Assignment 2

What is Egoism?

Assalamualaikum :)

Have you ever in a certain way behave based on ego, selfishness, conceit? Literally egoism mean exclusive concern to satisfying one's own desires, getting what he want without thinking about others emotion or feeling. There is a story about John and Mary. Mary has biscuits, very delicious biscuits. On the other hand, John is extremely hungry and he thought hey why not I just steal it from Mary, she wouldn't know! John in a certain level has act only based on his self-interest, to fulfill his need, desire that is hungry.

According to Sigmund Freud, the Austrian psychologist, in order to understand how the human being behave, how their personality, how they react or act in certain level well he said there is three element that is the id, ego, and superego.

The id is pleasure principle. What does it mean? It mean the desire, the need that if it is not satisfied immediately will cause a state of anxiety or tension. The id demands immediate satisfaction and when this happens we experience pleasure, when it is denied we experience ‘unpleasure’. John and Mary for an instance, John want his desire satisfied regardless of the way. That was the id does based on the pleasure principal. He doesn't care about halal haram or even consider Mary's emotion or feeling because she is probably hungry too. John would kill her if he had to because desire is blind. It's an addictive desire that need addictive satisfaction and serious satisfaction that lead blindness to it. Pleasure principal can only be please if you have more.

Ego is operates based on reality principle, which strives to satisfy the id's desires in realistic and socially appropriate ways. Take John and Mary as an example again. It's part of John's brain that says hey I can steal from Mary and I will, but I have to make sure that I don't get caught because if I do get caught I will go to jail. This reality principle forces John to consider the risks, how will he steal, when will he steal it, what method will he use. The ego just want to make sure that the id's desire are met in ways that are safe.

Superego in the contrary is the morality principle, the perfection on how we behave, how we do things correctly which is for me act based on the Al-quran and Sunnah. Everyone have desire, need and something that they really want so badly, money for an example. it's not wrong to have more money in our account bank. With that money we can help other people like giving voluntary charity(sadaqah), open an orphanage house or even build a masjid. Improve our lifestyle, buy a big house, buy ferrari for an instance and buy ton of beautiful clothes. It's not wrong. Allah is beautiful and He loves beauty.

We can have all of this but how you get all of this is the question. If the sources is haram what about the outcomes? We can steal and we'll replete, satisfied or richer than before but ever thought about the people you steal from. Well superego, It's the one that tell us that stealing for the sake of stealing is bad, lie or stepping on other's emotion and principles for the sake of satisfying what you think is right, is bad. Superego is the one that build inside of you and it contrary from the id. We need to develop this superego to suppress id's desire to turn our ego from realistic to idealistic ways. Insyaallah

Assalamualaikum :)

Main references

 http://www.simplypsychology.org/psyche.html

 http://psychology.about.com/od/theoriesofpersonality/a/personalityelem.htm

 http://psychology.about.com/od/eindex/g/def_ego.htm