Why do we act the way we do? What makes us who we are? Questions debated since scientists and psychologists first brought up Nature vs. Nurture. While it 's true and very much proven that we have biological gene markers and traits that are passed on, it’s a lot more than that. Who we are, our core personality is also carved out of events that happen to us, especially in the early developmental years. An exemplary example of how childhood experiences influence our adult personality is the movie "Good Will Hunting". Will Hunting is a young man with a troubled past, who 's personality has been greatly affected. Psychologically Will Hunting suffers from pseudo-masochistic behavior manifested as an id/superego conflict as described by Sigmund Freud,
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Sigmund Freud developed a view describing three interacting systems that drive human personality. He believed that personality comes from a basic conflict in all persons. The conflict within us all he theorized was trying to express our basic human impulses without feeling guilty about it. The textbook Psychology eleventh edition in modules defines the id personality as," operating on the pleasure principle; It seeks immediate gratification". The same textbook defines the superego personality as '" the voice of our moral compass (conscience), the superego focuses on how we ought to behave". The two often are opposite of each other creating great conflict in Will. In example of this opposition in himself is in a scene of the movie where Will finally opens up to Sean his therapist about his childhood abuse. Will states that He was beaten by his foster father with a wrench but there is a twist Will stated in the conversation that his abusive father figure would let him choose what he would be beaten with. The conflict within Will the id and the superego, struggled with the Superego impulse to accept his punishment and respect his foster father for being an authority figure. The id impulse was for Will to push back and not accept his punishment by showing defiance and choosing the most severe beating. Will Hunting 's childhood turmoil set the foundation for this conflict until later
Sigmund Freud developed a view describing three interacting systems that drive human personality. He believed that personality comes from a basic conflict in all persons. The conflict within us all he theorized was trying to express our basic human impulses without feeling guilty about it. The textbook Psychology eleventh edition in modules defines the id personality as," operating on the pleasure principle; It seeks immediate gratification". The same textbook defines the superego personality as '" the voice of our moral compass (conscience), the superego focuses on how we ought to behave". The two often are opposite of each other creating great conflict in Will. In example of this opposition in himself is in a scene of the movie where Will finally opens up to Sean his therapist about his childhood abuse. Will states that He was beaten by his foster father with a wrench but there is a twist Will stated in the conversation that his abusive father figure would let him choose what he would be beaten with. The conflict within Will the id and the superego, struggled with the Superego impulse to accept his punishment and respect his foster father for being an authority figure. The id impulse was for Will to push back and not accept his punishment by showing defiance and choosing the most severe beating. Will Hunting 's childhood turmoil set the foundation for this conflict until later