Metaphors in Brain Functioning

There are an immense number of vivid metaphors for the explanation of how the human brain works in this string of quotes. The first one comes from Rosenthal’s Women and Depression. She said the mind is a washing machine. The serotonin is the water that flushes out and cycles the feelings. Depression is a low water pressure problem in the workings of the machine. If depression is seen of as an easily fixable problem in a washing machine the implication here is that an easy solution is the only way to cure the ailment of depression. This notion would adhere to our modern society’s logic of pills curing people’s psychological problems.
A complete opposite interpretation of depression but still compares the brain to a machine is what David Burns brings in Feeling Good. He equates the problem of depression to a scratchy station reception on a radio. There is nothing wrong with the hardware or the station that only thing that is wrong is that the dial is just slightly out of tune rendering the scratchy reception. Burns says that if we can mentally tune our emotions to the right feelings there would be no depression. I personally do not agree with the amount of control this metaphor assumes people have in their feelings. Some people do have bouts of depression that cannot be lifted merely by thinking happy thoughts. There is a serious difference in a somewhat normal person’s brain chemistry and a person’s with depression.
The two Freud articles assign human characteristics to the brain’s functioning in a stressful environment. The metaphor about the explorer’s urging to talk to the people of the newly discovered culture or to take a pick ax and begin the excavation process on the surrounding culture rich buildings. Freud wants to take a two prong ‘attack’ at the getting to the origins of hysteria. He places a lot of trust in the patient’s ability to recall the situation that caused this hysteria. He also asks the patient to confront the problematic situation probably causing more stressful memories and a feeling of unease may set in. This metaphor may predetermine how certain psychoanalytic therapists approach their practice. This metaphor really is grounded in Freudian psychoanalytic treatment philosophy and is a major proponent to predetermine action. The other Freud article explains the concept of the Id and Ego as two competing forces in everyone’s brains that serve as a protection mechanism against overly troubling memories or images turned into memories or thoughts that may be harmful to the person. These thoughts are repressed and kept hidden from the conscious mind. Hysteria begins with the overwhelming of this ego. The ego is forced to discharge feelings of fear. This metaphor explains a lot about hysteria but there is no scientific proof of these forces competing for emotional power in our brain. This is only a theory but all the tenants of this theory are explainable. This is another major proponent of action based on a metaphor because it too is taught to psychotherapists following the Freud teachings.