Internal Shame And Shame

Guilt causes more constructive responses, usually trying to mend the damage. Shame is attacking or lashing out at other people,

Profoundly interpersonal, the experience of shame is also therefore social and cultural. Shame is the result of feeling deficient, whether in relation to a parent, an admired friend, or a more powerful social group (39).

Unacknowledged Shame Theory is seen in a perspective that shame can cause a destructive emotion and can promote crime instead of preventing it if it is not managed positively. By using apology in return for forgiveness symbolises that reparation can commence (Braithwaite, 2004).

Esperanza’s situation is a reminder that shame can have a positive effect on people’s lives by being a source of motivation and inspiration.

Research was conducted by Wiklander, Samuelsson, Jokinen, Nilsonne, Wilczek, Rylander, and Asberg (2012) on the relationship between shame-proneness and suicide attempt. The introduction mentions that the researchers wanted to explore whether or not shame proneness was a stable tendency for attempted suicide. According to Wiklander, et al. (2012), when individuals encounter situations of failure, they typically experience shame. The researchers define shame as "an aversive affective state paired with a negative evaluation of the entire self" (Lewis, 1971; Tangney, Stuewig, & Mashek, 2007; Lindsay-Hatz, 1984 as cited by Wiklander, et al., 2012).

Have you ever felt so ashamed that you have become ashamed of who you are becoming? Shame is always reminding people it is a soul eating disease. For instance, in the book The Kite Runner Baba and Amir are so caught up in their shame they can hardly stand each other. In the beginning of the novel Baba pays no attention to Amir and by the end of the novel Amir realizes why his father paid no attention to him. We can become a changed person by facing our shame and allowing it to remain in the past while we move on to our future.

The next element of shame is global. In Black women it can cause feelings of weakness or being inadequate as a person as a whole. According to Harris-Perry, global shame extends beyond a single incident and becomes an evaluation of self (104). The third element of shame is withdrawal, both psychologically and physically. Out of the three, withdrawal can be more insidious than the other two elements of shame because it can be debilitating. Physical withdrawal can cause Black women make themselves smaller for example, by not speaking up, and withdrawing into themselves by isolating themselves from others. Psychological withdrawal can cause lack of self-esteem, social disorders, and substance abuse to self-medicate in order to cope with feelings of shame.

The presence of guilt has been felt by all human beings. As guilt grows in a

Dr. Sandra D. Wilson (2001) asks, “Have you ever felt as if you were the only caterpillar in a butterfly world? Do you often feel as if you have to do twice as much to be half as good as other” (p. 16)? If you answered, yes, then that is what Wilson (2001) calls binding shame. “Shame is the soul-deep belief that something is horribly wrong with me that is not wrong with anyone else in the entire world. If I am bound by shame, I feel hopelessly, distinguishingly different and worthless (p. 16).

1. Shame is the soul-deep belief that something is horribly wrong with me that is not wrong with anyone else in the entire world.

How do you know when you start to feel shame? For example, what happens in your body and your mind?

Shame is a powerful feeling that will drive people to do extreme things to prove their strength. O’Brien wanted to

Abstract:     Guilt has physiological and psychological effects. The psychological effects can include something bad, such as feelings of worthlessness or inferiority. Guilt can also serve in a positive way as a motivator. A person may suffer physiological effects such as insomnia and physical pain.

“Shame corrodes the very part of us that believes we are capable of change”(Brené Brown). In The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, a woman is publicly shamed for having a child with a man who is not her husband. Another example of public shame can be seen in modern day articles “Florida ‘Scarlet Letter’ Law is Repealed by Gov. Bush,” by Dana Canedy, and “Houston Couple Gets ‘The Scarlet Letter’ Treatment.” Both talk of public shame that people have had to endure in the present day. Public shaming is not an effective punishment because it is a cruel and unusual punishment, it does not deter crime, and it can emotionally traumatize the one being shamed.

In every country in the world there are certain levels of shaming that every society has, where some countries have extreme shame than others. Shaming is form of criticism and judgement when an individual violates social or moral norms. Shaming fundamentally reacts our psychological need for acceptance and approval from either someone or the public. It is true that for centuries, shame has been given a negative name, but there is reason why shame has existed for a long time and why it will continue to exist in the future. Shaming should be part of society since it brings order and control, it causes people to reflect their wrong doing, and it creates a positive change that affects everyone. Shaming should be part of the society since shaming, most of the time, brings positive results.