PERSONALITY, CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT, SELF-MASTERY, AND VEGANISM
This blog post puts the different stages of the personality into focus, that are necessary and responsible for personal growth and character development, which are defined to encourage our personal character development by challenging our beliefs, detaching from society, to be the best version of ourselves. Our true self.
The following paragraphs explain why it is so important to look at them individually and as a whole and recognize their balance to each other to understand why ignorance and unjust behavior occurs when it comes to oppressing and murdering non-human animals.
THE ID, THE EGO, AND THE SUPEREGO ACCORDING TO SIGMUND FREUD
To understand why we think and act a certain way towards others, including our thinking and actions towards (non-human) animals, we need to look at the parts that form our personality separately first and then look even closer at them and dig deeper to find out what truly influences and makes us who we are, to illuminate where the disconnection lies when it comes to oppressing, using, abusing, exploiting, and murdering other sentient life forms and finding this behavior we maintain “normal, natural and necessary” (the three n’s of conditioning) up to this day.
When talking about Freud’s id, the ego, and the superego, it is important to know that they are dynamic and always interacting to influence an individual's overall personality and behavior and show alterations/spin-offs.
THE ID
The id is the primary component of personality, which means that this aspect of personality is entirely unconscious and includes instinctive and primitive behaviors making it the most basic and “animalistic” part of the personality and present since birth.
According to Freud, the id is driven by the pleasure-pain principle, which strives for immediate gratification of all desires, wants, and needs. If these needs are not satisfied immediately, the result is a state of anxiety or tension.
An example is given:
When we are hungry our brain says that we need to eat, intake of energy, due to our survival instinct. Seen in the context of animals, it is also a basic instinct of a human child, not to hurt animals, because they quickly learn and start to understand that they don’t want to be hurt (like them), by fighting back (survival instinct) if their boundaries are pushed.
THE SUPEREGO
The superego is mainly defined and controlled by our social structures and standards. It consists of two systems: The conscience and the ideal self (ego-ideal; read down below) according to the social standards. The conscience can punish the ego by causing feelings of guilt. The ideal self is an imaginary picture of how you ought to be and how to treat others, humans, and animals, and how to behave like a decent member of society. The ideal-self is also your “true self” (totally in control of yourself) coming through in a system of standards, behaviors, and rules set by the outer world, the society.
In the context of animals, it is so important that we need to first recognize that non-human animals are part of our moral values and need to be taken into moral consideration since there is no trait absent in animals which if absent in humans would cause us to deem ourselves valueless. - Ask Yourself - Name the Trait
Secondly we need to realize that the superego (rules, standards, traditions hyocritical moral structures) is setting us rules and behaviors that are speciesist due to some false and hypocritical beliefs that are manifested and passed on from generation to generation (traditions) why it is ok to love some and kill others.
♥ Read about “Traditions Are Peer Pressure From Dead People To Justify Violence”
Our ethical understanding of how we should treat others as well as our moral compass, stating the Golden Rule: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you”, shows that the moral structure and seeming justice inherent portrait and lived in our actions of general social standards (and religions) is simply corrupt, wrong, evil and highly hypocritical.
Why do so many find social acceptance in paying for the exploitation and murder of some animal species? They find acceptance through “the appeal to the majority” which states that killing animals is “normal, natural and necessary” (the 3 n’s) because the majority of people participate in something.
THE EGO
The ego is the component of personality that is responsible for dealing with reality, balancing the id (instincts), and the superego (social structures). It lies in the unconscious, preconscious, and conscious mind.
The ego is a false self, an artificial persona, a mask, that is created over time for the outside world to protect our inside world from all kinds of experiences and to avoid trauma, shock, and mental pain.
The ego operates based on the reality principle, which strives to satisfy the id’s desires in realistic and socially appropriate ways. “Socially appropriate ways”, like mentioned under superego, are not always the ideal morally right ways to act (according to the Golden Rule) especially when it comes to certain non-human animal species. It is what society expects you to do to get socially accepted (social pressure) to function in a corrupt system built on exploitation to benefit some and not all, unfortunately.
The ego is not only who you think you are, but also who you create yourself to be by telling yourself that you are who you are to protect yourself, received as the persona (the aspect of someone's character that is presented to or perceived by others). The ego is also highly influenced of what is expected from you in society, so you are a product of how others expects you to be.
“The ego will do everything to stop you from changing and growing, especially since you are attempting to obliterate the very identity that you and everyone else has come to know as ‘you’.”
- Jen Sincero, You Are A Badass
THE STAGES OF THE CONSCIOUS AND UNCONSCIOUS SELF (according to Carl Jung; visualized with the Self-Pyramid)
The self-pyramid is here to give you an overview of the stages of the “self”, which develops if we detach from the superego and escape our ego, the shadow-self/self-sabotage, that tries to control us and everything we do to keep everything as it is and to play it safely of what society expects us to do, to think and to act, instead of moving forward and to get out of our comfort zones to be our true self.
The self-pyramid is here to visualize a path to challenge you to become the best version of yourself and to embrace yourself to follow your purpose in life by supporting your inner strength to take control over what you have found to be the right thing to do, to think, and to act and to follow your intuition and true beliefs, detached from social expectations, rules and restrictions.
By taking responsibility to learn about the concept of self, by closely examining our thoughts and emotions to break the false self we have of yourself (the ego), we will eventually be able to define our ideal-self and become our higher-self (true self) and realize that we have been acting against our moral beliefs when it comes to all animals. Once we get to this point, we feel more and more in balance and ready to conquer the world that we create for ourselves, living in harmony and balance with animals.
THE SHADOW-SELF
The shadow-self is your ego controlling what your superego is expecting from you, sabotaging your happiness, masking and keeping you from your higher-self. It is your worst enemy you fall victim to if you don’t follow it deep into your darkness to then eventually rise with the strong urge and will to be a better version of yourself.
“The shadow goes by many familiar names: the disowned self, the lower self, the dark twin or brother in bible and myth, the double, repressed self, alter ego. When we come face-to-face with our darker side, we use metaphors to describe these shadow encounters: meeting our demons, wrestling with the devil, descent to the underworld, dark night of the soul, midlife crisis.”
- Carl Jung
We need to become aware of our shadows, the things we find morally reprehensible (if they were done to ourselves), to gain self-reliance, without which individuation is unthinkable. Therefore given this and by looking at our shadows we awaken to a moral conflict within ourselves what we define as morally right and morally wrong to do and put upon others.
We have to feel guilty and we have to feel bad (according to our inner moral compass, detached from society’s standards) for our actions and the consequences of those on others, or the impulse of a change is never given.
If we feel bad, sad, guilty when we know of or see animals (individuals/persons) suffer, getting hurt, and killed for what we think is the normal and right thing to do, it is our conscious and inner moral compass telling us that there is something wrong with how we act which needs to be aligned with our thinking and feelings. Don’t ignore this deep intuition which leads to self-development, follow it!
THE HIGHER-SELF
The higher-self, or also called the true self, gets validation from within recognizing that you are enough and capable. It is awareness of your self, the energy within you, and all around you. It is the energy within to trust yourself and to realize that you have a purpose. It means that you are proactively working your limitless potential to be aware and just, once you let go of the controlling and your ego operated by the superego which finds validation from outside sources and is limiting in false beliefs of who you should be and can be. You are in total control of everything that you are, your feelings, and your reactions to actions that are present.
THE EGO-SELF (read above under Ego)
The ego-self (the “I”, the ego, the false self, the mask) is who you think of yourself to be as to protect who you truly are, a self-created (false) center of consciousness. Unless we are self-realised or enlightened, we are “asleep” to our true nature – we have forgotten who we truly are.
The IDEAL-SELF
The ideal-self is who we picture us to be, being the best version of ourselves. If the ego-self (real-self) and the ideal-self are not in alignment, an imbalance occurs and results in unhappiness and distress.
YOUR SELF, IDEAL-SELF, AND VEGANISM
Being aware of yourself, the different stages and the development of yourself, following and living your ideal-self results in an emotional and inner balance, self-esteem and self-consciousness, which automatically confronts you more and more with your feelings and emotions and brings you in connection with your great potential and capacity of empathy. This allows you to find your true way to others in the next step, where the Golden Rule comes into play again: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you”.
What makes you grow and connect with veganism, being the least we can do?
Firstly, accept your shadows of what you have been supporting, and interact with your ego (your social mask), the false reality you portrait to others, to be who others expect you to be. Make yourself reflect and realize what the best version of yourself would be treating others if you were in their place. Become that person, your true self.
You need to detach from your superego, the influences from outside, and start recognizing and working on your true self, the person you want to become, your ideal-self. Start the reprogramming and get to know who you truly are.
LEARN TO CONNECT WITH YOUR EGO-SELF IN THE MOMENT TO BECOME YOUR IDEAL-SELF THROUGH WHAT YOU TRULY BELIEVE IN ACCORDING TO YOUR MORAL COMPASS
The ego is the self-image you like to portray to others influenced by the superego, the expectations, and social structures through common society’s moral views and expectations of your character. The ego-self, however, decides between who you think you are and who you want to be (ego-ideal, ideal self-concept) detached from the superego, and consciously decides on your actions which may or may not have consequences on others.
Dismantle and question your superego, let your id come through, illuminate your ego, defeat your shadow-self (or false self), put aside the externally determined superego, and you will be left with your most sincere and pure self - the ideal-self.
Those who strive for the ego-ideal, who reflect on their beliefs and views in concept to the value of the existence of all living, sentient beings (including non-human animals) decide to live by their empathetic views on life and have more of a perception and understanding of a more conscious aspect of existence. They, therefore, transfer this perception and truth to all living beings.
And this is what makes people feel strongly about their decision of living a vegan life, because they have found it to be unethical, unjust, and morally reprehensible and not their self to exploit and murder others for their (taste) pleasure, and habits because they wouldn’t want to be treated like animals, are treated by humans.
This is where the Golden Rule and development of empathy happens to develop one’s self-character. People who adapt their actions to their ego-ideal morals are in balance with their true ego-ideal self.
This is a real test of your character and energy you are willing to invest in character development.
AUTHENTIC MORALS AND THE INFLUENCE ON OUR ACTIONS
Authentic morals (ego-ideals of the higher self) do not arise from external demands, but inner ones. Traits such as kindness, empathy, compassion, pity, etc. are emotional processes that are taught to us from birth to a certain extent, but how we put them to use and into action are strongly influenced by how much we detach from outside influences and deal with our own emotions and feelings and how we portrait them onto others, animals taken into moral consideration too.
“The question is not, Can they reason?, nor Can they talk? But, Can they suffer? Why should the law refuse its protection to any sensitive being?”
– Bentham (1789), An Introduction to the Principles of Morals and LegislationThe more connected we are to your own emotions (emotional intelligence “EQ”), meaning recognizing and expressing our feelings, the greater our ability to feel for others and especially with others. Our emotions inform your thinking and your empathetic thinking regulates our moral compass, and therefore our actions and our way to our ideal-self.
♥ Read about “About Empathy And Veganism And How To Develop It”
♥ Read about “Have The Courage To Be Disliked Due To Moral Agency And Ethical Principles”
WHAT IS WISDOM?
Wisdom by definition is “The quality or state of being wise; knowledge of what is true or right coupled with just judgment as to action; sagacity, discernment, or insight.”
Wisdom, for me, is finding practical ways to become your ideal-self using love and love-based judgment to define your moral compass as guidance, detaching from the superego to be your purest and kindest self. Actions need to follow your words, beliefs, and goals.
“When an inner situation is not made conscious, it appears outside of you as fate.”
- Carl JungHOW TO USE WISDOM WISELY?
Use wisdom to pass it on to others. Pass on all the facts you got to learn and know about the hidden reality of the animal industry to someone else and if they still choose to exploit and murder animals don’t give up.
Don’t forget that there is also free will at play for others to consciously choose to be on the exploitative and oppressing side of history. Their superego, their ego and their receptiveness to take in humility and the full-on truth, and openness for an uncomfortable conversation about their values and actions, may block their way. But someone can only run from it for a while.
♥ Read about “What Side Do You Stand On?”
♥ Read about “Do You Hate Animals, Or Why Do You Pay For Their Murder?”
Speak your own mind, not what others want to hear.
Epilogue:
I would like to dedicate this blog post to people in my life who supported me along the way:
Silvia Jandl, Mr. Ziegelbauer, Tina Wittholm
~~~~~
Please note:
* when the term "human" is used, then human animals are meant by it, and the same applies to the term "animal", who are non-human animals.** this blog post also includes personal interpretations and conclusions based on the psychological studies and findings and definitions of Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung, to help you challenge your beliefs and to grow within yourself to be a better version of yourself. The text does not represent an absolute.*** text and illustrations are intellectual property of Kerstin Brueller. Sharing the content for private purposes is appreciated. It is prohibited to copy and share it for commercial purposes. Please contact me for a collaboration, if you are unsure or have any further questions. Thanks for your understanding.**** I personally care much about symbolism and the meaning of certain shapes and metaphors. The images and interpretations are the representation of my own imagination. SOURCES
Psychology Today - What Is The Ego And Why Is It So Involved In My Life
Verywellmind - The Id, Ego And Superego
Bustle - How Many Selves Do We Have, 3 Might Be The Magic Number According To This Personality
