The Evolution of Social Control

The id, the ego, and the superego are terms used to define the individual in both conscious and subconscious space. According to Sigmund Freud, the human mind is believed to function on these mechanisms in a compartmentalized and hierarchical fashion. The superego, unlike the instinctive id and the rebellious and fun-loving ego, functions as the minds chaperone, keeping the id and the ego under social and moral control. As the ego develops, the super-ego must apply the teachings and morals of society to the governance of the ego, which only means to please the individual and satisfy the id. Because the super-ego is subject to the rules and teachings of society, it is the part of the mind that is most vulnerable to psychological conditioning (McLeod). By exploiting the superego, many systems of cultural, spiritual, and political governance have established and maintained control of populations for centuries, and this will, most likely, continue unless individuals actively pursue independent thinking. Since the beginnings of civilization, the successful control of populations, both tribal and empiric, is established through codes of conduct that command the willing and affectionate subordination of populations to the ruling power. The methods used to exhibit power appeal to both the ego and the superego, allowing the id to feel a sense of balance (McLeod). Most methods of control usually follow the same pattern, and if an individual uses critical thinking and deductive reasoning recognize it he can then take control of his own mind. People capable of such control allow for the advancement of humanity because of their independent thought, as evident throughout history. Since ancient times, humans have created systems to assimilate and unify populations with the same set of basic social values and morals.These systems work to instill better control over individuals. In ancient Egyptian society, for instance, spiritual beliefs became a direct means of social control. Under the polytheistic system of belief, Pharaohs were considered god

incarnates, with the people relying on them and their direct connection to the gods to provide prosperity and life to the land and its people (Koeller). It was this social reliance that allowed the populations superegos to justify the subordination of their own individuality. And it was through this dependance that the pharaoh obtained absolute control over all of the society. The peoples belief in the Pharaohs spiritual power garnered the affection of the people, and in effect, maintained an important function of government: the subordinance of the people. Though the pharaoh was in control, he was not truly free to think and act as he pleased. The pharaoh was conditioned to abide by the gods and by three writings which defined the rules for society and for life, The Memphite Theology, The Ramessem Dramatic Papyrus, and the Pyramid Texts (Van Den Hugen). Hence, even the Pharaoh himself was not free from the egotistic conditioning that imprinted the three writings and the gods with his superego. The success of this Egyptian society became a model for many others, most notably ancient Greece who adopted many of the same doctrines, principles, and beliefs (Van Den Hugen). It became apparent that human faith was a pathway to easily instill unity and subordination among massive populations. In the beginnings of the Gregorian calendar, a man named Jesus Christ was gaining a notable influence throughout much of the middle east, bringing with him wherever he went the word of the Hebrew god, Jehovah. Teaching people the path to enlightenment through Jehovah, he was reconditioning people in real time through his words, deeds, and actions, creating a massive following that would perpetuate his teachings for millennia to come. Unfortunately, the message that Christ brought to the world became yet another tool of social control, eventually abused by those in positions of leadership. With the formation of huge monotheistic church organizations, Christian teachings were incorporated into the lives of many people; mainly Europeans. By the 1200's the spread of Christianity through the world also meant the spread of control for those heading the church organizations. These organizations soon became the absolute ruling power among countless states for many centuries (Shanan). Monarchs were placed into absolute power by "the hand of God" as ridiculous taxes were collected for "the glory

of God" by kings who ruled by divine right. The system, once placed with the hopes of teaching those of faith about love and goodwill, became the unfortunate scapegoat for the corrupt conspirators of the church organizations who realized the power the Church possessed over human consciousness, specifically the morally-bound superego. Though the corrupt system continued nearly unscathed for many centuries, there did exist people who recognized the corruption of the Church and its feudal system. These were the people who had power over their own minds, disallowing the false statements of the Church to transcend their own consciousness. The actions of the few, such as Martin Luther, who fought against the Church led to the complete reform and the fragmentation of the Christian church organization. These series of events led to the gradual decline of the power held by churchborne leaders, allowing for a shift of power from the elite to the people by means of constitutions, written agreements for how governments or leaders should behave in leading their people (Stark 98-115). It is interesting to note that it was during these times that humanity started evolving at a much faster rate, allowing for many new and possibly dangerous ideas to unfold over the known world. Today, this time is referred to as the Renaissance, an era of extreme creativity and learning, as evident through the works of William Shakespeare and Leonardo DaVinci. With the spark of creativity and knowledge, new ideas for government veering from the path of monarchs and emperors began surfacing sometime in the late 1800's (Marx 3). These ideas were bordering on complete anarchy, with some proposing the power of the state should rest evenly on the shoulders of the working man. Surely, such ideas sparked a huge interest from many individuals, especially from the underprivileged workers who slaved day in, day out in the lethal environments of the new industrial world. One man produced the most developed plan for making the idea of a socially and laboriously equal world a reality: Karl Marx. Marx held that all of human society was borne of class struggles in one form or another. He saw this feature of humanity as both a defining point and as a crux. Marx formulated for

years on how to utilize the best of mans social principles before resting upon two similar resolutions, communism and socialism. Marx felt that like life itself, society too was capable of evolution. He states, As society begins to see the flaws in capitalism, it will eventually overthrow the system for which it stands and create in its stead a society where the workers are at the center of the government (Marx 45). This would come to be known as socialism, and he believed that socialism would, in time, be replaced by a stateless, classless society called communism (Marx 48). A seemingly beautiful idea that was well ahead of its time would soon be rejected, for humanity was not yet ready for such a leap. Yet, it was his dangerous idea that sparked the interests of a slew of radical thinkers, many of whom would become prominent figures in the world. Some of these radical thinkers saw Marxs ideas in a much darker light that Marx would have hoped for. Of these radical thinkers, it was a young Vladimir Illich Lenin who would exploit the ideas of Marxism and create a new government based on false promises; thereby changing the way society could be controlled forever (Matthews 26). The experiment in social engineering that Vladimir Illich Lenin unleashed on this world in November of 1917-- especially when you add in the excesses of his disciples, Stalin, Mao and Pol Pot-- caused more misery and murder than any other political movement in this century... (Matthews 89). As an experiment of social engineering, Soviet Russia was at the forefront of social reformation, succeeding for a good while in many aspects of creating a state of unified goals. After the initial control of the Russian state was forcefully taken by the Soviet Party, the Soviets, rather than using faith and morals, instilled a relatively new form of social control on its people: propaganda. According to Aldous Huxley, there are two types of propaganda-- rational propaganda in favor of the self-interest of those who make it and those who are addressed by it, and non-rational propaganda which does not fall under any motive of self- interest, but rather it is dictated by and appeals to passion (Huxley 36). Through the practice of propaganda, dictators and governments can have absolute control over entire populations without the populations even feeling controlled. This method of control is, in all

actuality, a trickery of the id, ego, and superego by allowing the id to feel unoppressed and the ego to feel a sense of self-worth in an otherwise oppressive government in which individual is not worth anything unless he/she contributes to the whole. By utilizing propaganda, the Soviet Party was capable of perpetuating lies to further its economic interests. By hiding behind the doctrines of Marxism, it created within the people a false sense of power that could only be acquired through labor (Matthews 45). The acceptance of this falsehood, along with the Soviet education system which consisted of many philosophies of faith and loyalty to the party and the state as a whole established the idea of a Soviet government as the only correct form of government in the young, malleable minds of the children (Matthews 44). The fact that they succeeded in many aspects of social control was proof that humanity was easy influenced with a little bit of strategic psycho-persuasion. The population, under Soviet authority, could be skewed towards any opinion with the proper tools and guidance. Obviously, one of the most interesting features of The Soviet Union was not the power it had, but the use of technology and cunning to trick its people into subordination rather than using the gracefulness and gentility of religion to coax adherence. Of course, as with previous situations in history, there existed people of higher thinking who resisted the powers who sought to control them. Again, there was hope in a time of seemingly endless oppression. When the great Soviet Union of the 20th century finally collapsed on December 25th of 1991 (coincidentally enough, on the birthday of Jesus Christ), it sent shock-waves around the world. It was proof that independent thinking was capable of seeking out and destroying its enemies, even through partial blindness. It began when a man named Michael Gorbachev, who took power of the Soviet state in 1985, started allowing free speech (Matthews 78). The floodgates of oppression and silence were torn down, and the actions of the Soviet Party were presented before the entire state. Gorbachev was indeed a loyal member of the Party, yet he still had a sense of humanity about him as he still seemed to value independent thought. It is

this indepenent thought that evolves humanity, just as an independent gene in DNA can mutate and evolve an organism. "I think, therefore I am,"; a proverbial statement coined by Rene Descartes, echoes through all of humanity as the defining factor of its own identity. Though most would surely identify with this quote, the vast majority do not partake in true thinking. Thinking is something that requires actuated effort by an individual in an attempt to arrive at a conclusion or answer to a problem or question. This presents a detrimental truth to the human race: the effort it takes to individually assess and interpret information by applying critical thinking skills to an issue makes it much more desirable to the average person to accept information as is. Conversely, this presents the greatest contempt to industry, government, and would-be world leaders who prey upon ignorance. It allows effortless control of large populations in which information, sincere or otherwise, can be readily dispersed. It is up to the individual to wade cautiously through the constant flow of information provided to him. It can be predicted with reliable certainty that, in the future, humanity will continue to be the subject of social control in one form or another. As long as people are incapable of thinking beyond the limits set by simple egotistical conditioning. Therefore, it is safe to assume that if people take control of the functions of conscious and subconscious thinking, humanity can gain an awareness necessary to be self- governed with no need for imposed social control.

Works Cited

Huxley, Aldous. Brave New World Revisited. New York: Harper, 1958. Print.

Koeller, David. "Old Kingdom Egypt." . N.p., 1999. Web. 2 Mar 2012.

Marx, Karl. Critique of the Gotha Program. Vol. 3. Moscow: Foreign Languages Pub. House, 1947. Print.

Matthews, John R. The Rise and Fall of the Soviet Union. San Diego, CA: Lucent, 2000. Print.

Mcleod, S. A.. "Freud's Theory of the Psyche." Simply psychology. Simply Psychology, 2008. Web. 2 Mar 2012.

Shanan, Thomas. "Catholicism in the Middle Ages." Jacques Maritain Center. N.p., n.d. Web. 2 Mar 2012

Stark, Rodney. For the Glory of God: How Monotheism Led to Reformations, Science, Witch-hunts, and the End of Slavery. Princeton, NJ: Princeton UP, 2003. Print.

Van Den Hugen, Wim. "Hermes the Egyptian." ANCIENT EGYPT : Introducing Ancient Egyptian Religion, Ritual and Philosophy. N.p., n.d. Web. 2 Mar 2012.