Split People in a Split World 339person can only survive emotionally by placing himself under the authority
of others—the ones whose Mercy influence gives weight to their words.
While they deal with external chaos, he remains safe within his castle.
However, his loyalty must not be rewarded by promotion. If he is ever put
in charge, then he must interact with the external world, and this means
opening up his Teacher theories to the attacks of conflicting ideas—the
very thing which he is choosing to avoid.
Putting the Wrong Foot Forward
Let us turn our attention back now to the struggle between the two
me‟s. We have looked at Teacher pseudo-theories and Mercy pseudo-
cultures. We have seen how these grow naturally
within an environment in which the me of the physical
body is more developed than the me of Mercy
identification. If mental growth could be compared to
walking, then I suggest that this imbalance could be
described as „putting the wrong foot forward.‟ I suggest
that this internal disequilibrium has other unpleasant
implications.
First, there are problems with self-image. Imagine
having to live with someone who does everything
better than you do. Chances are that your feelings about
yourself would plummet. This is exactly what happens
when the me of our physical bodies is allowed to run
ahead of the me of Mercy identification: Our physical
world becomes increasingly ordered and our bodies look great, but inside,
where we really feel, there is chaos and insecurity. Therefore, the me of
Mercy identification—the partner with the deep emotions—ends up feeling
inadequate.A
Second, technology is used irresponsibly. Obviously, people who
permit their „bodies‟ to develop beyond their „hearts‟ will create
technology which they are emotionally unable to handle. It is like giving a
small child the key to a car and allowing him to drive wherever he wishes.
Inevitably he will end up in the ditch.
Third, I suggest that when Perceiver logic builds upon the me of my
physical body while allowing the me of Mercy identification to remain
mired in emotional 'facts' of childhood, then racism, sexism, and class
divisions are inevitable side effects. Since this is an extreme statement, we
will back it up carefully with logic, reminding ourselves first of some
A The Contributor person is especially prone to this combination of
external confidence and internal uncertainty. The growing Contributor teen
can have very serious problems with poor self-image—it seems that
nothing that parents do makes any difference.