Comparing Turner's Id, The Ego, And The Superego

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Freud believed that there are three elements of personality known as the Id, the Ego, and the Superego. All three of these elements work together to create complex human behaviors. Each component adds it’s own unique contribution to personality. Supposedly, the Id is based off of the pleasure principle, the Ego operates based on the reality principle, and the Superego is the aspect of personality that holds all internalized moral standards or ideals that one acquires from both parents and society. Henry Turner had multiple significant personality changes throughout his injury and recovery process. The majority of these changes implies that Henry’s natural state is his Id and that natural state was developed over time, forgotten, and learned again during his recovery process. In the beginning, Henry Turner appears to rely more on his Id than his Superego. The first scene in the movie with Henry in the courthouse perfectly portrays his natural state of Id when he chooses to argue against a plaintiff that has been a victim of medical malpractice in order to win a favorable verdict for his expensive law firm. Henry had evidence to prove that the plaintiff was innocent, but chose not to reveal it. He also showed additional examples of that natural state when …show more content…

His natural state is more on the Id side because that is how he starts out and ends up. At the beginning of the story, he had a disdainful attitude towards everyone. After the accident, it was like he was learning everything for the first time. Most people start out as innocent and assume that all others are innocent until given a reason not to. Eventually, Henry started to relearn his selfish ways and revert back to the man he was before as he spent extra time around the people he used to know and associate with. That original version of Henry only thought about himself and did not care if he was hurting other people as long as it helped

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