Tuesday, January 06, 2009

I have a contradictory sense of self.

So apparently I have a contradictory sense of self.

"Psychologists in America have interviewed ten male members of the Latter-day Saints Church (i.e. Mormons) who've grown beards despite their church preferring members not to have facial hair. Michael Nielsen and Daryl White argue the stories these men tell provide rich material for exploring issues of social control and individual identity.

"The researchers say these cases show men attempting to manage "contradictory senses of self".

"Faced with unnecessarily invasive requests to shave, requests that sometimes took the shape of ultimatums, some men expressed resentment at having to choose between a mere show of compliance and deeply felt, even intimate identities: discomfort, embarrassment, and shame are exchanged for a token show of obedience, with resentment likely to follow."

I didn't realize I was so rich and complex.

2 comments:

Kurt Johnson said...

I always knew there was a reason for that latent 'onryness.'

Josi said...

Is it even more complicated if your wife insists you keep the beard, forcing you to choose between the stupid preference of the church (not that the church is stupid, just that the preference part is stupid, cause it is) or your loving wife who makes you cookies? Poor man. I love my hubby's beard and hope he never shaves it or gets called as bishop.