◽  
Self Perception ◽  
Self Perceptions ◽  
Other Hand ◽  
The One ◽  
Implicit And Explicit

Abstract. Two experiments examined the influence of stories on recipients’ self-perceptions. Extending prior theory and research, our focus was on assimilation effects (i.e., changes in self-perception in line with a protagonist’s traits) as well as on contrast effects (i.e., changes in self-perception in contrast to a protagonist’s traits). In Experiment 1 ( N = 113), implicit and explicit conscientiousness were assessed after participants read a story about either a diligent or a negligent student. Moderation analyses showed that highly transported participants and participants with lower counterarguing scores assimilate the depicted traits of a story protagonist, as indicated by explicit, self-reported conscientiousness ratings. Participants, who were more critical toward a story (i.e., higher counterarguing) and with a lower degree of transportation, showed contrast effects. In Experiment 2 ( N = 103), we manipulated transportation and counterarguing, but we could not identify an effect on participants’ self-ascribed level of conscientiousness. A mini meta-analysis across both experiments revealed significant positive overall associations between transportation and counterarguing on the one hand and story-consistent self-reported conscientiousness on the other hand.

Don’t Put Me in This Group

2019 ◽  
Vol 50 (2) ◽  
pp. 80-93
Author(s):  
Jort de Vreeze ◽  
Christina Matschke
Keyword(s):  
Positive Emotions ◽  
Negative Emotions ◽  
Negative Information ◽  
The Self ◽  
The Other ◽  
Other Hand ◽  
Group Memberships

Abstract. Not all group memberships are self-chosen. The current research examines whether assignments to non-preferred groups influence our relationship with the group and our preference for information about the ingroup. It was expected and found that, when people are assigned to non-preferred groups, they perceive the group as different to the self, experience negative emotions about the assignment and in turn disidentify with the group. On the other hand, when people are assigned to preferred groups, they perceive the group as similar to the self, experience positive emotions about the assignment and in turn identify with the group. Finally, disidentification increases a preference for negative information about the ingroup.

From Container to Claustrum: Projective Identification in Couples

2014 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tamara Feldman
Keyword(s):  
Psychological Health ◽  
Projective Identification ◽  
The Self ◽  
The Other ◽  
Intimate Partners ◽  
And Control ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
As If

This paper is a contribution to the growing literature on the role of projective identification in understanding couples' dynamics. Projective identification as a defence is well suited to couples, as intimate partners provide an ideal location to deposit unwanted parts of the self. This paper illustrates how projective identification functions differently depending on the psychological health of the couple. It elucidates how healthier couples use projective identification more as a form of communication, whereas disturbed couples are inclined to employ it to invade and control the other, as captured by Meltzer's concept of "intrusive identification". These different uses of projective identification affect couples' capacities to provide what Bion called "containment". In disturbed couples, partners serve as what Meltzer termed "claustrums" whereby projections are not contained, but imprisoned or entombed in the other. Applying the concept of claustrum helps illuminate common feelings these couples express, such as feeling suffocated, stifled, trapped, held hostage, or feeling as if the relationship is killing them. Finally, this paper presents treatment challenges in working with more disturbed couples.

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