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Erich Fromm was a humanistic philosopher and psychoanalytic psychologist. He devoted his life to adapting Freud’s psychoanalytic doctrine to the spiritual situation of Westerners after the two world wars. Today, his ideas still have a great influence on contemporary society, especially his theory of consumer alienation which opens up a certain theoretical vision for the >consumer age< we live in. At the same time, Fromm’s alienation theory has a certain degree of scientificity and extensibility, because he takes Marx’s alienation thought as the theoretical foundation and Freud’s psychoanalytic theory as the extension, and through the appropriate combination of the two, he leads his own alienation theory, in order to profoundly analyze the problem of human alienation, the most important of which is the problem of consumer alienation. For Fromm, the theme of modern capitalist society is no longer >production<, but >consumption<, and the source of alienation is not only the former >alienation of labor<, but also the >alienation of consumption<. The source of alienation is not only the former >alienation of labor<, but also the >alienation of consumption<, in which modern society is full of symbols, and in which people are gradually commodified. During this period, Fromm remained sober, warning people about the great danger of consumer alienation, trying to wake up and save people who were trapped in the trap of consumer alienation, and Fromm always insisted on calling people to be rational subjects, in order to build a sound society. Nowadays, China has become the second largest consumer market in the world through continuous development, and along with the irreversible globalization, the world is becoming >smaller<, so the invasion of the Chinese market by consumerism is inevitable.
In such a social context, Fromm’s theory of consumer alienation becomes more valuable, which is also the starting point and research purpose of this paper. At the same time, the objective limitations of Fromm’s theory of consumer alienation also serve as an important reflection and reference for our analysis of the consumption problem in China. To this end, this paper analyzes and studies Fromm’s theory of consumer alienation and its contemporary value through five main parts: first, through the introductory part, it compares the domestic and foreign literature to achieve a systematic macroscopic grasp of Fromm’s theory of alienation.– Secondly, through the theoretical tracing of Fromm’s theory of consumer alienation, the development background and theoretical foundation of his theory are more objectively understood.– Third, through the exploration of the basic contents of Fromm’s theory of consumer alienation, we discuss its causes and connotations and discover its realistic manifestations and possible crises.– Fourth, through the first three parts, we will find Fromm’s path to overcome consumer alienation and his specific expectations for building a sound society.– Fifth, through an objective evaluation of the contributions and limitations of Fromm’s theory of consumer alienation, we will use its reference value to analyze the current problems of consumption in China, and use it as a reference to actively explore favorable insights and solutions to improve the consumption problem in China. [Translation: www.cnki. net, 9/2022]
Carson McCullers is an important female writer in the history of American Southern literature, and her works are full of description of Southern society. >Clock Without Hands<, her last novel, describes the Southern people and events in the mid-twentieth century. Most research outcomes focus on characters and mental description in the novel, a few are concerned with its social discourse, but few literary critics probe the alienation and its connection with society and history. This thesis explores the characters’ alienation condition in the South from the perspective of the alienation theory, which Fromm also emphasizes the individual experience and social elements, so as to reveal the panorama of Southern American society in >Clock Without Hands<. This thesis concludes that McCullers’ description on social alienation and social changes of the novel presents Southern advancement in the twentieth century, and it provides a new way to understand Southern society in >Clock Without Hands<, with the analysis of its theme of alienation. [Translation: www.cnki.net, 7/2023]
Fromm divided the value orientation of human beings into two kinds: emphasis on >having< and emphasis on >being<, and distinguished the essence of the two. He pointed out that alienated consumption is a way of existence of emphasis on having, which leads to the alienation of human beings and nature, between people and people as well as individual human beings, so that people are more and more far away from the >being<. He believes that only by changing the value orientation of people can we abandon the alienated consumption and return to the nature of human existence. Under the influence of western consumer society, alienated consumption is also spreading in our country. At this critical time, Fromm’s criticism of alienated consumption is of great significance for us to cultivate the correct consumption concept, imple¬ment the correct consumption behavior, and realize the sustainable utilization of resources, social harmony and the all-round development of human beings [Translation: www.cnki.net, 4/2023]
Erich Fromm is an American psychologist and psychoanalyst. In his system of doctrine, the existence concept occupies an important position. In Fromm’s view, existence mode not only reflects the individual’s living conditions, but also reflects the status and level of social development. Existence mode is not only an issue of values, but also an issue of ethics and psychology. Fromm’s concept is deeply influenced by Marx and Freud. Marx’s alienated labor theory and Freud’s psychoanalytic theory constitute important theoretical sources of his existence concept. Fromm divides existence mode into two types: the mode of having and the mode of being. Fromm profoundly reveals the social psychology and character characteristics of having, as well as the negative effects of having on all levels of society. On this basis, Fromm believes that it is necessary to shape a proactive mode of existence with >freedom<, >creativity< and >love< as the core demands, and to promote the construction of a new society through reforms at the political, economic and cultural levels, and to cultivate the new person with ideas of existence mode. By doing so, it is effective to eliminate the negative effects caused by alienation, reification and fetishism, and to transcend the existence mode of having. Fromm’s denial and criticism of the existence mode of having and the advocacy and assumption of the existence mode of being have positive enlightenment significance for the spiritual civilization construction of our society and the all-round development of human beings. However, Fromm’s existence thought also has obvious limitations. He lacks historical materialism. Although he recognizes that the generalization of the existence mode of having is the result of the development of private ownership, he ignores and downplays the decisive role of the economic foundation in social change. The social reform plan he proposes is out of touch with reality and has a strong utopian color, making it difficult to become a reality. [Translation: www.cnki.net, 4/2022]
[Chinese abstract not available.] With the gradual enrichment of material resources, the phenomenon of consumption alienation in western developed capitalist countries has also appeared in contemporary China. Consumption alienation has brought many specific problems and harms to contemporary China, and college students’ Campus loan is one of them. Some college students’ consumption psychology is affected by the phenomenon of consumption alienation and have a fanatical pursuit of goods and commodities. Because they have no economic income and limited economic ability, they choose to borrow and consume in the way of >campus loan< to meet their material desire, which leads to a series of >campus loan< problems. Fromm’s consumption alienation theory has a very important reference significance to solve the problem of College Students’ >campus loan<, so this paper systematically combs the main contents of Fromm’s consumption alienation theory. Firstly, it explains the core concept of Fromm’s consumption alienation theory and consumption alienation; Secondly, it points out that the performance and harm of consumption alienation are mainly reflected in three aspects: consumption alienation makes people lose their subjectivity and creativity, makes people have a false sense of happiness and psychological emptiness, and brings about the survival crisis of modern people; Thirdly, it analyzes the causes of consumption alienation, which has human and social roots; Finally, Fromm pointed out that in order to get rid of consumption alienation, we must establish a productive personality and humane consumption mode and realize the comprehensive reform of the transformation from a sick society to a sound society. Based on Fromm’s consumption alienation theory, this paper analyzes the current situation, harm and solution of College Students’ Campus loan by using the methods of literature research and integrating theory with practice. Firstly, this paper combs the current situation and classification of College students’ >campus loan<, mainly including consumer loan products, routine loan products and campus network loan. At present, consumer loan products and routine loan products are more in contact with college students, and campus network loan seriously endangers the physical and mental health of College students. At present, due to national supervision, it has stopped operation one after another; Secondly, it deeply analyzes the harm of College students’ campus loan to college students themselves, their families and all aspects of the school; Finally, from the perspective of Fromm’s consumption alienation theory, the paper puts forward that to solve the problem of College Students’ >campus loan<, we should cultivate college students’ sound personality and advocate correct consumption patterns, and puts forward specific solutions from these two aspects. [Translation: www.cnki.net, 9/2022]
As one of the most prominent and prolific writers in contemporary Canada, Margaret Atwood has won the Booker Prize twice. >Oryx and Crake< is Margaret Atwood’s eleventh novel, which mainly describes the clear recollections of sole human survivor Jimmy-Snowman before the crack of doom. His best friend Crake has destroyed humanity by creating a deadly virus that quickly spreads to the whole world and causes the destruction of human beings. By depicting the alienation phenomenon in the novel, Atwood reveals the predicament of modern people in a modern society and shows her humanistic concern. Based on Fromm's alienation theory, this thesis analyses the phenomenon of alienation from three aspects: the self-alienation, the relationship alienation and the social alienation. Firstly, the self-alienation means that man loses his creativity and subjectivity. Through creative activities and self-love, man can achieve his spiritual development and subjectivity. Secondly, this thesis also explores the relationship alienation. In modern society, people tend to make use of each other to safeguard their interests, which leads to the love that between family members and lovers is not pure. Through mature motherly love and erotic love, children will establish a more harmonious relationship with their parents and lovers will have a deeper understanding of each other. Thirdly, it comes to the social alienation. Technology alienation and consumption alienation are embodied in the social alienation. The misuse of technology and the possession of material things cause the alienation between man and society. In order to establish a humane society, humans can establish a harmonious relationship with society by having a humanistic planning and humanized consumption. By discussing the alienation phenomenon and the methods to eliminate alienation, this thesis attempts to provide a salutary lesson. In order to eliminate alienation, people should establish a harmonious relationship with themselves, others and society with the creativity, love and humanistic spirit. [Translation: www.cnki.net, 4/2023]
As one of the most famous contemporary female writers in America, Donna Tartt is a newly rising star in American literary circles. It is Tartt’s merit to describe the loss and confusion of teenagers and her work is characterized by its graceful language, compact plot and great readability. As a masterpiece that has taken Tartt’s nearly eleven years to get completed, >The Goldfinch< tells a story of a miserable boy and a famous painting which has escaped a disaster. Since its publication in 2013, >The Goldfinch< has been interpreted by scholars at home and abroad from different perspectives, whose research results are mainly concentrated on its theme and narrative skills. However, there have been no scholars so far who have interpreted the alienation phenomenon of the protagonist in the work from the perspective of alienation. Therefore, the author attempts to give a brand-new analysis and interpretation of Theodore’s alienation phenomenon in the novel with the guidance of famous psychologist Fromm’s theory of alienation, which aims to provide readers with more abundant angle to understand this masterpiece. This thesis consists of three parts: introduction, main body and conclusion. In the part of introduction, Donna Tartt and her masterpiece >The Goldfinch< are briefly arranged. Besides, this part summarizes the current research status of this topic at home and abroad and gives a brief introduction of the alienation theory of Fromm. The research significance of this paper is also clarified in this part. The body part is the main body of this thesis, which consists of three chapters. The first chapter explores the manifestations of Theodore’s alienation, which is embodied in his alienation from society, from others and from himself. Alienation is an extremely adverse phenomenon that will do harm to one’s mental health. However, it is unavoidable for Theodore to suffer from alienation due to his miserable sufferings and living environment. The second chapter analyzes the roots of Theodore’s alienation, which is carefully clarified from the perspective of society, family and Theodore’s psychology.– The first section discusses the social roots of Theodore’s alienation: the unstable social environment and the general absence of family ethics have caused individuals’ general estrangement and alienation.– The second section shows the family roots of Theodore’s alienation: the early death of his mother and the absence of his family affection lead to the cultivation of his closed and timid character.– The third section explores the psychological roots of Theodore’s alienation: his inner emptiness and loneliness are the fundamental reasons for his alienation. The third chapter analyzes the process of how Theodore constructively eliminates his alienation and finally obtains a sound psychology. The acquisition of fatherly affection and the nourishment of friendship make him feel be loved and help him gain a sense of security and the courage to move forward. Besides, the re-establishment of relationships with the outside world gives him a sense of accomplishment and helps him realize his own value. Moreover, the painting >The Goldfinch< provides him with a broad artistic space, in which he can find some comfort and courage. All of these factors have contributed to the elimination of Theodore’s alienation.– The conclusion part is the summary of the above analysis. By analyzing the manifestations and roots of Theodore’s alienation, and his efforts to eliminate alienation under the guidance of Fromm’s alienation theory, the author constructively gives the advice of solving the spiritual crisis and eliminating the alienation phenomenon of modern people. Besides, the significance and shortcomings of this thesis are also clarified in this part. With the rapid progress of society, people’s material life has been greatly improved. However, people’s spiritual world has not kept pace with their increasing material wealth. The relationships among people become aloof and isolated, which is harmful to one’s healthy development and the progress of society. Therefore, this paper aims to provide some constructive suggestions for modern people to properly handle their anxiety and eliminate their alienation phenomenon through the detailed analysis of Theodore’s alienation. It also aims to achieve the healthy development of individuals and help them establish a harmonious relationship full of love. [www.cnki.net, 11/2022]
On the basis of Freud’s character theory, Fromm introduced Marx’s historical materialism and creatively put forward the social character theory, which not only broke through the limitations of Freud’s character theory, but also improved Marx’s historical materialism. With the help of social character theory, Fromm elaborated the concrete operation mechanism between social existence and social consciousness. [Translation: www.cnki.net, 11/2022]
This paper aims to emphasize the fundamental role of unconscious processes in our adaptation. We will point out how we are able to unconsciously perform higher mental functions such as setting goals and planning how to pursue them, dealing with complex data, and making choices and judgments. In the first part of this paper, we will describe the main features of conscious and unconscious processes as pointed out by recent empirical research studies, and we will see how safety is essential in pursuing our fundamental goals, and how unconscious mental processes are strongly oriented towards preserving our safety and pursuing these goals. Finally, we will discuss control-mastery theory (CMT), an integrative, relational, cognitive-dynamic theory of mental functioning, psychopathology, and psychotherapy processes developed by Joseph Weiss and empirically validated by Weiss, Harold Sampson, and the San Francisco Psychotherapy Research Group over the last 50 years. This conceptualizes unconscious processes starting from this >higher unconscious mental functioning< paradigm and, in accordance with research data, stresses that our main goal is to adapt to reality and pursue adaptive developmental goals while preserving our safety. Three clinical vignettes will help show how the concepts proposed by CMT have important implications for therapeutic process.
Einleitung
(2022)
в статье приводится попытка показать и доказать, что, несмотря на прошедшее время, Эрих Фромм говорит с нами о нашей социальной реальности на нашем языке. >Диагнозы< больной ткани постсовременного гражданского общества, а также оценки феноменов социальной и экзистенциальной реальности, поражают своей точностью и актуальностью. В статье анализируются работы Фромма, а также комментирующая литература современных западных авторов.