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Second Stage
Mark's parents are divorced, and his mother has become rigorous and cruel with her punishment. She forces him to clean the house top to bottom weekly, spending every Saturday for years cleaning the entire day. In Erikson's second stage, autonomy versus shame and doubt, a child must be given the room to develop the autonomy that allows us to function in adulthood. -
Sixth Stage
Mark decides to marry Mindy, and the pair have hard times. Mark gets divorced and develops a deep sense of bitterness toward women, and chooses to eschew relationships. In Erikson's sixth stage, intimacy versus isolation, young adults must decide if they will find comfort and nourishment in relationships and community, or if they will suffer loneliness. -
Seventh Stage
Mark gets addicted to pain killers after an injury on the job, and spends years in labor, addicted to medication. He never seeks any other employment or philanthropy, and works until he can't, with a measly retirement. In Erikson's seventh stage, generativity versus stagnation, an adult must decide if they will contribute to society and the next generation, or if they will serve their own interests and wallow in self importance.