Procrustes and Unicorn

Procrustes and Unicorn in script-bound persons and also among professionals including therapists.

Script-bound people are given to justifying, protecting and professing own view to be the only one.¹ It not only applies to any conclusion it also applies to their thinking and feeling log-jams.² The feelings here are rackets for which the affected person works for.³ Eric Berne uses terms Procrustes and Unicorn to explain this. In Procrustes, the information is stretched or cut down to fit the hypothesis or diagnosis. In the Unicorn, the hypothesis or diagnosis is stretched or cut down to fit the recalcitrant data.⁴ It not only applies to script affected persons, it applies to professionals as well. Berne points out that "the therapist picks out a fairy tale prematurely, and then stretches the patient or cuts him down so that he will fit it." Procrustes is very common in all the behavioral sciences.⁵ Berne identifies their relevance in literature by saying that : Procrustes is still the patron saint of sociology, as the Unicorn is of psychology.⁶ 

 Notes:

1. Justifying, protecting and professing own view are manifestations of Procrustes and Unicorn.

2. Thinking and feeling log-jams are experienced by all especially when we are hurt, pained, insulted, embarrassed and following cross-ups in games. Helplessness, confusion, indecision and intra-psychic conflicts are also notable variants.

3. Berne writes in Hello pg. 165 on rackets to say : During this period, Jeder also makes a definite decision about what kind of feelings he will work for.

4. Hello pg.451

5. ibid 451

6. ibid 452

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Ajit Karve

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