They test the mind, force you to think of synonyms and antonyms and increase your overall vocabulary. I have found however, the I have begun to play a face association game that has far less benefits. When I see people walking near me, or down the street I have begun to naturally compare them to other people that I know. A part of me thinks "that is" a certain person even though that is nigh on impossible in my current situation. So in effect, I associate their faces with those that I am familiar with.
Instead of increasing my knowledge as word association does, face association decreases it. People are not so easily typified as words and as such, I am forcing them into certain groups that in reality do not exist. I show a severe lack of creativity and indeed, a fear of new people if I perpetually go to pre-existing knowledge to perceive them.
There is an even worse example of this 'game' that I caught myself playing a few days ago. Two people that I had newly met became associated in my mind with others I knew previously. In the one case, I disliked the person I knew originally and had to force myself not to feel this way about the new person, who incidentally is completely opposite. In the other case I associated this person with someone that I greatly liked and in that way did not give this new person a chance to impress their own benefits on me. Thankfully I have recognised this and taken steps to rectify it.
However, I must be diligent in my avoidance of this face association game.
-The English Student
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