Discussed the connection between conflict and individuality

There is sufficient evidence to show that parents play a very important role as children grow up. In Sigmund Freud’s “Family Romances,” he discussed the connection between conflict and individuality. On the one hand, parents can lead their children to be successful as most people did. On the other hand, parents can destroy their children as a neurotic. Children always consider their parents are best and supreme in the world so that children want to be like their parents. And yet children began to compare his parents with other parents and children after he undergone competition in the society. Children complained the life and came out some questions such as why other family’s life is gorgeous? Why their parents cannot satisfy them like what other’s parent do? Obviously, the comparison would stick in children’s minds and generate conflicts. Therefore, the conflict would affect children’s individuality. We can see it has two sides. In the positive side, positive comparison played the role of motivation, which children would use the motivation and would get stronger. Conversely, to the negative side, Sigmund wrote that, “the later stage in the development of the neurotic’s estrangement from his parents, begun in this manner, might be described as ‘the neurotic’s family romance’” (237). The negative comparison made children refuse to close to his parents, children would lose self-confidence and became an introverted child with the inferiority complex. Children would frequently phantasy erotic and ambitious image in his mind to gain satisfactions. No matter what, I believe the most important growing environment is from parents. Either positive or negative, the conflict which affected children’s individuality and it mostly dependents on parents.

One thought on “Discussed the connection between conflict and individuality

  1. I agree that parents play a huge role in their children’s development. A big portion of a child’s future depends on their parents and the environment they were raised in. As they get older, they start to see other parents and they begin comparing their parents to other children’s parents. I think it is very interesting that you mention two outcomes that can come from these conflicts, like motivating the children to succeed or pushing the children away from their parents, which can lead to fantasies.

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