On speaking to oneself

This essay is an attempt to pull together a multiplicity of phenomena variously called "private speech," "egocentric speech," "self-communicative speech," "self-guiding speech" or "soliloquy" within a unified perspective. I will attempt to demonstrate that soliloquy consists of 3 basic components: a "regressive" component involved with the release of raw emotional energy, an "intrapersonal" component concerned with structuring and sustaining cognition, and an "interpersonal" component directed toward communicating with others. An example of what can be called "regressive soliloquy" is the instinctive cry of a newborn baby or the involuntary curse of a person who has just struck his thumb with a hammer. An "intrapersonal soliloquy" is exemplified by the person who has looked up a telephone number in the directory and repeats it to himself for better retention as he prepares to dial the telephone, while "interpersonal soliloquy" is illustrated by one's rehearsal of a speech destined for public delivery.