Theory of Psychology Review of the Related Theories
does it something. While Davidoff 1987 states that personality is a summary construct that includes thought, motives, emotions, interests, attitudes, abilities
and the like. The writer uses the theory of personality because in this study the theory is needed to know the meaning of the main character’s personality
development. According to
Sigmund Freud’s psychoanalytic theory of personality, personality is composed of three elements. They are the id, the ego, and the
superego. The three elements which are composed by Sigmund Freud work together to
create complex human behaviors. i.
The Id The id is a component of personality which naturally comes from birth.
According to Freud, the id is the source of all psychic energy, making it the primary component of personality. For example, when a baby is
hungry, she will cry. She will stop crying if the demand of the id is met, which is drinking the milk.
ii. The Ego
According to Freud, the ego develops from the id and ensures that the impulses of the id can be expressed in a manner acceptable in the real
world. Ego is not the whole personality, but must be completed by the more comprehensive self, the center of personality that is largely
unconscious Hill, 2005. In psychologically healthy person, the ego takes a secondary position to the unconscious Jung, 1959a
iii. The Superego
The superego is the last component of personality to be developed. According to Kendra Cherry, the superego is the aspect of personality
that holds all of our internalized moral standards and ideals that we acquire from both parents and society-our sense of right and wrong.
Freud 1964 also divides levels of mental of life into the unconscious and the conscious. While the unconscious has two different levels, which are the
unconscious proper and the preconscious. In Freudian psychology, the three levels of mental life are used to designate both a process and a location.
i. Unconscious
Freud states that unconscious contain all those drives, urges, or instinct that are beyond people’s awareness, but motivate most of our feeling,
words, and actions. While Adler 1956 defined the unconscious as the part of the goal that is neither clearly formulated nor completely
understood by the individual. Adler then states that if we understand the tendency of consciousness, the tendency has already become conscious.
ii. Preconscious
The preconscious level of the mind contains all those elements that are not conscious but can become conscious either readily or with some
difficulties Freud, 1964 iii.
Conscious Consciousness, which plays a relatively minor role in psychoanalytic
theory, can be defined as those mental elements in awareness at any
given point in time. According to Freud 1964, what we perceive through our sense organ, if not too threatening, enters into consciousness.
Adler 1964 argues that the consciousness life becomes unconscious as soon as we fall to understand it.
Levitan and LaBerge 1991 say that the human consciousness separating from the human body and travelling in a discorporate form of physical world. The
writer uses Freud’s level of mental of life to support the analysis of the meaning of mortality in Guns N’ Roses’ trilogy “Don’t Cry”, “November Rain”, and
“Estranged”.
c Theory of Motivation
Motivation is an important determinant of individual’s performance. However, as Maslow 1943 states that motivation is not the only determinant;
other variables such as effort expended, ability, and previous experience also influence performance.
Beck 1978 states that motivation is broadly concerned with the contemporary determinants of choice direction, persistence, and vigor of goal
directed behavior p.58. it indicates that motiva tion deals with the “way” of
someone’s behavior. Coleman 1960 mentions that there are some theories used to support the
analysis of the main character’s way of thinking p.114-116. The first is Primary and the Secondary Drives. It states that every species has some basic
psychological drives of an inborn.
The second is Motives as Tension-Reducing Devices. Most of human biological functioning follows the pattern of searching a way to relieve unpleasant
tension that is caused by the need. Therefore, the brain will produce the tension for everything needed by the body. The tension will cause a depressed feeling by
the body. That is why human have to reduce the feeling by finding the way out. Maslow 1970 with his theory of motivation identifies different stages and
forms of motives which will motivate people in different stages of their lives. The theory also provides the relationship between the needs of people. Maslow
presents the stages of need in the form of hierarchy. The direction of the need is upward. When the lower need has been fulfilled, people will fulfill the higher
need. The lowest need in the hierarchy shows the most basic need of human.
Fig.1 Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs 1970 http:www.businessballs.commaslowhierarchyofneeds5.pdf
retrieved March 13, 2016
According to Maslow 1970, the first need is physiological need. The physiological need includes food, water, oxygen, maintenance of body
temperature, air, food, drink, shelter, warmth, sex, sleep, etc. When people do not have their physiological needs satisfied, they life for those needs and strive
constantly to satisfy them Feist Feist, 2006, p.279. The second need is safety needs. The safety needs include protection from
elements, security, order, law, limits, stability, etc. The needs for law, order, and structure are also safety needs Maslow, 1970.
The third need is belongingness and love needs, for example the desire for friendship, the wish for mate and children; the need to belong to a family, a club, a
neighborhood, or a nation Feist Feist, 2006, p.280. Love and belongings also include some aspects of sex and human contact as well as the need to both give
and receive love Maslow, 1970. The fourth need is esteem need, for example self-respect, confidence,
competence, and the knowledge that others hold them in esteem Feist Feist, 2006. While the fifth need is self-actualization needs, for example self-
fulfillment, the realization of all one’s potential, and a desire to become creative in
the full sense of the word Maslow, 1970. From the theories we can draw a conclusion that are different theories of
motivation. The first theory says that motivation is emerged from thoughts, feeling, and behavior. The other theory says that motivation is a result of physical
and psychological needs.