The unconscious : $b The fundamentals of human personality, normal and abnormalPrince, Morton
Science
The unconscious : $b The fundamentals of human personality, normal and abnormal
Prince, Morton
Psychology, Pathological; Subconsciousness
In this connection it is well to notice that it is a common observation
that not only the affect of emotion but that of _feeling_ also may
emerge from the subconscious into consciousness and color the attitude
of the personal consciousness. This may be demonstrated by hypnotic
procedures. When in hypnosis complexes of ideas with strong feeling
tones, whether of pleasure or displeasure, of exaltation or depression,
are suggested, the subject after awakening experiences these same
feeling tones which dominate the personality. The subject then feels
pleasantly exalted or unpleasantly depressed, as the case may be,
without knowing the reason why. In alternating personalities the same
phenomena may sometimes be observed. In the case of Miss B. the feeling
tones which dominated the one personality invaded the consciousness of
the other personality, often causing considerable distress after the
alternation had occurred and although there was amnesia for all that had
gone before.[181] Thus BIV complained of the feelings of depression from
which BI shortly before had suffered, although her own ideas were far
from being of a depressing nature. This depression welled up from the
unconscious. It was in consequence of this phenomenon that BIV wrote:
“BI’s constant grieving wears on my nerves. It is harder to endure than
one would believe possible. I would rather give and take with Sally—a
thousand times rather.” Likewise when a subject has feelings of
unpleasantness and depression which he cannot explain it is easy in
certain subjects to demonstrate the concurrence of coconscious ideas
with these feeling tones. The affect in such cases emerges into
consciousness, though the subject is unaware of the coconscious ideas.
Correspondingly the feelings may be those of pleasantness and
exaltation. The demonstration of coconscious processes as the sources of
the conscious feelings of course can only be made in subjects in whom
memories of coconscious processes can be evoked. In such subjects I have
observed the phenomena on almost numberless occasions. But it can be
provoked in almost any good hypnotic subject. To awake pleasurable and
exalting feelings, to substitute them for their opposite when such are
present, belongs to therapeutic art. The skillful therapeutist endeavors
to provoke the former by the various procedures at his command. The
important principle underlying such procedures is that the feeling tones
pertaining to ideas may still invade the personal consciousness after
the ideas have become dormant in the unconscious.
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