Secure Attachment In Shel Silverstein's The Giving Tree
678 Words3 Pages
The capacity to love and be loved, “valuing close relations with others, in particular those in which sharing and caring are reciprocated; being close to people”, promotes happiness and benefits the individual’s overall well-being. Furthermore, they are essential to positive outcomes for self and others.
One may be asking, “What’s love got to do with it?” Well, love is crucial in achieving happiness through maintaining close personal relationships. When our capacity to love surpasses our desire to be loved, then because of our unselfishness we are able to receive love in return. Humans, among other species, learn to express unconditional love early on as babies through attachment with their mother. Psychologists Hazan and Shaver proposed that their attachment will be a predictor of future relationships. A child with a secure attachment will develop relationships easily without worrying about abandonment, and often describe their relationships as happy, friendly, or trusting. (Schacter, 2009).…show more content… The boy develops a secure attachment with the tree, who of which resembles a nurturing mother. Upon first meeting the tree he is hungry, so the tree gives him her apples to eat. The two form a bond and because the tree have a deep devotion for the boy, she feels responsible for him, so when his desires change as he ages, the tree still gives him what she can until all that is left is a stump. He returns once more as an old man and all he wants is something to rest on, her stump. The children’s book embodies the meaning of why love means treasuring close relationships, in particular those in which sharing and caring are reciprocated. The boy cares for the tree and the tree is willing to sacrifice what she has due to her capacity to love and be