The Power of Positive Thinking Peale's work in an article in "The Nation" dated May 7, 1955. He compares Peale's message in "The Power of Positive Thinking" to that of hypnosis, writing that "self knowledge, in Mr. Peale's understanding, is unequivocally bad; self hypnosis is good." Murphy explains that such repeated hypnosis defeats an individual's self-motivation, sense of reality, and ability to think critically. He describes Peale's understanding of the mind as inaccurate and his description of the workings of the mind as deceptively simplistic and false. Murphy states that if man's unconscious “can be conceptualized merely as a container for a small number of
The Power of Positive Thinking that go wrong in our lives). Peck defines sound mental health as “a dedication to reality at all costs”. This includes tolerance for delayed gratification, the pain of problem-solving, and the willingness and ability to take responsibility for mistakes. Peck's groundbreaking 1979 bestseller, "The Road Less Traveled", clarifies that pain is unavoidable; it is when people seek to avoid all pain that results in greater pain and an inability to grow mentally and spiritually. While Peale's work emphasizes the great value in focusing on the positive rather than the negatives in life he also preached honesty, hard work, and taking