15. Will, Precursor to Power
A profound discovery
Sorry folks, this post is not pretty. It is necessarily very objective. Why? The infant (our youngest inner self) experienced only objects, stuff, things…
In Post 14 I posed the following questions: “What are an infants first inputs?” The answer is, feedback via the sensory system. “What outputs become evident during the first few months?” The answer is, visual tracking, head turning and signs of oral ‘interest’ and oral satisfafaction.
None of us recall one of the most momentous events in our lives, the moment we experience our ability to will action.
The movement of a newborn infants’ eyes, head, arms and legs are seemingly random, even spasmodic. The infant is at the mercy of those movements. Nestled against the chest of mother or wet nurse, ‘rooting behavior’ is thought to be instinctual. The head of the infant moves about and enounters a nipple. Typically the mother moves and employs her fingers to enable the taking of the nipple into the mouth of the infant. Truth be told, this process is not always easily accomplished.
In select countries, in recent history, difficulties with nursing result in bottle feeding. I am unaware how pervasive the use of bottled formula is in the many countries of the world. Unquestionably, the experience of an infant being nursed differs from that of an infant being ‘fed’ by a baby bottle. Think ‘qualitative aspect.’
Much more can and will be said about this significant phase of life for mothers, wet nurses, caretakers and infants however, the intent of this post is to direct attention to the relatively early exercise of will by infants during the course of their first year.
There comes an extraordinary moment when we notice willful action on the part of our infant. Something in the environment has acquired the power to attract. The attracting power of something inspires effort. The infant strives to make eye contact and succeeds. The infant strives to turn his or her head toward a sound and succeeds.
Note, from the infants point of view, their is no ‘mother,’ no ‘father’. The infant experiences huge moving figures, faces hovering over them and something about the eyes. No romanticism here. All things are objects, albeit some objects afford varying degrees of comfort.
Willful action is action in infancy inspired by an attractor. With experience, selected objects acquire greater attracting power. Keeing it simple, just consider a nursing mother. As the infants’ eyes bounce around experiencing snapshots of disconnected objects, they frequently enounter the eyes of mother gazing into his or her own. Let’s say, that gaze is frequently encountered simultaneous with cozy warmth, the pleasant sound of cooing or ‘baby talk’, a sweet taste and the alleviation of internal distress (hunger.)
Remember patterns emerge in the mind system as a result of frequency of experience (the quantitative aspect), and associative links with qualitative aspects, cozy warmth, sweet taste and alleviation of internal distress.
Mother’s eyes, assuming she gazes lovingly at her baby, may come to be selectively valued. Mothers’ eyes may acquire attracting power. The infants eyes may seek mothers eyes and voíla, success! Eye contact is qualitatively different. Particular sounds may inspire an infant to turn his or her head in the direction of the sound. Certain smells…an approaching figure may attract attention, a willful turn of the head provides new information.
Excersise of will in response to attractors in the environment may succeed. Mothers’ eyes are found. New information is at hand following a turn of the head. Success is its’ own reward.
Willful actions represent the budding of ego.
Success grants agency. Agency is one of the the most important characteristics of humans. People may fight to the death to maintain agency. Agency is second only to preservation of life on a hierarchy of human values.
Agency is the freedom to act in the external world in accordance with will.
In contrast, psychic agency is our ability to act in our internal realm, loosely called mind space.