Chapter Two Manifestations of Laura’s Inferiority Complex
2.1 Neurotic Symptoms
From the perspective of individual psychology, neurosis is a common syndrome of individuals who suffers from an inferiority complex. The term neurosis was coined by Scottish doctor William Cullen in 1769 to refer to“disorders of sense and motion”caused by a “general affection of the nervous system” (Bailey, 1927: 208). Cullen used the term to describe various nervous disorders and symptoms that could not be explained physiologically. The meaning of the term was redefined by Carl Jung and Sigmund Freud over the early and middle 20th century, and has continued to be used in psychology and philosophy. Jung claims to have “frequently seen people become neurotic when they content themselves with inadequate or wrong answers to the questions of life” (Jung and Aniela, 1989: 140). According to C. George Boeree (2002), professor emeritus at Shippensburg University, neurosis refers to “a variety of psychological problems involving persistent experiences of negative affect including anxiety, sadness or depression, anger, irritability, mental confusion, low sense of self-worth, etc.”
Adler proposes that neurosis demonstrates a greater lack of social engagement and increased feelings of inferiority and neurotics identically have an inferiority complex and the only differences between them exist in the kinds of situations in which they feel unable to continue on the useful side of life and the limits they put to their strivings and activities (Adler, 2014: 31). Personality characteristics are similar to a guiding thread in a person’s self-consistent personality and can be exhibited in any situation without much thought. Symptoms of neurosis can be found in an individual’s personality characteristics. In The Glass Menagerie, Williams used poetic language and exceptional expressionistic techniques to reveal Laura’s neurotic personality under the influence of inferiority complex. It has been widely received that the glass unicorn symbolizes Laura’s fragility, the music expresses her melancholy, and the lighting shows her loneliness. This part aims to further explore Laura’s neurotic symptoms.
2.2 Withdrawal Attitude to the Three Major Tasks of Life
According to Adler (2014: 2-4), human beings are bound to three ties, videlicet, the restrictions of the planet, the relationship with other human beings, and the sexual relations. These conditions bring about three problems which are occupational, social, and sexual respectively. The only reasonable way to solve these problems is to cooperate with others and make contributions. An individual with an inferiority complex has a greater lack of courage to interact with others and solve the three problems. Therefore, he may adopt a real or imagery defect as an excuse for avoiding the problems of real life. This part goes to analyze Laura’s attitude toward the three tasks of life so as to understand her inferiority complex.
The first tie makes the problem of occupation. Living on the surface of this planet, human beings are commonly constrained by limited resources, ever-changing climate, and atmosphere. They have to secure their survival in this planet through workin
