Each time we speak of creating a reality in this course through the simple act of naming an object, I immediately think of Shakespeare’s words of Juliet,
“What’s in a name? That which we call a rose
by any other name would smell as sweet.”
For some odd reason, I cannot seem to take my mind of the first part of that idea, “what’s in a name?” Why do we call green green, a bottle a bottle, mud mud, people people? I apologize for a confusion that sentence may have brought. When we humans do not understand something, we fear it. We must name it and recognize it and learn about it. We have the desire to understand everything. This is a problem I have had for many years, attempting to understand aspects of the human mind.
Many people have a run with depression. Some struggle for years, others for a few months, some for a lifetime. The problem with depression is that it cannot really be seen. Doctors can see depression in brain scans, but people experiencing it can only feel its power, not see it. People can feel its effect on them but not look into the mind or entity of depression. We name it depression in order to communicate with others regarding it. We create the reality of depression as compared to sadness through a name and a definition. The science that was created through discovers regarding mental disorders created or found the disorder of depression. I still debate whether we create or find aspects of life such as these. Ones that we cannot always see.
A common tip from psychologists and therapists is to give one’s depression a name. It is an interesting task that works for some. When the thoughts that scare an individual suffering from this disorder arise, naming the problem can calm one down. “Oh, that is just the depressed part of my mind.” “The depressed box is opened again.” Whatever works for the individual. This tip is also given to those who have anxiety. My “anxious part of mind” pops into my head many times a day. It is not my normal mind. I name that part that gives me the anxious thoughts so when it arises, I can tell what it is, so it no longer scares me as it did years before. A very short story about me but you get the idea.
So, have I just named something that was already there or did I create a new piece of me? This is the argument that Latour was circulating. In my opinion, no, I did not create a new part of my brain by giving it a name because I know that it is not just one section of my brain that does this. I name it so I can recognize what is happening. The anxiety in me is already there. I got it from my dad and I know that. Nature dictated that I would be an anxious person. I name it so that I can learn from my experiences with it and recognize what it does to me. I give a name to something in my head, so I can call it what it is in order to better understand it. I did not create it. So, what is in a name? It is just a title that betters our understanding. We can call it what it is, that will not change its makeup. We do not create it, we name it.
I'm really interested in this idea that the existence of a thing may depend on our naming of it. I think that naming has a lot of power, as you've said. I also agree that refusing to name something does not eliminate its existence. I guess it's very complicated. Naming something solidifies it and makes it more "real", but the factors that comprise the thing remain regardless of naming. SO maybe naming is a process of categorization or simplification--grouping together scattered factors in order to make sense of them and avoid being overwhelmed.
ReplyDeleteI have a similar experience with naming! A very long time ago, a therapist taught me the idea of naming my anxiety, naming my depression - to have some separation from 'it' so to recognize 'it' as a part of me, but not as defining my whole being or life experience. It's been something that has definitely helped me over the years, and I have a similar point of view as you do on this. My anxiety, my depression were already there, already affecting my life, already existing and a part of me before I 'named' them - I didn't create them by naming them. But I do think there are many instances and many situations where in naming something we do create it so to speak, especially with some less tangible things. But, like Shakespeare said, a rose would still smell sweet whether it had a specific name we had it or not.
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