Minor-Crisis Quests

Each of the minor crises precipitates a series of three quests, which have an impact later in development. The nature of the quests is independent of the nature of the crisis (temper tantrums, cliques, fascist inclinations, or crucifixion -- indeed, even for creation ex nihilo or a crisis of faith).

Thus, the nature of the first quest is genesis of an emergent entity within the self. The nature of the second quest forces the self to accept or reject his or her society's prefered language to describe the emergent entity. The nature of the third quest is determined by the choice in the second quest.

While the nature of each of these quests is independent of which crisis is being resolved, the object of the quest is determined at each period by the nature of the conflict which brought about the crisis. Thus, the subject (or, rather, object) of the temper tantrum is that emergent entity (goals or souls or psyches or aminas or spirits or whatever) which resolves the temper tantrum.

First Quest

For each crisis, the first quest requires the genesis of some emergent entity to resolve the conflict which has brought about the crisis.

Thus, the first crisis produces a quest for goals and souls. Then second produces a quest for principles. The crisis of fascism produces a quest for human rights while the crisis of crucifixion produces a quest for a whole new level of existence which transcends mortality.

Similarly the crisis which occurs during the lanthanide series of the rare earths (creation ex nihilo) produces a quest for the gods themselves. And the crisis which occurs during the actinide series (crisis of faith) produces the science of emergence itself.

Second Quest

For each crisis, the second quest requires the character to accept or reject his society's terminology for the emergent entity.

This is not a trivial test. Because the emergent entities are fundamentally internal to the self, it is necessary that they be personal. Their only external manifestation is their effect on behavior. So, any culture's description of the emergent entity must be necessarily arbitrary.

We can know that they are emergent. We can know they are internal. We know that they must resolve a particular crisis. But further description must be hypothetical, based entirely on each hypothesizer's own personal experience with their own emergent entities. Some characters may have strong feelings based on this experience, but their belief that their experience applies directly to others can never be tested (as long as each competing hypothesis resolves the crisis).

Thus, once the crisis has been internally resolved, the character must decide whether to accept his culture's method of describing his own internal sub-selves. A culture's choice is often influenced by those in the culture who have reached the related rare-earth series (the lanthanide series for temper tantrums; the actinide series for cliques). Thus, these are changing methods of description.

The quest must thus test whether the character prefers to develop his or her own model of the internal changes being experienced directly. Or whether the character prefers to defer to society's model.

Third Quest

The third quest depends on the choice in the second quest.

If the character chose to use his own model, the third quest forces a choice between doing so openly or using an internal model while describing it externally in terms acceptable to others.

If the character chose to use society's model, the third quest forces a choice over how to treat those who don't accept society's preference: evangelism or tolerance.

All of these choices will impact later stages of development or later levels of development.

Consequences

For the first two crises (temper tantrums and cliques), the results of the second and third quest will have a direct impact later in development. Each Developmental Object will have two sequences which will determine the difference between mastery and genius.

Non-genius mastery gives the master a false sense that he or she knows all there is to know about the subject, while true genius confers the ability to "think outside the box" of a culture's preconceptions about the subject.

Choosing the societal model precludes awareness that the genius track exists, but chosing tolerance allows for the possibility of rethinking that model at any time (thus opening up the genius track of the appropriate rare earths). Total evangelism precludes such a switch and closes the genius track completely.

Choosing the character's own internal model opens the genius track. Openly contesting the societal model forces the character to progress down the genius track, while using the internal model while conforming in dealings with others allows a choice between the two.

Consequences in fascism and crucifixion (as well as creation ex nihilo and the crisis of faith) have an impact not on the development of current self, but on the subsequent level of development (superorganism or meme). In other words, they will not only affect the intensity with which the society will pursue the death of the character when the interindividual minor crisis is reached, but they will have a significant impact on the strength and nature of the memes which are produced.

See also Genius and Major-Crisis Quests?

— Scotus - 05 Aug 2000