This was one of my earlier essays for Spies, i figured there aren't many Spies essays on here so yeah
also, ignore the Eternal Sunshine references, i just put it in for the sac because my teacher showed it to our class and quite liked the movie, i would have never used it in the exam.
Prompt: What we choose to remember and forget shapes our reality.Scientific American | Mind & Brain
Memory: friend or foe?
It is widely observed that our reality is greatly influenced by our memories. Consequently, our reality is dependant upon what we choose to remember.
By Joel R. Clementine, Ph.D. | August 18, 2011
Research Psychologist
Our memory is a structure which allows us to distill information so that we may attend to everyday events appropriately. It is from the recess of our memories that we establish fundamental bases, and these foundations of our being are the very principles that allow us to perceive our reality consistently. These foundations provide us with both a guide to what society considers being the norms which bind human interaction, as well as our own personal sense of individuality. In effect, our views and perceptions are shaped by the memories we have locked away in our subconscious. However, our memory – our lens to view the world – may have a great influence on our reality, for better or for worse. In Albert Einstein’s voice, ‘Memory is deceptive because it is coloured by today’s events.’ Therefore, while our memory may harbour an insight into the workings of our reality, it would be remiss to believe that it is always beneficial. Psychologists have long researched this subject, and have managed to offer a few explanations.
The fundamental nature of memoryThe fallible nature of memory is perhaps a reason as to why our reality can be beneficial in helping us perceive our reality. It is clear that over time, our memories diverge, amidst the plethora of information held within our long-term memory, until eventually; the least familiar recollections are forgotten. Hence, we are often unable to recall specific memories, even those that were once so familiar to us. Many psychologists including Sigmund Freud, who was heralded as the Father of Modern Psychology, have employed contemporary art to convey their thoughts on abstract concepts, such as memory. As such, the notion of memory faltering over time is explored in the Spanish surrealist painter Salvador Dali’s painting, La persistencia de la memoria, or more commonly known as, The Persistence of Memory. Dali’s work depicts a landscape in which clocks are melting, symbolising the deterioration of human memory. The features of the painting accentuate the idea that our memory can lead us to a distorted or skewed recollection of the past. Dali explained that his purpose for painting this work was to ‘systematise confusion and thus to help discredit the world of reality’, and thus the title of his painting is emblematic of his intent. This slow deterioration of memory occurs gradually, removing the most painful and distressing memories from our normal waking consciousness. Coined by Freud as the theory of Repression, it enables individuals to continue everyday living without the negative memories shaping their perceptions of reality. In effect, it is the forgetting of the most painful memories which has the greatest effect on an individual.
The effect of childhood memories on reality Emotions, in particular guilt and fear, have an extremely large impact on how we view the world. Indeed, many research studies have shown that it is the painful aspects of our childhood memories which seem to have the largest effect on individuals in adulthood. Of particular interest are two studies run by Oxford University, one which investigates the effect of guilt on the behaviour on individuals, and the other on the consequence of domestic violence.
The first study involved the clinical analysis of a middle-aged man, who had been crippled with guilt from childhood. S.W. had felt responsible for the arrest of his friend’s mother during his childhood, and had found that he was often anxious growing up as he felt that he was at fault. These situations are common, and there is evidence to suggest that self-delusion kicks in. Now in his 40’s, S.W. no longer believes he is the reason behind the arrest. Psychologists believe that the participant does not have to deal with the reality of the situation, because his mind has ensured that he has simply forgotten it. Similarly, mankind does not have to deal with devastating depression, because evolution ensures that we don’t have to. In hindsight, we convince ourselves that we are not to blame, and that allows us to wake up the next day able to continue functioning.
Furthermore, the study of S.W. has provided yet another important finding. When the diaries of the young participant were compared with interviews of witnesses, or stakeholders of the arrest, it appeared that the participant’s recollection of the experience hardly touched the tip of the iceberg. The young S.W. had in fact encoded very few details of the incident preceding the woman’s arrest compared to the memories of witnesses. Analysts believe that this obliviousness to the complexity of the situation arises because children are not experienced, and as a result, do not understand the underlying motives and emotions of those around them. As Martin Luther Jr. King once famously said, ‘seeing is not always believing’, but for children, this fact is not true. Based on the observations from the study, it appears that for the young S.W., seeing really is believing. Looking back now, the participant still laughs at himself for believing that the obscure markings in his mother’s diary signified when she went on her monthly visit to her aunt! In effect, it is interesting to consider that had the participant been aware of all the conflict prior to the arrest, would he have perceived the reality of the situation the same way?
The findings of the second study seem to suggest that the experiences that we remember from our childhood have a great effect on our perception of reality as adults. The study involved the analysis of a victim of domestic violence. Growing up under a dysfunctional household, the participant has since followed his father’s footsteps in violently abusing his family. Reprimanded by judges on numerous occasions for domestic abuse, this troubled participant had great difficulty relating to others in social circles. The nature of these observations however, is not particularly new. An enormous number of research studies show that the security of attachment of a child to its earlier caregivers, and the quality of these relationships, serve as a model of how to relate to other people later in life. One reason as to why witnesses of domestic violence, no matter how successful later in life, have a high chance of developing into domestic abusers is because they have a fragile sense of self as they realise the power of violence. These childhood memories are used as a sample by the victim, leaving him with a twisted view of social interaction. It is not difficult to understand that troubling memories can leave individuals with a distorted perception of reality.
The true dilemma of our memoryIf individuals, in particular sufferers of post-traumatic stress disorder, or victims of distressful events, could in fact erase the very memories which afflict them, would they choose to? Upon being asked this question, both participants of studies replied that if it was possible, they would in fact erase the memories, which goes to suggest that the memories only shape their realities negatively. The notion of an intentional removal of memories is explored in Michel Gondry’s film, Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind, whereby a couple elect to have the painful memories of their relationship erased. One of the characters, Mary, who works at the ‘memory erasing clinic’, supports the notion that the removal of these memories actually has many positives. She cities the German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche in conveying her view that ‘Blessed are the forgetful, for they get the better, even of their blunders’. However, in a following scene, she discovers that her memory was once erased, and is actually upset over the procedure, and we are left unsure whether the removal of these memories would be beneficial.
While it is not certain whether our memories are our friends or our foes, there is no doubt that our reality is ultimately shaped by the memories we choose to remember, and the ones we choose to forget.
-Word Count: 1352-
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