Eric Erikson's Theory

“It is a human to have a long childhood; it is civilized to have an even longer childhood. Long childhood makes a technical and mental virtuoso out of man, but it also leaves life-long residue of emotional immaturity in him.” (Harder n.pag.).Eric Erikson is a man who believed that the ego exists from birth and that behavior is not totally defensive (Harder n.pag.).  Eric Erikson’s theory has five stages to it. The first stage deals with the child being in early infancy to about the first year (Wadsworth 393). This stage really deals with trust and mistrust in the infant with its parents. He also describes this as the Oral Sensory Stage.  “The major emphasis is on the mother’s positive and loving care for the child, with a big emphasis on visual contact and touch.” (Harder n.pag.).  In these early stages, we have to learn how to trust life because Erikson describes that if we do not trust we will end up with feelings of worthlessness and a mistrust of the world in general (Harder n.pag.). These deals with our parents taking care of us and giving the trust that we need to start our lives.