The power of the written word

Catholic New Times, Oct 5, 2003 by Donna Morrissey

On May 31 this year, writer Donna Morrissey joined 20 other writers from Atlantic Canada at "WordFest". Sponsored by the Coady Institute of Saint Francis Xavier University in Antigonish, N.S. WordFest celebrated 150 years of the university's contribution to social change through innovative thinking and writing. Morrissey's theme (contained in her novel Downhill Chance) was that individual change comes from the community. It is through the 'social' context that we identify ourselves. In the story, her young female character is going back in time to determine who she is. She realizes that it is only in the context of her community that she can discover who she is. The change that occurs within ourselves ripples out through the community--resulting in the kind of social change that can be lasting.

There was once a story written about a boy named David, who was a gentle, loving boy; but who, as he grew older, was repeatedly hurt by an abusive, emotionally negligent father; a depressed, though loving, mother; and an impoverished environment.

During his teenage years, a whole host of mitigating circumstances, both personal and social, began pressing in on him and he started expressing his frustrations and anger on others. Picked up and let go by the police a number of times, he was finally charged and convicted of assault and sentenced to six months in prison. End of story.

It was this story that I gave to twelve first-time offenders, who like David, were guilty of many accounts of assault, but were being charged for the first time.

I was developing a program that would divert the participants from the law courts and a criminal record, and at the same time, "effect change" in those individuals. After two hours a week for the program ended, yet eight of the 12 individuals were reluctant to leave.

Firstly, they identified with David as they all came from the same impoverished, socio-economic backgrounds, suffered negligent parenting, were failing at school--at least, those who still attended--and were caught in a number of personal conflicts among their peers. Yet, they were brutal in their condemnation of David, as he verbally abused those individuals attempting to help him, became more and more aggressive and then landed in jail.

Why were they disappointed and condemning of another who walked a path parallel to theirs? Why did they want him to succeed? Because David was the hero of the story.

Heroes don't end tip up in the clink for being assholes. Later, during our discussion of the book, they pointed out where David went wrong, and why he went wrong. They saw where he could've sought help, where he turned his back on help, where he was unable to recognize love when it came his way.

Stand back and see

After a thorough discussion of David, I asked them to reflect on their personal stories, to note the mitigating circumstances leading up to their arrests, to see the opportunities they might've missed to help themselves in finding love, support and alternate routes to violence. And it was this, the ability to stand back and see themselves as a "character" in a drama, that enabled them to see themslves as heroes in their own lives. The idea hooked them.

For the first time, they sought to develop an intimacy with themselves, to understand who they were, and why. They were coming to understand how they'd been victims of others and yet more importantly, how they had the ability to effect change in themselves and the course of their own lives.

The eight boys left the program with a plan to continue their group on their own and they extended a welcome to any other individual caring to join.

Whether they will be successful in continuing the group, or in effecting change in their lives and the community around them is another story.

The fact is they were already successful in learning about self, and seeing how change could be effected--both Within and outside of themselves.

For one of the worlds' great spiritual writers, scientist and psychologist, Carl Jung ,the greatest contribution anyone can make to society is to withdraw into his own home and work on himself. By effecting change within ourselves we then are able to effect change in society. It is for this great, solitary act of learning about oneself that the written word becomes a powerful tool.

A word engages us

More than the tail-end of radio program we catch while driving home from work, or television show we catch glimpses of while flicking through the channels, a book moves with us. It is ours. We chose it, buy it, and now open its covers and pour ourselves into it. We question, examine, challenge and change the concepts written on the pages before us. We bring forward our own thoughts, theories or concepts. That is the power of the written word; it engages us, involves us, and demands that we draw on our own resources to create more meaning, to wrap our own emotions around the ideas, to resurrect our own images and visions.

That, then, is one manner in which change evolves; when the thoughts of another evoke thoughts of our own, and we work to fit the two, making for a different thing, a more inclusive thing, a thing that is representative of ourselves as well as the visions of another. When we feel this sort of ownership, there often grows a great desire to present our selves, to recreate ,as with the old alchemist who worked by consulting the spirit within, and bringing it forward into matter to create the philosopher's stone; the source of all healing, and of all knowing.