Frida Kahlo A Dynamic Personality - Term Paper Example

 Frida Kahlo – A Dynamic Personality I. Introduction Frida Kahlo, one of Mexico’s greatest artists, comes across as a woman of substance following her difficult life during childhood and adolescence. She became an inspiration to thousands of women across the globe for her sheer grit and steadfastness in her career as an artist and an activist. The hardships she faced in life because of her poor health condition, has molded her into a very resilient, resourceful and enduring personality that many of the women look up to her as a role model and as a leader. In exploring her prime personality traits, we could better understand how she overcame her hardships and became the striking personality that she is today. II. Overview of Six Personality Aspects of Frida Kahlo a. Psychoanalytic The psychoanalytic theory of Sigmund Freud highlights the fact that conflicts that are experienced throughout life are what serve to shape our personality. These structures gradually manifest themselves during the five stages of psychosexual development. Frida’s childhood had been quite a tumultuous one. She did not come from a very affluent background, but lived in a small town with her parents and three sisters. She was barely three years of age when the Mexican Revolution occurred and by the age of six she had an attack of polio that almost crippled her. These are some of the structures or forces that served to make Frida into a strong and courageous personality possessing a never say die attitude towards her later experiences both as an artist and in her personal life. This aspect is manifested in her paintings of herself which reflects the strong character that she is. b. Neo- analytic Ego Jung (1875- 1961) gives us insight into Neo-analytic ego by dividing it into three divisions such as conscious ego, personal unconscious and the collective unconscious. He further gives us two important aspects where the Neo-analytic ego is concerned – Introvert and Extrovert. In the case of Frida we find that she was forced into confinement for long periods due to her polio attack and an unfortunate accident that almost left her crippled. However, as soon as she got over these catastrophes and began a successful career, she proved that she was a complete extrovert. Her marriage being tumultuous, she went out of her way, meeting and having affairs with both men and women alike. She took a major part in activism and had many admirers. She loved life and kept herself busy conducting exhibitions and getting in and out of new relationships. c. Biological The Biological aspect emphasizes the fact that nature wins over nurture and therefore our DNA or genetics are things that can never be changed. However, our environment does play a small role in nurturing and shaping our personality. Having been born and raised in Mexico, Frida was greatly influenced by the indigenous Mexican culture. We see this reflected in many of her paintings. In fact, Frida is quoted as stating – “I never painted dreams. I painted my own reality.” A good example of this aspect is her drawing of monkeys in many of her paintings, using bright colors. According to Mexican mythology, the monkey is a symbol of lust, but never-the-less, Frida always painted them as protective symbols in her art work. d. Behaviorist B.F. Skinner, (1938) a well known behaviorist viewed behavior from the angle of rewards and punishments. Skinner believes that the behavior of a person depends on the environment and people around them and therefore, behavior has the capacity to be conditioned. This aspect can be clearly seen in the case of Frida. She was able to modify her behavior and adapt herself well according to her condition. For example, when she was sick and lying in the hospital for long periods of time, she felt lonely, but then utilized that time to paint and draw, which helped to mould her as the artist we see today. Even when her marriage fell through, she engaged herself in her exhibitions and carried on her extra-marital affairs with the new people she met. e. Humanistic People who are humanists are those who are open minded and free spirited individuals whose struggles in life help them appreciate the spirit of other such individuals. This humanistic aspect is quite evident in the life of Frida, because all through her childhood and part of her adulthood was spent in loneliness and trying to cope up with her illnesses which were a big draw back in her career. According to (Budrys, 2006) the accident she had in her teenage years had impacted upon her life so much that it could be one of the reasons behind her humanistic approach in life. However, it was her experiences that molded her in such a way, and enabled her to reach out to others who also faced struggles in life. A good example of her humanistic approach can be seen in her paintings, where she painted herself as she evolved from pain in different stages of her life. f. Interactionist Outside influences from people and the environment is what makes a person an Interactionist because they are in constant connection with the outside world. Such people are very observant and react accordingly in different situations. From the tender age of three when she was afflicted with polio, Frida was in constant interaction with doctors and nurses in the hospital. Again when she got into an unfortunate accident again her skill of interacting with people gave her the strength and courage to overcome her Running head: FRIDA KAHLO 6 pain and sickness. However, when she blossomed in her career, she had the confidence in meeting, speaking and interacting with new people in the world of art. It was in one such interaction with Diego Rivera that she fell in love and married him. Frida also believed that she could change the world and therefore became an activist. According to (Cruz, 1996) She also interacted with fellow activists and came up with policies that were aimed at changing the political scenario of the governments. This interactive quality or trait of Frida helped her gain a lot of exposure and popularity, both as an artist and as an activist. Conclusion Artist and Activist Frida Kahlo had stood the test of time, and it is her great resilience and strength that made her famous in both these fields. She was a woman of great endurance and was perceived as one who changed the feminist approach to both art and politics. Frida was admired and looked upon as a role model by the women in her country and around the world and many of them gained confidence and tried to walk in her footsteps. One of the things that depict her strength was the fact that though she was almost paralyzed, she never lost the passion for art and activism. From this analysis it is an obvious assumption that Kahlo was a woman of strong character and an agent of change in her work, as well as the society she lived in. Across the globe and within her own country she is greatly admired as one of the few exceptional pioneers of art. References Budrys, V. (2006)."Neurological Deficits in the Life and Work of Frida Kahlo". European Neurology 55 (1): 4–10. Cruz, B. (1996). Frida Kahlo: Portrait of a Mexican Painter. Berkeley Heights: Enslow. Freud’s Psychoanalytic Theory of Personality. Web. Retrieved on 28th March 2014 from https://www.boundless.com/psychology/personality/psychodynamic-perspective-on-personality/freud- Kahlo, Frida Biography. The Complete Works. Web. Retrieved on 28th March 2014 http://www.frida-kahlo-foundation.org/biography.html Major Neo-analytic Theories and Theorists. Web. Retrieved on 27th March 2014 from http://www.wilderdom.com/personality/L8-10MajorNeoanalyticTheoriesTheorists.html McLeod Saul (2007) Skinner – Operant Conditioning. Simply Psychology. Web. Retrieved on 28th March 2014 from http://www.simplypsychology.org/operant-conditioning.html Read More