Brennan Ch. 3 - 4 - Crowds Are Composed of Mad Individuals

I found a particular segment of Brennan's description of "Transmission in Groups" particularly interesting.

"Floyd Allport was the first to reject Le Bon's and McDougall's 'group fallacy' or 'the error of substituting the group as a whole as a principle of explanation.' Only individuals, Allport believed (as did others) have minds. Nonetheless, these individuals are predisposed in similar ways to satisfy their basic drives. Crowds sometimes offer them an opportunity to find this satisfaction: 'The menacing and the drives of a large number of individuals simultaneously both draws them together and incites them to common action.' 'The individual sees with his own eyes that others are delivering the blow he longs to deliver, and are thereby expressing, not disapproval of acts of violence, but the strongest kind of approval.' Critically, the crowd adds nothing new to what the individual would do if her were by himself. The individual 'behaves just as he would behave alone, only more so.' He behaves 'more so' because 'the sights and sounds facilitate an increased fervor in the responses of each'" (p. 59-60).

I find this notion of crowd behavior particularly interesting when I think about the two distinct ways in which I experience affect in groups. The first way is in a situation which inherently makes me uncomfortable, a good example being the nature of the crowd at UT Football game. I quote by singer/songwriter Julian Casablancas effectively sums up my sentiments toward the competitive nature of the crowd at a football game, it reads as follows:

"Where cities come together to hate each other in the name of sport, America"

I often feel that the aggression associated with sports is unnecessary. Of the few football games I have attended, I rarely saw legitimate competition with UT's highly talented team. It often seems as though there are a large number of UT fans shouting rather derogatory and hateful chants at the other team, even though there are very few fans supporting the other team. It is clear to me that the other school does not take football nearly as seriously, and thus the thousands of UT fans shouting "make 'em eat shit" makes me uncomfortable. 

My initial reaction the excerpt from "The Transmission of Affect" was that it was inaccurate, because in these situations I often find myself reacting in a hypersensitive nature opposite to that of the rest of the crowd. However, after thinking about it more it rings true that "The individual 'behaves just as he would behave alone, only more so.'" I feel uncomfortable toward the crowd mentality associated with sporting events when I simply think about everything that goes into the crowds mentality and behavior. Therefore, actually being at the sporting event the way I would be have alone becomes increased quite a bit. I experience the affective nature of the crowd and become increasingly introverted toward the crowd mentality.

The second way is a situation in which I have preconceived notions about enjoying the affect of the crowd. A good example of this would be a concert that I have sought out and have excitement about attending. I do not find myself at all uncomfortable or in opposition with the crowds affect. I embrace it, and the way in which I think about how I would like to be when listening to whatever music becomes heightened. Put differently, I feel more capable of dancing or singing along that I might if I were along or with a small group of friends. 

I find the idea of expectations and opinions about the crowd mentality to be an interesting component of transmission in groups. This expands upon thoughts I have about the extent to which affect can effect the individual based on the particular way in which the individual orients him/herself respective to the crowd. This also supports Brennan's notion that affect can be controlled, in the instance of transmission in crowds it seems that affect is "controlled" without any conscious effort being exerted upon it. However, since this is an unconscious interpretation of the affect, it is not a proper form of control. The affect is still consuming the individual, even if the individual is not responding in accordance with the rest of the crowd. So affect is thwarted, not controlled.... but this supports the notion that affect is not homogeneous of forcefully encompassing, unless no effort is to taken to make it function to the contrary.  

Final Project Proposal

Overview: Form an argument which explains your understanding of affect.

Specifics:

1. Use at least 3 sources from readings that were done for class
2. Use at least 3 outside sources
3. Explain:
     - What is affect
     - How should it be interpreted
     - What is your understanding of its significance

Final Project 

Brennan Ch. 1-2

“MAN IS NOT UNITY BUT MULTIPLE”

                Maurice Nicoll is a British psychologist who studied under Jung, Gurdjieff, and Ouspensky. In his piece Simple Explanation of Work Ideas he inadvertently addresses the transmission of affect in a very interesting way. Nicoll discusses the process necessary for one to truly understand one’s self. The point of intrigue, for me, is that he appears to argue that the transmission of affect, as described by Brennan, must be disregarded in order to truly be in touch with one’s self. A significant component to reaching a higher state of consciousness, according to Nicoll, is in direct contrast with Brennan’s notion of the transmission of effect.

                Nicoll acknowledges the transmission of affect in his own way. He says, “When we begin to realize that things speak out of us and actions take place from us without our consciousness, we begin to get a new view of ourselves” (Nicoll: A Simple Explanation of Work Ideas p. 18). He agrees with Brennan that there are, in a sense, intangible influences which can cause us to be a certain way. He also addresses the affect others can have on the individual with their presence alone.  He says “Notice the ‘I’s you are in when you are alone: notice how they change when anyone comes into the room. Try to notice the intonation with which different ‘I’s speak” (Nicoll: A Simple Explanation of Work Ideas p. 32).

                Nicoll and Brennan begin to disagree on their interpretations of the significance and nature of the transmission of effect. Brennan appears to take the stance that the individual is, to an extent, one with its environment. She says, “All this means, indeed the transmission of affect means, that we are not self-contained in terms of our energies. There is no secure distinction between the ‘individual’ and the ‘environment.’ (Brennan p. 6).  Nicoll argues that this type of association is the source of unhappiness and dissatisfaction for human beings. He says, “It is usual to see all our difficulties as being due to causes outside ourselves, because this is all we do see. But if we begin to realise that it is ourselves, our level of being, that attracts our life, and understand the necessity of working on ourselves because our problem lies in ourselves, we can begin to change” (Nicoll: A Simple Explanation of Work Ideas p. 33).

                I begin to question the entirety of Brennan’s argument through her direct agreement with Nicoll. Brennan states, “At the personal level, the transmission of these affects can be resisted, provided they are discerned…” (Brennan p. 23) I feel that the foundation for an existence of the transmission of effect, in some form, has been legitimately established. It is the the direct contradiction between Brannan and Nicoll’s rationalizations of the importance of effect that, for me, leads her argument astray.  She says, “These affects come from the other, but we deny them. Or they come from us, but we pretend (habitually) that they come from the other. Envy, anger, aggression behavior—these are the problems of the other. Overtolerance, overgenerosity—these are our problems” (Brennan p. 13). She discusses negative affects and the internalization of affects as defense mechanisms. Put differently, misinterpretation of affect becomes a way to avoid accepting one’s own undesirable characteristics or negative emotions; affect becomes a way to project the negative onto others, and to embrace the overly positive as one’s own burden.  

                This is where, for me, Nicoll’s idea of man as multiple trumps Brennan’s logic. Nicoll argues that in order to better one’s self one must accept that states of being are in constant flux. One is never the same from one moment to the next. Thus, in order to grow, affect must be observed from outside one’s self. One then becomes capable of not identifying with negative affects. He says, “When we realise we need not go with a mood etc., but can draw the feeling of ‘I’ out of it, we begin to see what not identifying with ourselves means” (Nicoll: A Simple Explanation of Work Ideas p. 55). Brennan’s argument focuses on rationalizing the “I” in terms of convoluted interpretations of affect. She also marginalizes not identifying with one’s self as a surge in people embracing Western individuality.

                Brennan states, “The reality of the increase makes the Western individual especially more concerned with securing a private fortress, personal boundaries, against the unsolicited emotional intrusions of the other” (Brennan p. 15). While I agree with the limitations of Western individuality, I feel that Brennan misses the critical component of disassociation, which in a way is Nicoll’s argument. I find far more functionality and insightfulness in Nicoll’s notion of accepting one’s own variability and observing affect from an outside perspective that naturally becomes introspective. Both Nicoll and Brennan agree on the existence of affect, but Brennan complicates the issue because she ignores the crucial role the individual plays in the extent to which affect can exist. She seems to argue an almost opposite of Nicoll’s stance. Brennan says, “It explains why we are willing to see the other as the origin of negative affects, such as envy and aggression, which we would rather disown in ourselves” (Brennan p. 14). Nicoll claims that others are the source of negative emotion for any particular individual, and by not identifying with the way these negative emotions make one feel one can find solace.

A Side note:

The nature of this material makes it difficult to form a universally coherent argument. I am sure that you would understand what I was saying better had you read Nicoll’s work yourself. The ideas discussed in both Brennan and Nicoll’s works are very abstract. I feel that the transmission affect can be better understood by looking at it from multiple perspectives. I also feel that Brennan overcomplicates the idea as a whole, and also misses a perspective that is necessary for its relevant exploration. 

Visual Argument

 The Folly of Man

Fast food has rapidly become an industry which increasingly extensive negative effects on the environment and society’s health. People often ignore, or are unaware, of these effects when they purchase fast food items. This visual argument is an attempt to point out the vast growth and increased consumption of fast food, and the residual effects on the environment and consumer health.

                The first image conjures up feelings of nostalgia, if the viewer was alive when McDonalds was founded, or, if they weren’t alive, a sense of wonder about a time they have only heard or read about. This image uses presuppositions about the audience’s knowledge of McDonalds’ (and fast food in general) successful transformation from a small burger stand to a multinational corporation. In context this image also brings up ideas about capitalism as an American ideal. By any measure, McDonald’s is a capitalistic success story.  The second image shows a stereotypical farm with cows happily grazing. This associates the old McDonalds with a small farm environment. This creates a relationship between the beginnings of fast food development, a staple in American cuisine, and a pleasant farm environment. The viewer is given a brief reminder of a time when an industry that is so prevalent today was very different. The farm also makes a positive association with the product it is producing, something that is familiar and known as a cornerstone in the human race’s industrialization and growth.

                The next picture is a busy McDonalds in what looks like another country. This makes the viewer see the transition and the growth and development of a particular player in a much larger industry. They are reminded of the frequency people consume fast food, and the global level on which the industry operates. This makes the viewer feel familiarity in the now, it also makes them feel the shift the industry has taken in a terms of presentation and prevalence. This image relies on presuppositions about the overconsumption of fast food, yet introduces it in a subtle way. It functions on a surface level, mostly inspiring a feeling of change in general. The next picture is of a sandwich from KFC which uses two pieces of fried chicken rather than buns. This is a somewhat comical use of the presupposition that certain components of the fast food industry have gone too far. This sandwich is the epitome of excess and makes the viewer feel somewhat disgusted. The viewer will feel guilt if this is a food item they eat themselves. They may also feel anger about others consuming food that is so clearly a poor dietary choice.

                The fifth image is of a large feedlot. This pulls the viewer into a much harsher component of the industry, and again points to the change in the way the industry functions. The image itself makes the viewer feel dirty and wary. If the viewer has ever been near a feedlot they will be reminded of the putrid smell of feces and filth the environment creates. The viewer will feel a sense of pity for the animals awful living conditions. Again, they will feel more guilt or anger depending on the role they play in supporting the fast food industry.  The viewer may also be grossed out by the food they have consumed in the past given the conditions the ingredients are raised in. The sixth image is of several obese children eating at a McDonalds. This brings the viewer back to something that they are familiar with, whether it be because they see obese children or because they themselves are obese. This makes the viewer feel an even greater sense of guilt and anger, and at this point should have them questioning their consumption of fast food. They should also be questioning the necessity and general nature of the fast food industry. These children represent a presupposition about America’s growing reputation as a fat unhealthy country that lives off of fast food. The viewer is again reminded of overconsumption and excess of the industry as a whole.

                The seventh image is of McDonalds’ executives at a press conference. This gives a face to the industry, and brings in the business elements (a pursuit of profits) that perpetuate the consumption and low prices of the food. The viewer feels a sense of anger toward the stereotypical white males who run the McDonalds Corporation. Presuppositions about corruption and the elite class exploiting the common man are utilized in this photo. The viewer may be made to feel as though they have been wronged and, if they consume fast food, a desire to stop supporting the industry. The eighth picture is of two hands shaking with foreign currency turning into a gooey mess in their hands. The background shows industrial images of smoke stacks on the top and a clean image depicting industry on the bottom. This utilizes the presuppositions from the previous image to solidify the idea of the industry and the government being in cahoots. This furthers the anger and paints the fast food industry in a very malicious and negative light. The viewer can’t help but draw associations between the changes in the industry and the involvement of the industry in the government. It also makes the viewer consider why something that is clearly so damaging for society and the environment is able to continue thriving.

                The ninth picture is a kid eating a burger with a McDonalds’ logo in the background. This is an interesting picture. The ketchup surrounding the kid’s mouth resembles blood and creates a very dark, almost evil, feeling about the act of actually eating fast food. This brings the viewer back to something very familiar. The kid in the picture is nondescript and could easily be the viewer or someone the viewer knows. The bright blue sky in the background is contrasted with the gross image of the kid eating the burger. This brings the viewer back to feeling disgust, and makes them consider the other images and the functionality of the industry as a whole. The have been brought through various processes and ideologies about the industry and are then presented with an  image they can relate to of someone simply eating a burger. The preceding eight images set up the ninth up to really shine. The other images really bring out the dark and grotesque nature of the ninth.

Photographs:

1.          1.       http://www.doobybrain.com/2007/10/22/mcdonalds-pampers-its-burgers/

2.       http://ruraltiestalesofacountrygirl.files.wordpress.com/2010/03/nz-dairy.jpg

3.       http://kidsblogs.nationalgeographic.com/you-are-here/beijing/behind-the-scenes/

4.        http://www.evilchili.com/blogs/403/The_Horrible_Secret_About_Fast_Food

5.       http://www.ruralvotes.com/thebackforty/?p=3132

6.       http://www.popaholicsanonymous.com/tag/mcdonalds/

7.       http://www.zimbio.com/pictures/JIcTIIyTR_k/McDonalds+Holds+Annual+Shareholders+Meeting

8.       http://www.getup.org.au/campaign/ClimateActionNow&id=340

9.       http://foodworldorder.blogspot.com/2010/11/mcdonalds-pepsi-to-help-write-uk-health.html

Kennedy

This piece did not resonate with me because I felt that it forcefully incorporated rhetoric as a function of it's argument. What I interpreted to be the point of this piece, and what I feel Kennedy says quite explicitly, is that by studying behavioral and communicative characteristics of animals the evolution and development of rhetoric can be better understood. I can presumably follow that argument, and can also see potential for it having intriguing characteristics; however, I find myself a bit unclear on how this is an expansion of what we already know about rhetoric. Kennedy states "This brief discussion is intended to direct attention to animal communication as a way of understanding some basic features of rhetoric that might be restated as general rules" (p.20). I fail to see where he outlines anything that isn't logical, and in terms of rhetoric (which I personally feel is a subject that often over extends its boundaries and application) is imaginative or insightful. The general consensus that I came to roughly halfway through this piece was that Kennedy was effectively forming a logical manipulation of the principles of rhetoric in order to apply them to the behavioral and communicative characteristics of animals. I feel that this quote was almost an admittance of my accusation:

"Using the traditional parts of rhetoric as a basis for discussion may be objected to by some as analogous to ethnocentrism in anthropology, the imposition of a later, and Western, structural scheme on phenomena that in their natural state might be related in different ways. My response to this criticism is to agree that the categories of traditional rhetoric may not be a satisfactory basis to describe animal communication and I do not use them for that purpose. What I am looking for are features of animal communication that resemble categories of traditional rhetoric and that therefore suggest that these categories, though conditioned by cultural conventions, represent the survival of certain natural phenomenon" (p. 14).

I find the notion of "the survival of natural phenomenon" interesting on its own, but after reading this piece I did not feel like the imposition of rhetoric as an explanatory characteristic gave me greater insight on this topic. Kennedy presents some conceptually sound arguments which link rhetoric to animal life, yet in my opinion fails to develop anything more than that. He has managed to fit rhetoric into a mold, yet has failed to give it any meaning. Just because you can formulate a relationship between subjects does not mean that the relationship has anything to offer in terms of expanding an understanding of the subjects being related. Part of me feels that there is something to be said about examining the evolution of rhetoric in terms of survival strategies, yet I felt the approach taken by Kennedy was an effort to (in my opinion unnecessarily) give rhetoric an artificially higher calling.

This manifests itself most obviously in some of Kennedy's language choices. I found some of his arguments to be suggestive, rather than actually founded. I question his fourth thesis which claimed "The function of rhetoric is the survival of the fittest." Does he mean "A function of rhetoric"? I also question his logic here:

"...the claim of Aristotle (Rhetoric 1.1.14) and his successors that the function of rhetoric is not persuasion but observing the available means of persuasion. A speech may not succeed, but in Aristotle's view may still be the best possible speech and demonstrate the speaker's rhetorical skill. Of course a speech, though ineffective with an audience, may successfully fulfill the speaker's need to speak--to put himself 'on record' as it were; a bird that gives a cry indicating a predator fulfills a need to express that, even if the bird is mistaken or ignored by others. A speech that is not successful at the moment may affect future conditions indirectly" (p. 8).

I understand the connection... A human speaker has a need to speak as he feels his words hold a meaning that must be said, and a bird fears a predator and feels the need to indicate danger; despite the success of either "speaker," their motivation is in a similar vein? I just feel that if I break down this excerpt all he is really doing is establishing his ethos as a rhetorical authority and then loosely incorporating a hypothetical situation involving a bird's instinctual fear of a predator as some sort of relevant rhetorical function. It seems that rhetoric's relevance in this logic is suggested more than substantiated, and contrived rather than necessarily insightful.

This quote is in my opinion very indicative of Kennedy's attempt to stretch rhetoric's application in what seems to me a bizarre attempt to glorify its importance:

"In theory, one might even seek to identify some quantitative unit of rhetorical energy--call it the "rheme"--analogous to an erg or volt, by which rhetorical energy could be measured. I leave that to the experimentalist" (p. 2)

Is this not a rather desperate attempt to link rhetoric and science in a completely unjustifiable way? I found his qualifier ("I leave that to the experimentalist") particularly hilarious. I guess I just don't find many profound, thoughtful implications within this piece that resonate outside of the egocentric misguided logic, and the rather suggestive language that dominates (for me) its entirety. Someone please explain the point of posing some sort of measurable rhetorical energy "rheme" as being anything other than an attempt by Kennedy to give his reasoning and profession a sort of self fulfilling pseudo-scientific application.

Damasio Ch. 1-4

I recently came across several ideas from Naomi L. Quenk's "Beside Ourselves: Our Hidden Personality in Everyday Life" which I feel pertain to, and provide insight on a lot of the material we discuss in class. Quenk's book is an interpretation and application of the work of Carl G. Jung, a Swiss psychiatrist who studied under Freud.

Excerpt from Chapter 1: Jungian Psychology and Hidden Personality: The Principle of Compensation

"Psychological opposites are essential for the whole of Jung's personality theory, just as they are for his type theory. This opposition provides a way for our psyches to correct one-sidedness. Jung called the mechanism for correcting one-sidedness compensation."

Excerpt from Appendix B: Selected Quotations From Jung on His Typology: Differentiation of Functions

"So long as a function is still fused with one or more of the other functions--thinking with feeling, feeling with sensation, etc--that it is unable to operate on its own, it is...not differentiated, not separated from the whole as a special part and existing by itself. Undifferentiated thinking is incapable of thinking apart from other functions; it is continually mixed up with sensations and fantasies... To the extent that a function is largely or wholly unconscious, it is also undifferentiated; it is not only fused together in its parts but also merged with the functions... Without differentiation direction is impossible, since the direction of a function towards a goal depends on the elimination of anything irrelevant. Fusion with the irrelevant precludes direction; only a differentiated function is capable of being directed."

These quotes create solid iteration of how I interpreted the post-accident affects of Phineas Gage and Elliot from "Descartes Error" in their abilities to perform certain functions. I remember in particular Elliot's inability to effectively sort papers etc. I feel that this quote is a good depiction of the failure of these processes: "Without differentiation direction is impossible, since the direction of a function towards a goal depends on the elimination of anything irrelevant." I find the idea of various personality characteristics struggling to work harmoniously very interesting. Jung proposes that if one characteristic becomes dominant (as often happens as Jung believes we are born with a predisposition to certain characteristic) opposite functions will suffer. He also claims that the dominant characteristic can develop into a "one-sided" form which becomes problematic for outward and inward representation and interpretation of one's dominant personality characteristics. I propose that this is somewhat explanatory of the patients described in "Descartes Error." If these patients functions (specifically emotion) became differentiated, whether it be because they were removed entirely or if they were merely separated from other functions (evidence from "Descartes Error" points to the former), the problems Jung describes as "one-sided" development would provide insight into their inability to perform certain tasks and manage certain aspects of their lives. By this logic, Elliot is unable to effectively sort a stack of papers because the unconscious function of his emotions no longer give his actions direction.

I also find it interesting that Aristotle explains emotions by forming pairs of opposites, and Jung explains the development, explanations of, and restructuring of personality in pairs of opposites as well. The pairing of Jung's explanation of personality with Aristotle's explanation of emotion is a very interesting one. Aristotle does not discuss the balancing act that occurs as a natural human process as described by Jung, but I do feel Jung's work can provide insight into the rhetorical application of Aristotle's appeal to emotion. Jung addresses the notion of projection, simply put the tendency to observe our own insecurities in other people. This can be a manifestation of characteristics we like, yet lack in our own demeanor, or dislike, yet have tendencies to have ourselves. Jung's work adds to the understanding of how emotions and personalities functions within the human psyche. I recommend researching this stuff on your own, as it is very interesting and provides a lot of insight into the material we cover in class!

Written Pathetic Appeal

The purpose of my piece is to point out and intensify the insecurities of a generation. In particular, those of us who are less equipped to combat the rise in unemployment that has resulted from a global economic collapse. I am trying to point to the lack of change that has resulted in the way a system that is spiraling out of control functions. I understand that this piece may create some disdain toward me, as I am the author and the subject is a bit abrasive. I accept this as part of what I wanted to create; which was to encourage an active pursuit to deflect potential defeat, rather than a submissive acceptance of failure. I attempt to create a sense of fear, anger, and discontent that is coupled with a logical assessment of reality. I hope that this piece resonates with you enough on an emotional level to give you the inspiration to consider your life, place in the world, and future success from an alternative perspective. I am not simply trying to get a rise out of you by attacking the one definitive thing I know about most of you, your major.

Revision:

I took my argument and made every attempt I could to make it more specific. My first submission had a lot of ambiguity and left a lot of things open to interpretation. This revision is more focused on exactly what I wanted to argue, as well as more specific in terms of how to interpret what I say. I also tried to reduce interpretation in terms of what I am saying regarding liberal arts education. I also worked out several mechanical/grammatical errors and issues of word choice.

Written Pathetic Appeal