William James was born in the year 1842; he was the first American psychologist and also philosopher. He trained as a medical doctor. In the year 1878, William decided to write a book on psychology. William was testifying on the fact that there is no science of psychology. James explains that he will dwell on the psychological way of introspection in his literature The Principles which he describes as the examining into our minds and then being able to describe what we have discovered. James has taken various methods to elaborate on the brain function and also on the main conditions of the activities of the brain (James, 1981).
William came up with the theory that emotion is the psychological insight of the mind that is the result of the stimulus. He argues that the view of the mind is of the great level of the adrenalin and the heartbeat, and this is what is called emotions. He explains that the consciousness of the mind is active and it is a unity, it is very selective and also teleological. Psychology curves out the man’s experiences. The will makes a strong idea which occupies the mind and makes the mind ready for the action (James, 1981).
The part of the intelligence separates and also incorporates things that implicate the reality to them, in the course of the emotions and the active life; this is conceived pragmatically. James explains that the study of human life is compared to religious experiences. The main interest of James is not a religion but it is found in the feelings, the deeds, and the individual experiences in their solitude, they take into custody themselves to support the relationship to anything that they put into consideration as divine.
James also recognizes several experiences but not the flow out of the experiences of the conscious. He, therefore, disagrees with the belief that in awareness the relation that exists between the recognition of the subject and the object itself is fundamental and this has been taken for granted by so many modern philosophers. James also argues that on top of the mind that is conscious there is also the psychical zone that is composed of the subconscious mind (James, 1981). The subconscious mind is composed of spiritual values like sanctity, the genius among others and their contact is recognized with the absolute (Simon, 1999).
James put into consideration this subject of pure science which demands the analysis of feelings, wishes, reasoning, cognition, and the decision that depends on the features and the dynamics that they have (Simon, 1999). He compares this with how a person would explain the structure of a certain house by just examining the stones and the bricks that have been used to construct it. James notes that the behavior of the animals and that of the human differs because the behavior of the animals is automatic and is limited in not complicated, while that of the human is influenced by the broad range of desires and this leads them to acquire new habits. William explains that people’s deeds come up with the effects of the motor in the human’s nervous system which influences a wish to become a habit if the action is repeated severally (Simon, 1999).
References
- James, W.,(1981). The Principles of Psychology, Cambridge, MA: New York: NY, Harvard University Press.
- Simon, L.,(1999). Genuine Reality: A Life of William James. New York: NY, University Of Chicago Press.