In clinical psychologist Dr. Mary Pipher’s book, Reviving Ophelia, the topic and concerns were the social treatment of young girls and the affects it has on development in that area as well as the influence it has on their cognitive processes. Dr. Pipher also explored the cultural and societal pressures put on young women from a very early age. She used case studies of her patients to elaborate on these influences and give first-hand examples to paint a clear picture of the problems engrained in societal standards and treatments.
Pipher always started by explaining how a young girl, at first, does not necessarily begin to experience the treatments and standards put on women until they are nearly ten years of age. She brought up Freud in her
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306). The sex we are born as typically indicates the gender one may identify with. As a child grows up, gender-typing creates ways in which young girls and boys learn gender roles that society and culture deem appropriate. Psychologist James Marcia came up with the term identity status which are categories of ego development that are dependent on the presence or absence of crisis and commitment (Papalia, 2014, p. 473). He describes crisis as conscious decision making that is directly related to identity formation. It refers to a period of active engagement with an aspect of identity—where a person is grappling with what to believe and who to be (Papalia, 2014, p. 474). Commitment is the term for personal investment in a system of beliefs or in an occupation or vocation. Marcia explains links between identity statuses and personal traits like self-esteem, anxiety, moral reasoning, and patterns of behavior. He explains four categories that represent the status of identity development. The first one is called identity achievement. This is when one has resolved their identity crisis. During the crisis period, devoted thought and emotional struggle are devoted to major issues in one’s life. You make choices and expresses strong convictions toward them that represent your identity. You listen to your parent’s opinions without feeling the need to adopt them as your own. The second category is foreclosure which is defined as a person who has not spent time considering alternatives -that is, has not been in crisis- is committed to other people’s plans for his or her life (Papalia, 2014, p. 475). They are going along with someone else’s plans because they have not considered their own. They go along willingly with their model of what has been done before them. They are smug and insistent on their way. They listen to their leaders unquestionably. The third category is called
Throughout her book Mary Pipher, a clinical psychologist, describes the behaviors and relationships of adolescent teen girls. She explores the issues that most of her patients have in common: parents and divorce, depression, weight, drugs, alcohol, violence, and sex. Pipher provides examples of girls who had suffered from each category, and ends with a generalization that connects each situation to a deeper meaning. Although parents and daughters are somewhat to blame in each occasion, Pipher holds the corrupt modern culture of western society accountable. She believes that the idealized image of girls that the media puts out is the root of most adolescent insecurities. In Reviving Ophelia, Pipher draws attention to the increasing need for female teen awareness and incorporates the methods she suggests to the struggling families.
In this book therapist Mary Pipher writes about her experiences at work with adolescent girls. It is intended to make the reader aware of the perils of being a teenager in today's sexualized and media-saturated culture. She talks about how this new and more hostile environment affects adolescent girls' emotional growth and development, and how hard it is to stay true to yourself while trying to fit in with peers. For the most part this book is Dr. Pipher's attempt to reach out to adolescents, as well as their parents and teachers, and tell them that this "problem without a name" is not a death sentence but rather a journey to adulthood, and tells adults how to help these impressionable young girls through what might be the most trying period of their lives.
The creation of an identity involves the child's understanding of the public disposition of the gender normalities, and the certain gender categories that
The play Hamlet is known for its eccentric plot and warped sense of reality as well as its fanatical characters. Hamlet himself created all the drama in the play with his pretend “madness” and his emotional outbursts, which lead to the destruction of almost all of the characters in the play. The most notable self destruction came from Ophelia, Hamlet’s object of affection. During the play, Ophelia had undergone a lot of stress which lead her character to metamorphous.
The book I chose for this assignment is Reviving Ophelia. This was a very interesting book. Mary Pipher, PhD. discusses the roles that society plays in shaping the self esteem of teenage and preteen age girls. The author contends that our society today is very look-obsessed and media driven. Through magazines, television, fashion, and retail the "idea" girl is formed and anyone who doesn't fit this idea is not perfect in the culture that girls live in today. Weight issues have caused conditions of anorexia and bulimia putting young girls in jeopardy of declining health. Dr. Pipher chronicles the life of adolescent girls from their carefree days of being energetic, assertive, and tomboyish to their losing themselves at the onset of puberty. Most girls lose their previous selves to fit into a norm of society, being more passive, depressed, and self-critical. The main point of this book is to help uncover the true self of adolescent girls and to give them techniques to help them combat the views of society. This quote from the book summarizes all that the author was addressing when writing this book. "Most girls choose to be socially accepted and split into two selves, one that is authentic and one that is culturally scripted. In public they become who they are suppose to be."
Mary Pipher, author of the book Reviving Ophelia, has made many observations concerning young adolescent girls in our society. She wrote this book in 1994, roughly eleven years ago. Although some of her observations made in the past are not still accurate in today’s world, there are many that are still present in 2005. The primary focus of Pipher’s comments is to explain how young girls are no longer being protected within our society.
Dr. Mary Pipher’s novel, Reviving Ophelia: Saving the Selves of Adolescent Girls uncovers the reason why girls coming of age change throughout puberty and how outside forces affect them. Throughout the book the readers see Pipher successfully uses the five canons of rhetoric to explain her thesis and purpose. Dr. Mary Pipher’s use of rhetoric helps to paint a clear picture of her purpose- what is affecting young girls and how society can help to better their lives by embracing these young girls and their flaws.
In conclusion, Mary Pipher’s main point in writing “Reviving Ophelia” is to reveal how adolescent girls are being neglected and overlooked. We must be willing to look beyond the surface, become involved, and support girls as they develop physically, emotionally, intellectually, and spiritually. We must strive for something better for our teens. We cannot keep labeling our “daughters and sisters”, instead we have got to give them a path that leads to self-esteem. The media will give the public what they are search for. Right now that has been women roles that are lessened and more sexualized for the pleasures of men.
Marcia developed four categories to describe people who have not yet achieved their identity. The first one being role confusion, after that is foreclosure, then moratorium, and the finally identity achievement(Sánchez). The one that came to my mind when watching Tuesdays with Morrie was role confusion. This category is the opposite of identity achievement, it is characterized by the lack of commitment to any goals or values. Those in this stage also procrastinate and avoid issues and actions. In the movie Mitch
Human development is a highly complex lifelong process. Identity is a self-definition or sense of who one is, where one is going, and how one fits into society. It relates to our basic values that dictates the choices we make in life. It is considered that identity formation is a means of finding oneself, by matching one’s talent with available social roles. Crisis is a vital part in one’s development. It occurs in every stage of finding one’s self and without resolution, may lead to tension and role confusion. Dedicated and influential theorists such as Erik Erikson and James Marcia have contributed significantly to the broadening and understanding
DeCuir-Gunby (2009) states that identity is “a formation process begins at birth, peaks during adolescence, and continues to develop throughout adulthood, thus allowing an individual to fully negotiate multiple identities.” During adolescence, the peak of identity development, it is the most judgemental and children
As a child grows and conforms to the world around them they go through various stages, one of the most important and detrimental stages in childhood development is gender identity. The development of the meaning of a child’s sex and gender can form the whole future of that child’s identity as a person. This decision whether accidental or genetic can effect that child’s life style views and social interactions for the rest of their lives. Ranging from making friends in school all the way to intimate relationships later on in life, gender identity can become an important aspect to ones future endeavors.
Meeus, W., Schoot, R., Keijsers, L., & Branje, S. (2012). Identity statuses as developmental trajectories: A five-wave longitudinal study in early-to-middle and middle-to-late adolescents. J Youth Adolescence, 41, 1008-1021. doi: 10.1007/s10964-011-9730-y
It is the stage where an adolescent re-examines their identity. To be precise, the individual tries to find out exactly who they are. According to Erikson, there are two identities involved in this stage. They are; the occupational and the sexual (McLeod, 2017). The adolescent may be uncomfortable with their looks or body, but with time they adapt to the bodily changes. The experiences of this stage result in the virtue of fidelity. The meaning of fidelity is one’s ability to commit their self to others by accepting other people despite their ideologies being different (McLeod, 2017). In this stage, the person explores the possibilities and starts to form their own identity basing upon the outcomes from their explorations. However, a failure to determine a sense of identity in a society does lead to role confusion (Kroger & Marcia, 2011). The adolescent has not established what they want to be when they grow up. Specifically, role confusion entails a person, not sure about their place in society or even themselves. While responding to the role confusion, the adolescent starts to experiment with various lifestyles such as education, work, and other activities. Notably, pressuring someone with identity crisis can lead to a rebellion that can lead to he or she forming a negative identity. Additionally, the confusion and
The purpose of this paper is to identify James Marcia’s identity status theory and how it pertains to the author 's life during adolescence and early adulthood. The author will reflect as well as address the four statuses of development. Noting that Marcia’s theory has proven to be an effective and dependable tool in helping to determine the status of the identity development in adolescents.