Maslow Hierarchy Of Needs

Understanding Maslow’s hierarchy of needs can help one to understand what motivates people, and recognizing theories of motivation helps life makes more sense. Knowing where a person is on the hierarchy can allow one to see where their motivation might come from. Cory Page has stated, “Everyone is restricted by the lowest levels of the pyramid” (Page). If a person is stripped of all their needs, their physiological needs will be the ones they need to obtain first. If the person still lacks their physiological needs, such as a food, they will motivated by that, and that alone. The stated person may take drastic steps to secure food. They won’t be able to concentrate on anything else until their physiological needs have been met. However, once

Some people are given most of their needs at birth, and others are at a disadvantage because of their family situation or where they live. This is the difference in between what motivates different people. Life makes more sense if one can understand what motivates people. As stated previously, understanding where someone stands relative to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs can unshroud their behaviors. If someone steals food, it might seem like an act of violence, but in reality, they could be starving. Understanding motivation can be connected to empathy. At first, it might not be understood why someone acts the way they do, but if effort is put in to walk in their shoes and really understand them, the motivation behind almost every action can be

Throughout the story, it can be easily seen when Ishmael is on different levels of the hierarchy. When Ishmael is deprived of food, he can’t concentrate on anything else, and uses desperate measures to obtain food. After leaving Mattru Jong for the second time, Ishmael says, “We were so hungry that it hurt to drink water and we felt cramps in our guts… One evening we actually chases a little boy who was eating two boiled ears of corn by himself” (Beah 30). While this might seem harsh and uncalled for, it has to be remembered according to the theory of drive-reduction, when humans are lacking a physiological need, such as Ishmael was lacking food, they are simply compelled to reduce that need. Additionally, he isn’t able to find security or connect with the people around him until his physiological needs are met. Once Ishmael has been fed, he is able to focus on finding safety. After that has been achieved, he is able to connect with his friends and really start to think about his future. For example, when the boys connected over the story of the Bra Spider, they had food and water on hand, as well as a village to sleep in. They were able to tell and listen to a story to bond with one another because they didn’t have to worry about their more basic needs being met. For much of the book, Ishmael is stripped of his physiological and safety needs, which results in him thinking about only the present. While his life is