The consciousness of mind concerning victims of sexual assaults
What are the three stages of consciousness proposed by
Freud? Three levels of consciousness are the subconscious, the conscious, and
unconscious. These three levels are differentiated based on the intensity of
awareness. In the first stage of consciousness, all remembered experiences,
impressions are left on the mind. It is the strange point for any recent
memories needed for quick recall. This determines the pattern of our behavior
and thought process. The next stage is about rational awareness that guides our
decisions based on information. It is observed that a conscious mind directs
our focus on dreams. The last stage is the unconscious mind, where all memories
and past experiences reside. These memories are no longer important. These
define our beliefs and behavior. Apart from these stages, superconscious is
where the problem and solution are seen as one as its obvious that the solution
is part of the problem. It is important to understand Freud’s consciousness of
mind because all our actions and reactions are governed by our mental
faculties.
Sue Richardson and Heather Bacon in his book titled “Creative Responses to Child Sexual
Abuse: Challenges and Dilemmas”, says
that the cycle of abuse refers to three different cycles. First, the process
whereby the child internalizes the behavior of the perpetrator; second is the
result of non-protective parenting resulting from the impact of the parent’s
unresolved trauma, and third is associated with the survivor's struggles within
long term effects of abuse.
The growing number of research in the field of sexual
assaults subsequently increased its initiation into various genres. The most
vulnerable to abuse are the children in the age groups of 7 to 14. I read a
play based on the theme of child sexual abuse, titled “Thirty Days in
September”, written by the popular playwright. This play depicted the
after-effects of abuse like disturbed interpersonal relationships;
post-traumatic disorder and frustrations. The subconscious mind of play
protagonist Mala holds her mother responsible for torture and trauma. In the
case of the subconscious mind, the unconscious mind is preferred over the
conscious mind. Robert A. Baron in his book on Psychology notes that “Freud
contended that shameful experiences or unacceptable sexual or aggressive urges
are often driven deep within the unconscious.”[1] According to Sigmund Freud, the unconscious
mind which is outside the conscious mind contains unpleasant and unacceptable
thoughts, feelings, and memories of pain and anxiety.
The victim of sexual abuse is mostly amazed at how the
haze of the trauma made it impossible for him/her to empathize. The effect of
sexual assaults is on the mind, body, and soul of the victim. It is easier for
the abuser to escape after committing abuse while it’s very difficult for the
victim to remove marks of assaults.
[1]Robert A. Baron, Psychology. India,
Pearson Education, 5th ed., 2006, p.454.
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