"Good Guilt?" Until I had the privilege of previewing Lawrence Staples forthcoming book, Guilt with a Twist: The Promethean Way, guilt was something that I ran and hid from, and most certainly tried to pitch out with all those other uncomfortable feelings that have a way of clouding up an otherwise perfectly sunny day. Lawrence Staples bumps us up against the 'tip of the guiltberg' and then guides us down into the murky depths of our beings were the raging, or occasionally subtle, sources of guilt are discovered—good, bad, and at times even indifferent.With a spirit similar to what moved Galileo, Copernicus, Socrates, Rosa Parks, and Susan B. Anthony to violate conventional boundaries, Guilt with a Twist: The Promethean Way suggests that 'Good Guilt' is incurred for the sins we need to commit if we are to grow and reach our full potential as individuals, as well as a society. "'Sins' that benefit us," Staples claims, "could not be committed without a creative, Promethean spirit that is supported by an obstinate and irreverent insolence toward authority that is informed by a love of freedom."
Staples shows us how guilt may not particularly feel so 'good' at the time of a transgression, yet in retrospect the perceived 'sin' that originated feelings of guilt often turns out to be of great value materially, as well as spiritually. This timely publication sheds light and brings valuable meaning to feelings that for ages humanity has deemed 'bad' and undesirable and will benefit many who suffer from life's existential pains brought on by divorce, separations, addictions, and a host of socially imposed rules that crush the spirits of those who challenge prejudice attitudes toward race, religion, gender, and other social norms.
In addition to a Ph.D. in psychology, Lawrence H. Staples has AB and MBA degrees from Harvard. In a previous career he was an officer and a corporate vice president for a Fortune 500 company. At the age of fifty, a midlife career change led Lawrence to the C.G. Jung Institute, Zurich, Switzerland, where he spent nine years in training to become a licensed Jungian psychoanalyst. Dr. Staples now has a private practice and resides in Washington, DC. His special areas of interest are the problems of midlife, guilt, and creativity. To learn more about Guilt with a Twist: The Promethean Way, visit www.goodguilt.com and guiltwithatwist.blogspot.com
