The Court of the Ego

     The emotions begin as survival mechanisms that get organized into more complex arrays called archetypes. Archetypes are idealized advisors of the ego studied best through external expressions, like human art [1]. Take, for example, the image of a king seated at a table with his trusted court, each member of which has distinct but perhaps overlapping motivations and desires. The king has the ultimate say, but often, he relies on the courtiers around him to finalize his courses of actions. Some courtiers are closely related to him, and some he learns to lean on through shared experience and a history that has solidified a sense of trust [2].
   

the small council in Game of Thrones mirrors the processes within the court of the ego

​     In the mind, the ego has two extensions, the id, representing primal urges, and the superego, representing morality. The rest of the courtiers are a synthesis of behavioral patterns, learned and relied upon, that gain strength depending on how the ego develops in childhood [3]. In the early developmental stages, the influence of a family system has the greatest bargaining power with the ego, which is why family and childhood become main touchstones in psychological healing. Generally, each time an ego's ultimate decision yields a desired outcome, the courtiers responsible gain prominence and power, while the other forces shrink away. The longer an ego rules, the less flexible to take in the varying perspectives of the less-trustworthy advisors [4]. 
     When a person presents in crisis, a psychologist must determine whether the ego will be receptive to change [5]. A psychologist, by engaging in a dialogue with a person, attempts to insert a new advisor at the court of the ego with a perspective that is inadequately represented by the existing courtiers. This new advisor must learn a delicate dance to charm over the advisors, and hopefully the ego, by uniting forces in a new compromise. Therapy thus becomes a bargaining process between a competent psychologist and the rational actors seated at the court of the ego. 
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The Court of the Ego (2025) Acrylic on Canvas, 12 x 16 in

[1]
Jung, Carl. The Archetypes and the Collective Unconscious, translated by R. F. C. Hull, 2nd ed., Princeton UP, 1981.

Carl Jung wrote extensively on his theory of archetypes and how they reappear across human history, religions, and art forms. He believed that archetypes were idealized forms within the collective unconsciousness and had an instinctual place, too, in the psyche of each individual. 

[2]
Greene, R. (1998). The 48 laws of power (pp. 179–190). Viking Press.

A chapter detailing courtiers in history that emphasizes the power and influence that advisors hold as a potential pattern across human behavior. 

[3]
Freud, S. (1923). The Ego and the Id. Psychoanalytic Electronic Publishing. https://www.sas.upenn.edu/~cavitch/pdf-library/Freud_SE_Ego_Id_complete.pdf 

Freud first identified and defined the elements of the ego, superego, and the id, which have been incorporated into this proposed approach to psychological intervention. 

[4]
Operant conditioning teaches the ego to trust some advisors more than others. When listening to advice leads to a positive outcome (a reward), the advisor is conditioned to continue to listen. When listening to advice leads to a negative outcome (a punishment), the advisor is conditioned to avoid the advice of that person. 

See Rholetter, W. (2022). Operant Conditioning. EBSCO. https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/social-sciences-and-humanities/operant-conditioning202  

[5]
I refer to the idea of motivational interviewing, a technique used by psychologists to evaluate whether a person is ready to change. Often, when people seek the help of a therapist, they may know they want to stop repeating a certain pattern, but at the same time feel a sense of identification with the very behavior causing them problems in their lives. For example, a person who drinks and wants to stop may be ambivalent about actually becoming sober even if they feel it is necessary for their health. 

For more information on motivational interviewing (MI), see this comprehensive review: 
Britt, E., Blampied, N. M., & Hudson, S. M. (2003). Motivational interviewing: A Review. Australian Psychologist, 38(3), 193–201. https://doi.org/10.1080/00050060310001707207