Rollo May and Paradoxes in 2012 - Essay Example

Rollo May introduced psychological concepts relating to human existence. He introduced theories of existentialism (May, 37).

            Society today has different interpretations and meanings of love and friendship. According to May, love can be in four forms namely; Agape or Caritas, Sex or Lust, Death and Eros, and Philia. All these forms of love are experienced by people but are misused by people to run away from their worldly problems. May states that people use love as a means to escape from what they do not want to face; their problems. In relation to today’s society, reference can be made to what May termed as misuse of love. Love has been misused to the point that it has become a problem itself. Society today views love as a phase that people enter and after some time exit (May, 112).

            Perhaps the most misused form of love in today’s society is Sex or Lust. Sex has been misused to the point that it has brought destruction and corruption of minds in society. The first form of love is Agape or care. Care, as May defined it, is the love that results in selflessness. It is love with the intention to look into the well-being of others, and self. Care is what enables people to survive and coexist with one another. In today’s society, much has changed. People only care about themselves and are selfish. It has led to the eruption of violence between people of the same and different backgrounds. This lack of emotional connection is what leads to violence. May indicated that care is essential for survival.

            He stated that for any person to have any meaningful and fulfilling relationship, care has to be present. That lacks in society today. People in today’s society are preoccupied with themselves and not with the welfare of others. When May was writing his essay, he failed to note that society is changing, and he assumed that it would follow his principles and guidance about the proper meaning of love and friendship. The community today does not view love with the proper respect and magnitude that May describe it with. In May’s essay, he describes sex as sacred and as a means for procreation.

            He terms sex as the power of procreation (May, 133), and that sex is man’s way of seeking pleasure. May describes sex as man's important ritual, and that it has occupied man’s ways of life. In today’s society, sex is still important to people. It is a means of procreation and a source from which people gain pleasure. Sex in today’s society is not taboo. People talk about sex to other people, children are taught about sexual implications and diseases. But what society today has shown is that as much as it has high regard for sex, it has come to be misused. It is becoming more of a tool for pleasure by many people, both the young and the old. It has led to broken relationships, adultery, and a corrupt generation. For any meaningful friendship, love must be held up with high regard. Many friendships today are comprised of favors and the expectation of something in return. Most friendships today are not sincere and do not have meaning in them. Being friends with individuals because there are benefits from them means that that friendship does not have a firm foundation, and will collapse without warning. Sex has been mechanized (May, 167), and thus there is no joy in sex at all.

            May shows individuals that paradoxes are encountered in life, and are a symbol of suffering and transformation. They help individuals come up with more creative and genuine ways to live (May, 188). They act as a form of healing remedy and give more meaning to life. Paradoxes reveal a lot about human nature and are self-contradictory. Love is defined as the coming together of people to become one, yet they remain two. Love is channeled to what is hidden. A person does not have to see to love, they need only believe, and the rest will follow.