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Rizal as Pilosopong Tasyo: A Discussion to Dr. Fleming's Diseases of the Thesis
We, nurses and other science related professions, were first introduced to psychology sometime in our first to second year of under graduate study. But it never crossed in our mind that we had the first grasp of psychology long before we entered the world of complex science. I am talking about how Rizal initiated topics about psychology in his novel Noli Me Tangere and major essay, La Curación de los Hechizados (The Treatment of the Possessed) that reflect types of human behavior usually described in psychology textbooks. In the novel, he mentioned several lunatics like Pilosopo Tasyo, Sisa and Dona Victoria. But my discussion will only revolve around the character of Pilosopo Tasyo who exhibits classical psychological profile in reality.
Pilosopo Tasyo, an old man when we meet him in Noli, was a crazy lunatic. During his younger days, he studied philosophy. He was a bright student. Too bright that his mother feared that he might became too absorbed in his studies and forget about God. His mother told him to make a one choice. Leave school or be a priest. He chose the former because he was in love. He got married but widowed and orphaned in no less than a year. He became frustrated and lonely. It drove him to seek solace in book and in a life of sheer idleness. While the peope of San diego make fun of his odd ideas, there is method to his madness.
Way back in 19th century, rizal attempted to show us that resorting to other activities like reading to forget unpleasant experiences is the common refuge of intelligent people. Repressing his personal problems through reading was the only way Tasyo could preserve the appearance of sanity and blend in with the "normal" world. But the more learned he was, the farther he moved away from what is perceived to be sane. Too ironic.
Extreme frustration could drive a person to insanity, especially if the subject has low self-esteem or a low level of endurance. Feeling of not being so good, anxiety over a not so anxious event, being worried to something that is not worrisome etc for me are just mere beliefs that we experienced at some point in our life. That’s what we call fraud paranoia. But we know that depressing over it would just push us to insanity. So we tend to drive ourselves out of depression by suppression or repression so that we can leave a normal, stress-free life again. We tend to do something to forget the unnecessary anxiety. Sometimes we pretend consciously, sometimes we use our defense mechanisms. But we should not forget that physical or mental pretensions could persist if the behavioral idiosyncrasies of a subject are rewarded socially, verbally, or materially even if they are abnormal or maladaptive behavior.
In the case of the writers, many well-known artists, writers and musicians have had a history of mental illness. So, am I right to assume that there is direct correlation between brilliance, creativity and mental illness? Several studies have suggested that there is indeed a very strong link. According to (Granato 2006), most writers work alone, and when they get depressed, they don't have someone to ask for encouragement and support. They will have to rely with their own selves, adding more burden to their already disturbed mind.
In my own opinion, writing is one form where we can enjoy as well as improve our creativity. We should not torture ourselves by the belief that we can never produce a good output. If we think that way, we might stop writing. We should not be affected by other’s opinion. Those are mere criticisms. Criticism hurts for a while but it does help. When we feel hopeless about not producing a good write up, don’t just copy-paste from reviews. It can mask our hidden abilities. We are not writers then, we are pretenders.
In the case of hypochondriac person who interprets normal body function as serious medical disease, they have a hard time distinguishing their own perception from reality. They cannot use their defense mechanism effectively. And reassurance by physicians would just make them more anxious.
In the case of Pilosopong Tasyo his extreme retreat into books and new knowledge is his form of reciprocal inhibition that is, blocking negative behavior with positive behavior. Tasyo's sorrow over the death of his wife and mother could have destroyed him had he not found an alternate reality in books.
How could Rizal arrived to this topic. He was neither a psychologist nor psychiatrist. Rizal did not undergo professional training in psychology. Did he learned it from mere observations? OR he experienced it himself? As I was reading this article, my teacher’s assumption (way back in Noli days) about the real identity of Tasyo was running in my mind. She reiterated that the different characters in Noli are the different perspective of Rizal’s personality. Most of the characters there could be Rizal himself. But how could that be, Rizal is a known genius? He’s a world class writer. Before I end this, I can say that my teacher’s assumption was correct. We cannot deny the fact that Rizal also experienced frustrations and anxieties that almost make him insane. He did pretend, suppress and repress. After all he’s just human…
Granato, S. (2006). The common Link Between Writers and Mental Illness. Health and Wellness.
Paular, R. (2007). Rizal and Psychology.
Andreasen, N.C. (1987). Creativity and mental illness: prevalence rates in writers and their first-degree relatives. American Psychiatric Association, 144, 1288-1292.
http://www.medterms.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=18717
http://www.oflikeminds.com/GeniusMentalIllness.htm
We, nurses and other science related professions, were first introduced to psychology sometime in our first to second year of under graduate study. But it never crossed in our mind that we had the first grasp of psychology long before we entered the world of complex science. I am talking about how Rizal initiated topics about psychology in his novel Noli Me Tangere and major essay, La Curación de los Hechizados (The Treatment of the Possessed) that reflect types of human behavior usually described in psychology textbooks. In the novel, he mentioned several lunatics like Pilosopo Tasyo, Sisa and Dona Victoria. But my discussion will only revolve around the character of Pilosopo Tasyo who exhibits classical psychological profile in reality.
Pilosopo Tasyo, an old man when we meet him in Noli, was a crazy lunatic. During his younger days, he studied philosophy. He was a bright student. Too bright that his mother feared that he might became too absorbed in his studies and forget about God. His mother told him to make a one choice. Leave school or be a priest. He chose the former because he was in love. He got married but widowed and orphaned in no less than a year. He became frustrated and lonely. It drove him to seek solace in book and in a life of sheer idleness. While the peope of San diego make fun of his odd ideas, there is method to his madness.
Way back in 19th century, rizal attempted to show us that resorting to other activities like reading to forget unpleasant experiences is the common refuge of intelligent people. Repressing his personal problems through reading was the only way Tasyo could preserve the appearance of sanity and blend in with the "normal" world. But the more learned he was, the farther he moved away from what is perceived to be sane. Too ironic.
Extreme frustration could drive a person to insanity, especially if the subject has low self-esteem or a low level of endurance. Feeling of not being so good, anxiety over a not so anxious event, being worried to something that is not worrisome etc for me are just mere beliefs that we experienced at some point in our life. That’s what we call fraud paranoia. But we know that depressing over it would just push us to insanity. So we tend to drive ourselves out of depression by suppression or repression so that we can leave a normal, stress-free life again. We tend to do something to forget the unnecessary anxiety. Sometimes we pretend consciously, sometimes we use our defense mechanisms. But we should not forget that physical or mental pretensions could persist if the behavioral idiosyncrasies of a subject are rewarded socially, verbally, or materially even if they are abnormal or maladaptive behavior.
In the case of the writers, many well-known artists, writers and musicians have had a history of mental illness. So, am I right to assume that there is direct correlation between brilliance, creativity and mental illness? Several studies have suggested that there is indeed a very strong link. According to (Granato 2006), most writers work alone, and when they get depressed, they don't have someone to ask for encouragement and support. They will have to rely with their own selves, adding more burden to their already disturbed mind.
In my own opinion, writing is one form where we can enjoy as well as improve our creativity. We should not torture ourselves by the belief that we can never produce a good output. If we think that way, we might stop writing. We should not be affected by other’s opinion. Those are mere criticisms. Criticism hurts for a while but it does help. When we feel hopeless about not producing a good write up, don’t just copy-paste from reviews. It can mask our hidden abilities. We are not writers then, we are pretenders.
In the case of hypochondriac person who interprets normal body function as serious medical disease, they have a hard time distinguishing their own perception from reality. They cannot use their defense mechanism effectively. And reassurance by physicians would just make them more anxious.
In the case of Pilosopong Tasyo his extreme retreat into books and new knowledge is his form of reciprocal inhibition that is, blocking negative behavior with positive behavior. Tasyo's sorrow over the death of his wife and mother could have destroyed him had he not found an alternate reality in books.
How could Rizal arrived to this topic. He was neither a psychologist nor psychiatrist. Rizal did not undergo professional training in psychology. Did he learned it from mere observations? OR he experienced it himself? As I was reading this article, my teacher’s assumption (way back in Noli days) about the real identity of Tasyo was running in my mind. She reiterated that the different characters in Noli are the different perspective of Rizal’s personality. Most of the characters there could be Rizal himself. But how could that be, Rizal is a known genius? He’s a world class writer. Before I end this, I can say that my teacher’s assumption was correct. We cannot deny the fact that Rizal also experienced frustrations and anxieties that almost make him insane. He did pretend, suppress and repress. After all he’s just human…
Granato, S. (2006). The common Link Between Writers and Mental Illness. Health and Wellness.
Paular, R. (2007). Rizal and Psychology.
Andreasen, N.C. (1987). Creativity and mental illness: prevalence rates in writers and their first-degree relatives. American Psychiatric Association, 144, 1288-1292.
http://www.medterms.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=18717
http://www.oflikeminds.com/GeniusMentalIllness.htm
Last edited by roseannecatalan on Wed 22 Sep 2010, 4:48 pm; edited 1 time in total
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