Games People Play
by Eric Berne
Book Read on 27 / 6 / 2006
This book was really cool. In the beginning it was hard to get into, the idea of the sum of human experiences being games, scripts almost, that people follow is a bit hard to swallow. Of course Shakespeare wrote that "All the world's a stage", etc.
The most interesting parts of the book were the games the Underworld Games and the Consulting Room Games. It was enlightening because you can see how the games are played out in everyday life. I went to a party tonight and watched a number of the scenarios play out. The goal of the book is to teach you how to break out of these games. Of course, the unspoken part is that if you know they are being played you can win them, but that would be cruel.
With respect to mathematical game theory, transactional game theory is different because mathematical game theory assumes that people are acting rationally, whereas transactional analysis is based on people acting irrationally.
Basically, you learn these games from your family, use them in your specific culture, act socially as a way to end the ennui of pastimes without exposing intimacy and you surround yourself with persons who play the same games as you.
There are advantages to be gained from each of these games, obviously, and after reading this book, you can spot them and refuse to play.
Oh, another thing, the book was first published in 1964 and it shows. Some of the attitudes toward women are archaic and some of the ideas toward the end of the book are a bit "crunchy".
Reviewer: William Koplitz
4 out of 5