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Memory is Fickle
Memory is a child with too many toys.
Being fickle means to change interests or affections frequently. This may take the form of a whim bring a reader in a different direction. Or, a distraction that turns one’s attention toward something else. The cause is a love of everything, or else a hatred of everything.
Our post-modern memory is overwhelmed by information. Different realms of knowledge compete for space in our brain. We try to commit everything we learn and read to memory. Then, later, we find that very little has not been tossed out.
We in America hate forgetting things. We try to demonstrate our knowledge of a certain television show. We tell a friend what we like about the show and then we show we know a lot about it by naming the actors and actresses. Once in a while, the name we are looking for simply doesn’t come to us. We admit we don’t know, or else change the subject. But for that moment when we forget, we understand with great sadness that we do not control our own mind like we should. Our mind works independently of our conscious efforts.
The unconscious mind was Freud’s entire enterprise. To him, it explained everything. Though I believe he took it too far, there must be some truth to the fact that our unconscious minds are always at work. Dreams wouldn’t be possible without the unconscious…
