hildsood and Society (1950, 1963) ‘ung Man Lather (1958) ‘sigh and Responsibly (1968) erty You and Crisis (1968) ‘Gandhi's rath (1568) Dimersons ofa few Identity (1974) {ifeistor andthe istorcal Moment (1975) Toys and Reasons (1979) Ment andthe Ufo Cele (1959, 1980) ‘Toe life Cele Completed (1982) ‘al clement Olde (wth Joan, Bkson and len Q. mic) (1986) A Way of ooking at Things: Selected Papers _from 19301 1980 (eed by Seen Shen, Ph.D) (1987) ‘Adubood (978) so bso. ous ‘The rik Erikson Reader (2000) ERIK H ERIKSON Childhood AND Society DT W-W- NORTON & COMPANY New York London ms246 Childhood and Society “without a promize of fulfillment which from the dominant image of adulthood reaches down into the baby’s beginnings and which, ‘by the tangible evidence of social health, creates at every step ‘of childhood and adolescence an accruing sense of ego strength. “Thus, before entering further into identity problems of our time “we must now recognize the place of identity in the human life ceyele, What follows in the next chapter i lit of ego quali ‘which emerge from critical periods of development—erieria (Gdentity is one) by which the individual demonserates that his ‘ego, a 2 given stage, is strong enough co integrate che timetable ‘ofthe orgaism with the stuccure of social institutions. CHAPTER 7 Eight Ages of Man (\48) {BASIC TRUST VS. BASIC MISTRUST “Tue rsr demonstration of scl trast in the baby ithe ease of hs feeding the depth of hirsee, he elation offs towels ‘The experi of « mcs regulon of hs increningy recep. tive capacir with he maternal tecniqes of proviso grade Elly helps him balance he dacomforecnsed by the mmtarity of homeo wth which be war or. In hs padually ewe ng waking Bours he fins sac move snd more venture he secs aro» fling of faniaiy of having cna with + eclingofaner goons: Fors of comfors and peopl ao. Gated with hem Become ss fama athe growing dconfor fhe bowel, The infos Sar acl achievement hens his wilingnen toe the moter ow of ight without undo sty tr rage, ects sh har Become an inter certainty a wel a ue peti, Sach conercy contin and oneness at exprieae provides rdimenary tev of ego ent wich pends hit, on the recogion car here anne pope Indo of remembered snd spared sensations nd images wich are fly cold withthe outer populin of fata and cable tinge and people Wat wef lt cies wh har These Bele has cle conden If prefer the word “tras” ese148 Childhood and Society thee ae met ad mare my in oni cm be silo be trusting where it would go to far to say that he ts canfdence The general sate of tue, frtermore npis tot en tat one he Tenred to cly om the sameness ane Son Tiny of te outer provider, bor ao that one may rus One- Self aud the capacicy of one's own organs to ope with atges, En tat one able Co consider oneself tuttworthy enough #0 thatthe providers wil no need to be on guard lex tay be "Pre conta ting and teing ofthe relationship beeen ine and ened nt aes ding te rag a he thing stage, when the tecth cate pin feom win and when cut frends eter prove of no avall or withdraw from the nly action which promises ele, iing. Not that eth elf sea ro enue all the dite consequenossomedines serie to it As outlined eae, te ifanr now is deiven to "grasp" more, Bute apt to nd died presences ive: nipple and bree, and the mathe’ focused attention sod care, Tething Sens © fave prottypalsigiieanc an may well be the model fr the Ine ene came conf by tig one ttre whenever one unable ro prevent «sigan os in geychopatology the absence of bate cust can bt be srudcl in inate tcheoprein, wile lifelong. undying Areas of sch rst apparent in adult personales in whom Wthdawal ino schizoid and depresve states habia The re-etablsment of state of trust has been found tobe the basic ritment fo therapy i hese ces Forno mater wha on Sito may have cused prychote break, he Bisrenes and Srthlawal inthe Bhavoc of many very sek india ides fattamp to recover social muta by testing ofthe border- lines Setween seas and physial ray, between words and soci meni Prychoanalyss auc the ctl proc of difereniationbe- twee inside and outset eth gin of projection and ier jection which rin some of oue deepest and mos dangerous Xfome mechanisms kn inroectin ve fel and ae asif an outer Eight Ages of Man 249 ‘goodness had bicome an inner certainty, In projection, we experi- ‘ence an inner farm as an outer one: we endow significant people ‘with the evil waich aceually isin us. These wo mechanizms then, projection and ntrojection, are assumed to be modeled after what” ‘ever goes on in infants when they would like to externalize pain and internalize pleasure, an intent which must yield to the test mony of the maturing senses and ultimately of reason. ‘These ‘mechanisms are, more or less normally, reinstated in acute crises of love, trust, nd faith in adulthood and can characterize irra- tional attudes toward adversaries and enemies in masses of “‘marare” individuals, “The firm esublshment of enduring patterns for the solution of the nuclear confit of basic trust versus basic mistrust in mere existence isthe frst tak of the ego, and thus firs of all a task for maternal care. But let it be said here that the amount of trast ‘derived from earliest infantile experience does not seem to de~ ‘on absolute quantities of food or demonstrations of love, it rather on the quality of the maternal relationship. Mothers create a sense cf trust in thee children by that kind of adminis- tration which in is quality combines sensitive care of the baby's individual needs and a firm sense of personal trustworthiness within the truged framework of theie culeure’s life style, This forms the basis in the child for a sense of identity which will later combine 2 sense of being “all right," of being oneself, and of becoming what other people trust one will become, There ate, therefore (within certain limits previously defined as the “cuts” of childcare), few frustrations in either this or the fol lowing stages which the growing child cannot endure if the frustration leads to the ever-renewed experience of greater sameness and stronger continuity of development, toward a final integration of the individual life eycle with some meaningful wider belongingness. Parents must not only have certain ways of guiding by prohibition and permission; they must also be able to represent to the child a deep, an almost Somatic conviction that there isa meaning to what they are doing. Ulimatey, chil- 4dren become neurotic not from frustrations, but from the lack oF250 Childhood and Socery toss of socieal mesing in thee frsrations. Bur even under the most favorble cumstances, this tage scams to invoice io poychie fe (nd Become prootypie fon) sens of inner vkion and univer nasal for par Ale ferences psn ths powerfal combination of sens of having ben depved, of having Bee vided, and of having Been shandoned-that basi trust must main ine through cif ach ceive sage and rhs a special rcatont ne of the bse elements of society nd thi for the smple reson that the human Le eel and mats insiaios have evolved gether In das chat ve can do lice more than mention afte the de- terpion of each sage, what bai element of socal organization ES rdated oie To roan i twofold: man brings to these SFoetions the remnants of his inane mentalty and hi youth- fol fervor and he receives from thems long as they manage {omni theiracanlty—arenfreemenc of fs infartle gins ‘Te pret faith which soppore the rst emerging inthe ewbors, bas throughout hiory soughe i insiatonl safe far (enon oceaion, found i greatest enemy) in organized Eiigon, Tas born of cae yin Tact, the touchstone of the eruaity ofa given religion. Ail eligins have in conmon the periodic lie surrender to 2 Brovider o proviets who pense earthly force wells prtual heath; some demon- Sention of man'smalnes by way of reduced poste and humble fete; the admision in prayet and song of misdeeds of mis- Though and of ei intentions, fervent appeal for inne nia tion by dune gidance, and Boal, the insight chat indvidal true mus been 2 ominon finde! misros a com tnonly formulated evi while che iciaduals retoraion mse Become part ofthe tal pace of many, and mst beome 3 Sgn af Gutworthinesn she commoity* We have Hsrated Tew eibes dang with one spent of tacace develop cllec- his the sgn and paychonocal se of reign on ‘Tantei opty of edge es mar not wo be weed by nd in poning ee Founy Man Luter. (EE) Eight Ages of Man a5 Sive magic which sens to teat the Supernatural Providers of food and fortune aif they were angy and must be appeased by prayer and alortre, Pinte eign the mou pee layer in all rigine, and che eligos yer in ech iid, sbond wih efore a stonenent which try to make-up fo ‘ago ded guinea maternal matric and ry to restore fh {ie fsdne foes igs ain hens of he power "Bach cat nd each a nthe nine fon reverene which desiver vital from is werd-image—from predenatha to indeteminacy, The cnician ean ony oberve Sar many se proud te witoot reign whe chico cae not affor hcl bing with it On the thes and, there ae ay wn dete lth em scl ato on cpr And agin, thre se many who profes fay in prtcce breathe mistrust both of life sad man. a + AUTONOMY VS. SHAME AND DOUBT In describing the growth and the cts ofthe human pean srs faker bi ios achat nt, sec ake reve co the em ase of ahoughy ike sess Sheath ors "ene of being unwell" seh "ees" pera sstface ad depth couiouttn and the unconscious They dre then athe sae ne, ways of experiencing arcestbe wo trrpecdon; ways of behesng, obserle by others and ue Contino er nates Sterile byt and sly is portant ro sp these tree dense in mind awe proceed IMasclr meron set the sage fr expeinentcon with ‘vo ialrneos ser of soci moda: heding on and eng 6, Ar te ce with alo the moi thr be cen ft can lad inthe end co citer howe o benign expect toksnd tne Hn fo hl es eros tatste at