Between 1900-1980, six different historical movements were identified. Identify the movement you believe contributed most to the field of counseling today and the one you believe is least impactful. Please incorporate one scholarly source for each movement you identify to explain your reasoning.
Sample solution
Dante Alighieri played a critical role in the literature world through his poem Divine Comedy that was written in the 14th century. The poem contains Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso. The Inferno is a description of the nine circles of torment that are found on the earth. It depicts the realms of the people that have gone against the spiritual values and who, instead, have chosen bestial appetite, violence, or fraud and malice. The nine circles of hell are limbo, lust, gluttony, greed and wrath. Others are heresy, violence, fraud, and treachery. The purpose of this paper is to examine the Dante’s Inferno in the perspective of its portrayal of God’s image and the justification of hell.
In this epic poem, God is portrayed as a super being guilty of multiple weaknesses including being egotistic, unjust, and hypocritical. Dante, in this poem, depicts God as being more human than divine by challenging God’s omnipotence. Additionally, the manner in which Dante describes Hell is in full contradiction to the morals of God as written in the Bible. When god arranges Hell to flatter Himself, He commits egotism, a sin that is common among human beings (Cheney, 2016). The weakness is depicted in Limbo and on the Gate of Hell where, for instance, God sends those who do not worship Him to Hell. This implies that failure to worship Him is a sin.
God is also depicted as lacking justice in His actions thus removing the godly image. The injustice is portrayed by the manner in which the sodomites and opportunists are treated. The opportunists are subjected to banner chasing in their lives after death followed by being stung by insects and maggots. They are known to having done neither good nor bad during their lifetimes and, therefore, justice could have demanded that they be granted a neutral punishment having lived a neutral life. The sodomites are also punished unfairly by God when Brunetto Lattini is condemned to hell despite being a good leader (Babor, T. F., McGovern, T., & Robaina, K. (2017). While he commited sodomy, God chooses to ignore all the other good deeds that Brunetto did.
Finally, God is also portrayed as being hypocritical in His actions, a sin that further diminishes His godliness and makes Him more human. A case in point is when God condemns the sin of egotism and goes ahead to commit it repeatedly. Proverbs 29:23 states that “arrogance will bring your downfall, but if you are humble, you will be respected.” When Slattery condemns Dante’s human state as being weak, doubtful, and limited, he is proving God’s hypocrisy because He is also human (Verdicchio, 2015). The actions of God in Hell as portrayed by Dante are inconsistent with the Biblical literature. Both Dante and God are prone to making mistakes, something common among human beings thus making God more human.
To wrap it up, Dante portrays God is more human since He commits the same sins that humans commit: egotism, hypocrisy, and injustice. Hell is justified as being a destination for victims of the mistakes committed by God. The Hell is presented as being a totally different place as compared to what is written about it in the Bible. As a result, reading through the text gives an image of God who is prone to the very mistakes common to humans thus ripping Him off His lofty status of divine and, instead, making Him a mere human. Whether or not Dante did it intentionally is subject to debate but one thing is clear in the poem: the misconstrued notion of God is revealed to future generations.
References
Babor, T. F., McGovern, T., & Robaina, K. (2017). Dante’s inferno: Seven deadly sins in scientific publishing and how to avoid them. Addiction Science: A Guide for the Perplexed, 267.
Cheney, L. D. G. (2016). Illustrations for Dante’s Inferno: A Comparative Study of Sandro Botticelli, Giovanni Stradano, and Federico Zuccaro. Cultural and Religious Studies, 4(8), 487.
Verdicchio, M. (2015). Irony and Desire in Dante’s” Inferno” 27. Italica, 285-297.
Sample Answer
Sample Answer
Title: The Impactful and Less Impactful Historical Movements in the Field of Counseling
Introduction:
Between 1900 and 1980, various historical movements emerged, shaping the field of counseling as we know it today. These movements brought about significant changes in theory, practice, and the overall understanding of human behavior. This essay aims to identify the movement that contributed the most to the field of counseling and the one that has had the least impact. By examining scholarly sources and their influence, a comprehensive analysis can be made.
Body:
I. The Most Impactful Movement: Humanistic Psychology
Scholarly source: Rogers, C. R. (1961). On becoming a person: A therapist’s view of psychotherapy.
Humanistic psychology, with its emphasis on individual growth, self-actualization, and the client-therapist relationship, has had a profound impact on the field of counseling. Carl Rogers, one of the key figures in this movement, proposed person-centered therapy, which focuses on empathy, unconditional positive regard, and genuineness. This approach revolutionized counseling by placing the client at the center of the therapeutic process. It emphasized the importance of individual agency and self-determination, leading to a more collaborative and empowering therapeutic relationship.
II. The Least Impactful Movement: Phrenology
Scholarly source: Gall, F. J., & Spurzheim, J. G. (1810). The anatomy and physiology of the nervous system in general and of the brain in particular: With observations upon the possibility of ascertaining the several intellectual and moral dispositions of man and animal by the configuration of their heads.
Phrenology, although influential in the early 19th century, has had minimal impact on contemporary counseling practices. Phrenology proposed that personality traits and mental abilities could be determined by studying the shape and contours of an individual’s skull. However, advancements in neuroscience and psychology have discredited phrenology as a pseudoscience. Modern counseling emphasizes evidence-based practices, grounded in rigorous scientific research and validated theories, rendering phrenology irrelevant to contemporary counseling approaches.
Conclusion:
The humanistic psychology movement, with its focus on individual growth, self-actualization, and client-centered therapy, has had a significant impact on the field of counseling. Its emphasis on empathy, unconditional positive regard, and genuineness transformed the therapeutic relationship, empowering clients and fostering their self-determination. Conversely, phrenology, a movement that proposed personality assessment based on skull shape and contours, had little influence on contemporary counseling practices due to its lack of scientific validity and relevance.
As the field of counseling continues to evolve, it is essential to recognize the historical movements that have shaped its current landscape. By understanding the impactful contributions of movements like humanistic psychology and critically assessing those with little impact like phrenology, counselors can continue to refine their approaches and provide effective support to individuals seeking help.
