Aug

Individuating - Word of the Day

1 : to give individuality to

2 : to form into a distinct entity

Do we seek to find ourselves or to repeat dysfunctional patterns?

Autonomy - “…self-governance through free volition, not separation or independence from others.”

Two types: individuating autonomy and relating autonomy. “…two distinct of autonomy—individuating and relating—each with superior function in a specific domain of individual functioning. Individuating autonomy represents a volitional capacity to act against social constraints and offers a route to achieve an independent self-identity by expressing individualistic attributes and distinctions.” - from: “A cross-cultural comparison of the coexistence and domain superiority of individuating and relating autonomy” at InformaWorld.com

“I wrote these details down in the margins of the Believer because they were so individuating, so particular to this human being lifted out of the fray of the sidewalk and into the fluorescent attention of the empty Ali Baba (restaurant). ” From: “The Guts of Great Sentences - James Wood and Zadie Smith on How Writing Works” by Christopher Frizzelle

“…Simondon writes that perception is always the resolution of a conflict.” “…a new conceptual model for understanding reality, in terms of the process of individuation.” From: Fractal Ontology

“…the innate human tendency to become distinct and integrated—to become conscious of our purpose, who and what we are, and where we are going.” From: the Amazon.com editorial review of “Principle of Individuation: Toward the Development of Human Consciousness

Dr. Glenn Loury, addressed the students at Brown University’s opening convocation on Sept. 3, 2008:

The authentic expression of a person’s individuality is to be found in the blueprint that he or she employs to guide that project of self-authorship. And, the problem of devising such a plan for one’s life is a universal problem which confronts all people, whatever their race, class, ethnicity, or other identifying category. By facing and solving this problem we grow as human beings, and we give meaning and substance to our lives. In my view, a personal program wholly dependent on the contingency of identity falls tragically short of its potential, because it embraces too parochial a conception of what is possible and of what is desirable.

From his keynote address entitled, “What Role Should ‘Identity’ Play in our Lives?”