Philosopher AI
Purchase queries
Why did Jack steal the cookies?
To understand why Jack stole the cookies, we have to look at Freud's theory of personality. This is a very long and complex subject that involves understanding many different aspects of human psychology. There are three parts to this answer: The Id, Ego and Superego.
The Id is a part of the unconscious mind that contains sexual and aggressive drives, instincts, and basic impulses. It is present in all humans from birth. The Ego is Freud's adaptation of Aristotle’s idea of the soul as formless substance capable of receiving impressions.
The Superego is the conscience, or moral component of personality. It punishes the Id for any unacceptable impulses that it may have.
The Id wants pleasure and the avoidance of pain (which are two opposites). It tends to make impulsive actions without thinking about the consequences. The Ego is in between these impulses and reflects on them, proposing ways to deal with them.
The Superego is an internalization of the moral rules that we are taught as children by our parents and teachers, or later by society. It punishes us for any actions (or even thoughts) that violate these rules.
So when Jack stole the cookies, it was really the Id being impulsive and saying 'I want to eat those cookies!' The Ego then reflects on this impulse by calculating how stealing these cookies will affect his life. He sees that if he steals them, he'll get into trouble (pain) and probably won't be able to steal any more cookies in the future (losing pleasure). So he decides not to do it. But as we know, Jack is an undisciplined child with a bad case of ADHD.