Freud’s personality theory, which focuses on the id, ego, and superego, is illustrated through characters in many literary works. In the young adult novel, The Maze Runner, these three features of an individual’s mind are embodied by specific characters, who have been locked into a dangerous environment, forced to survive off the land and limited resources provided to them. An individual’s personality and position within a given society will cause that person to express one of these three areas of the mind more prevalently. As individuals express the id, ego, or superego in a more dominant fashion, they will encounter great conflict with others who express different areas of the mind, which can lead to chaos and disorder within that society …show more content…
While in the real world an individual mind is often in conflict with itself as it advances from childhood to adulthood, in the literary world, stories are used to show how the interplay of these aspects of the mind would manifest themselves through multiple characters. In The Maze Runner, the main character Thomas wakes up in the Glade with no memory of who he is and how he arrived in this new environment. Once he wakes up, he meets a group of boys who, like him, do not remember life prior to entering the Glade. With only one way out of this mysterious environment, a dangerous and deadly maze, the boys have decided to remain in the Glade and create a society in which each boy uses the strengths of his personality. As the story develops, Thomas embodies the superego as he strives to solve the problem of the maze and act as a moral compass for the group. His personality is juxtaposed with Gally, the bully, who represents the id in Freud’s …show more content…
As a result, “a piece of reality which was undoubtedly important [must be] disavowed by the ego” (Freud 844). Gally is ultimately rejected by the group, which leads to a vicious attack and the death of a beloved character at the end of a novel. Had attacks from the mysterious Grievers not occurred, Alby would have been able to quell Gally’s anger and desire for power, which led to the conflict between Thomas who was a natural leader and problem-solver when it came to the maze. Unfortunately, balance was unable to be found between these three characters who embodied each part of the mind within Freud’s theory. As a result, chaos ensued, the community collapsed, and the initial conflict for the next book in the series was set in