by Ruth Snowden
His ideas about the collective unconscious and archetypes have given us new insights into the history of the human psyche.
His lifelong interest in dreams has expanded our understanding of the mysterious world of the unconscious.
Many of his ideas about personality, such as introversion and extroversion have become part of everyday language and understanding.
His fascination with mythology, religion and the paranormal has encouraged people to open up new thinking about spiritual psychology.
Jung emphasized that in order to become a competent analyst, one must first try to understand oneself.
Jungian analysts are now trained all over the world and there are many institutions devoted to expanding Jung’s ideas.
* * *
Glossary
alchemy An esoteric practice combining aspects of mysticism, magic, science and religion.
amplification Exploring symbolic meanings by comparisons with myth, folklore and religion.
analytical method Method of studying things by breaking them down into their separate elements.
anima The unconscious feminine side of a man’s personality.
animus The unconscious masculine side of a woman’s personality.
archetype A universally recognizable image, or pattern of thinking, which represents a typical human experience.
causality The idea that related events are connected by cause and effect.
collective unconscious The deepest layer of the unconscious, which extends beyond the individual psyche.
complex A related group of emotionally charged unconscious ideas, thoughts and images.
cryptomnesia An experience that is forgotten before later being reproduced without the person recognizing it as a memory.
divination Insight into the future or the unknown, gained by paranormal methods.
ego The centre of consciousness and the sense of identity.
esoteric To do with inner knowledge; from the Greek esoterikos, meaning ‘within’. Sometimes used to refer to secret or mystical knowledge revealed only to a chosen few.
extroversion Direction of interest outwards towards external objects and relationships.
gnostic Relating to knowledge, especially occult mystical knowledge.
halcyon Means calm, peaceful and happy, and the word also refers to kingfishers.
individuation Conscious realization and fulfilment of the Self.
introversion Direction of interest inwards towards the inner world of thoughts and feelings.
intuitive Knowing things without having to reason them out.
libido Motivating psychic energy.
mandala A symbolic circular figure that represents the universe, or the wholeness of the Self.
mechanistic view A view that sees a person as a machine whose behaviour is determined by physical or chemical causes.
mythopoeic To do with the making of myths.
myths Traditional stories that try to explain natural, social or religious ideas.
neurosis A minor nervous or mental disorder.
numinous Awe-inspiring; indicating the presence of the divine.
occult Secret knowledge concerning the mysterious, paranormal or magical.
paranormal Things and events which cannot be explained by normal, objective means within the framework of current understanding.
parapsychology The study of paranormal mental phenomena.
persona The public face that a person assumes when relating to others.
positivism A way of thinking that limits knowledge to that which is directly observable.
precognition Knowing something in advance, often by paranormal means.
projection A process whereby an unconscious characteristic, a fault, or even a talent of one’s own is seen as belonging to another person or object.
psyche The mind, soul or spirit.
psychiatrist Someone who studies and treats mental and nervous disorders.
psychoanalysis A system of psychology and method of treating mental disorders, originally developed by Sigmund Freud.
psychogenic disorders Disorders that originate with mental conditions – physical symptoms may follow on.
psychologist Scientist who studies the mind and behaviour.
psychosis Severe mental disorder.
reductionism A way of thinking that breaks complex ideas down into simple component parts.
repression A process of banishing unpleasant or undesirable feelings and experiences to the unconscious mind.
Self The archetype of wholeness of the psyche that transcends the ego.
shadow The unconscious part of the personality that contains characteristics which one cannot recognize as one’s own.
spiritual Concerned with the spirit, i.e. the intelligent non-physical part of a person, as opposed to the physical body.
synchronicity The simultaneous occurrence of two meaningful but not causally connected events.
transcendent function A new, more healthy attitude that emerges in the psyche when two opposite functions become integrated.
transference Emotional involvement between patient and therapist.
unconscious Parts of the mind and personality that a person is not aware of.
zeitgeist The spirit of the age.
Taking it further
Timeline of important events in Jung’s life
1875
Born on 26 July, in Kesswil, Switzerland
1879
Family moves to Basel
1884
Birth of sister Gertrude
1895–1900
Studies medicine at University of Basel
1896
Death of father
1900
Works as assistant physician under Eugen Bleuler at Burghölzli
1902
Awarded Ph.D. from university of Zürich; studies briefly under French psychologist Pierre Janet in Paris; visits London
1903
Marries Emma Rauschenbach
1904
Birth of daughter Agathe
1903–5
Works on research in word association
1905
Becomes lecturer in psychiatry at the University of Zürich
1906
Birth of daughter Gret
1905–9
Senior staff physician at Burghölzli Psychiatric Clinic; correspondence with Freud begins
1907
Meets Freud; writes The Psychology of Dementia Praecox
1908
First International Psychoanalytic Congress, Salzburg; birth of son Franz
1909
Gives up working at Burghölzli and moves to Küsnacht, Zurich, to start private practice;goes to America with Freud on lecture tour and receives honorary degree from Clark University
1910
Writes Symbols of Transformation; birth of daughter Marianne
1910–13
President of the International Psychoanalytic Association
1912
Publishes Psychology of the Unconscious
1913
Final split with Freud;resigns lectureship at Zurich University
1913–19
Midlife crisis – confronts unconscious
1914
Resigns as president of the International Psychoanalytic Association; birth of daughter Helene
1918
Commandant of camp for British interns at Chateau d’Oex
1920
Visits Algiers and Tunis
1921
Publishes Psychological Types
1922
Purchase of land at Bollingen
1923
Begins building his tower at Bollingen; death of mother
1924
Studies Pueblo Indians in New Mexico
1926
Studies inhabitants of Mount Elgon, Kenya
1928
Begins to study alchemy
1932
Awarded literature prize
of the City of Zurich
1933
Awarded professorship of Psychology at the Federal Polytechnical University of Zurich;edits the Central Journal for Psychotherapy and Related Fields until 1939; publishes Modern Man in Search of a Soul
1935
Made president of the Swiss Society for Practical Psychology; publishes Analytical Psychology: its Theory and Practice; delivers Tavistock lectures in London
1936
Honorary doctorate from Harvard
1938
Visits India; honorary doctorate from Calcutta, Benares, Allahabad; President of International Congress for Psychotherapy at Oxford – receives honorary doctorate from Oxford University
1941
Retires from the Federal Polytechnical University of Zurich
1943
Made Professor of Medical Psychology at the University of Basel; also made honorary member of the Swiss Academy of Sciences
1944
Resigns chair at Basel because of a critical illness; publishes Psychology and Alchemy
1945
Honorary doctorate from Geneva University on his 70th birthday
1948
Founding of CG Jung Institute, Zurich
1951
Publishes Aion
1952
Publishes Answer to Job
1955
Death of his wife Emma
1956
Publishes Mysterium Coniunctionis
1957
Starts work on Memories, Dreams, Reflections; publishes The Undiscovered Self; BBC TV interview
1960
Made honorary citizen of Küsnacht on his 85th birthday
1961
Finishes Man and His Symbols, ten days before his death; dies in Kusnacht 6 June.
Places to visit
KESSWIL
Jung’s birthplace on the shore of Lake Constance in NE Switzerland. It is a small and pretty fishing village with half-timbered houses. A street is named after Jung and there is a commemorative plaque on the presbytery where he was born, describing him as ‘explorer of the human soul and its hidden depths’. You can also visit the small church where his father was parson, with its lovingly kept cemetery full of flowers.
KÜSNACHT
The CG Jung Institute, Hornweg 28, CH-8700,
Founded in 1948 as a centre for training in and researching analytical psychology and psychotherapy. The institute is now an international meeting place for the exchange of ideas, and holds many events and lectures. It has a large library of material relating to Jung and his work, and you can also buy and order books.
Jung is buried at Küsnacht, in a family grave at the protestant church, along with his parents, wife and sister. There is a large gravestone, decorated with the epitaph:
The first man comes from the earth and is of the earth. Invoked or not invoked, the god is present. The second man comes from heaven and is of heaven which is derived partly from the New Testament and partly from the Oracle at Delphi.
BOLLINGEN
Jung built a tower here, starting in 1923. It is about 40 km from Zurich, on the shore of the lake. It was a peaceful place where he could escape from everyday life and find the space to think and be himself. There is a stone monument which he erected in 1950, explaining what the tower meant to him.
A list of Jung’s most important works
Jung was a prolific writer and wrote many essays, papers, lectures and letters as well as full-length books. By his own admission his work became vast and chaotic, but fortunately there is a complete collection, The Collected Works of CG Jung (see Further reading). Here is a list of some of his important works, in chronological order.
1902
MD dissertation, On the Psychology and Pathology of So-called Occult Phenomena
1903
Studies in Word-Association
1907
The Psychology of Dementia Praecox
1910
Symbols of Transformation
1912
Psychology of the Unconscious
1916
Seven Sermons to the Dead Collected Papers on Analytical Psychology
1918
The Role of the Unconscious Instinct and the Unconscious
1921
Psychological Types
1921
The Secret of the Golden Flower (with Richard Wilhelm) Contributions to Analytical Psychology
1933
Modern Man in Search of a Soul
1935
Analytical Psychology – Its Theory and Practice
1944
Psychology and Alchemy
1951
Aion
1952
Answer to Job
1956
Mysterium Coniunctionis
1957
The Undiscovered Self
1958
Flying Saucers – a Modern Myth
1963
Memories, Dreams, Reflections (published posthumously)
1964
Man and His Symbols (also published posthumously)
2009
The Red Book (published posthumously)
Further reading
There are huge numbers of books available both by and about Jung. The following brief list offers a few suggestions for where to begin further reading.
BOOKS WRITTEN BY JUNG
The Collected Works of CG Jung, UK edition: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1953–71; US edition: Bollinger Foundation, Princeton University Press, 1967.
The 20 volumes cover the following subjects:
Psychiatric Studies
Experimental Researches
The Psychogenesis of Mental Disease
Freud and Psychoanalysis
Symbols of Transformation
Psychological Types
Two Essays on Analytical Psychology
The Structure and Dynamics of the Psyche
The Archetypes and the Collective Unconscious; Aion
Civilization in Transition
Psychology and Religion: West and East
Psychology and Alchemy
Alchemical Studies
Mysterium Coniunctionis
The Spirit in Man, Art and Literature
The Practice of Psychotherapy
The Development of Personality
The Symbolic Life
General Bibliography of Jung’s Writings
General Index to the Collected Works
Separate books by Jung include the following:
Analytical Psychology: its Theory and Practice: The Tavistock Lectures (Routledge and Kegan Paul,1968)
Answer to Job (Routledge, 1954)
Man and His Symbols (Aldus Books, 1964 and Picador, 1978)
Memories, Dreams, Reflections (Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1963 and Collins/Fontana, 1967).
This is Jung’s autobiography, recorded and edited by his secretary, Aniela Jaffe. It is one of the best introductions to Jung.
Modern Man in Search of a Soul (Routledge, 1933)
The Freud/Jung Letters, edited by William McGuire (Hogarth Press and Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1974)
A useful map to guide you around Jung’s extensive works is:
Hopcke, R. H. (1989) A Guided Tour of the Collected Works of C G Jung, Shambala
BOOKS ABOUT JUNG
Dunne, C. Carl Jung: Wounded Healer of the Soul (Continuum, 2000)
Fordham, F. An Introduction to Jung’s Psychology (Penguin,1991)
Hannah, B. Jung, His Life and Work (Putnam, 1976 and Shambhala, 1991)
Jaffé, A. Jung’s Last Years (Spring Publications Inc., 1984)
McLynn, F. Carl Gustav Jung (Bantam Press, 1996)
Stevens, A. On Jung (Penguin, 1991)
van der Post, L. Jung and the Story of Our Time (Random House, 1975)
Wehr, G. Jung: A Biography (Shambhala, 1987)
DEVELOPING JUNG’S IDEAS FURTHER
Hannah, B. Encounters with the Soul: Imagination as Developed by C G Jung (Sigo Press,
1985 and Chiron, 2001)
Hannah, B. The Cat, Dog and Horse Lectures (Chiron, 1992)
Jung, E. Animus and Anima (Spring Publications, 1983)
Neumann, E. The Origins and History of Consciousness (Princeton University Press, 1970)
Samuels, A. Jung and the Post Jungians (Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1985)
Samuels A (ed.) Psychopathology: Contemporary Jungian Perspectives (Guildford Press, 1992)
von Franz, Marie-Louise. Dreams (Shambala, 1991)
(You can also find various editions of other interesting titles by Marie-Louise von Franz, such as The Interpretation of Fairy Tales, The Cat, Shadow and Evil in Fairy Tales, Individuation in Fairy Tales, etc.)
Useful websites
www.answers.com Handy site with a lot of links
www.cgjungclinic.org.uk The Carl Jung Clinic
www.cgjungpage.org Comprehensive site offering articles, discussion forums and a directory of analysts
www.jungian-analysis.org Site of the Society of Analytical Psychology
www.jungnewyork.com Information about Jungian analysis