Verified Document

Self Carl Jung's Archetypes And The Collective Essay

Related Topics:

¶ … Self Carl Jung's archetypes and the collective unconscious

This is a mythology concept based on the Freud's personal unconscious. Freud was in a quest to understand the reason behind some behaviors that were expressed by some individuals. He sought to understand what made the behaviors so automated and happened spontaneously. This prompted him to delve into the mind of people and try to understand that secret driving force within the mind. Freud proposed that there was the personal interpretation of aspects like dreams and images. He also insinuated that these aspects meant different things to different individuals hence the impossibility of having a common interpretation of individual dreams.

However, Jung postulated that these aspects do not only have the personal interpretation but also the collective meaning attached to them. For instance, there are dreams one could have for instance of the grandmother. According to Freud, there is that interpretation of the grandmother being the individual's grandmother but Jung gives the wider interpretation of the grandmother as a wise person of the society and a guardian figure and that is the collective meaning stored among many people of that society in the collective unconscious (Barbara F., 1999). There are such meanings that are attached to event like the ritualistic occasions like holy baths, circumcision and so on by the community or society and referred to as the collective unconscious.

The collective meanings that members of a given community subscribe to are called archetypes. These are the meanings that have a common interpretation among the...

Archetypes are normally kept in the collective unconscious which is the common part of the mind of people in general that that retains as well as transmits the common inheritance in the psychology of a people.
Jung therefore concentrated more on the human race in general rather than a single individual's experiences. He refers to the collective unconscious as the common experiences of man that are embedded in the minds of human beings, he sees it as a collection of experiences as well as the archetypes of basic themes and the common motifs.

Jung strongly believed that the collective unconscious is founded on the archetypes that run in the mind of mankind. The archetypes are seen to influence the thinking pattern of people as people use the same ideas as those that were used by the previous generations with and alteration of the place and environment. These archetypes are noted in mythology, literature, art as well as dreams. It can therefore be said that the search into the unconscious is same as scrutinizing the shadow which is man's hidden nature.

The archetypes are more of the instinctual behavior that people find themselves attached to and believing in. this means that there are several archetypes as are the beliefs and common practices and the recurring situations in life. The derivation of the archetypes is based on the religious observations, the mythical observations as well as the literary works and collections. They are seen as spontaneous…

Sources used in this document:
References

Barbara F., (1999). The Jungian Approach to Symbolic Interpretation. Retrieved March 2, 2013 from http://www2.cnr.edu/home/bmcmanus/approach.html
Cite this Document:
Copy Bibliography Citation

Related Documents

Jung Carl Jung: Theory &
Words: 2689 Length: 10 Document Type: Research Paper

The self, then, does not stem from individual experience but rather from what has been called "early psychosomatic unity" (Urban 2008). The existence of these many archetypes -- the shadow, the anima/animus, the mother, etc. -- in all people is evidence for Jung's concept of the collective unconscious. These universal archetypes do not come from individual experiences or conscious awareness. Instead, they are entirely unconscious and present in all people,

Carl Jung and Personality Carl
Words: 2306 Length: 7 Document Type: Term Paper

One of the most common uses of employment tests is in the area of employment. Many employers use personality tests as a means to assess potential job candidates for their suitability, honesty, and loyalty to a future employer. Individual experience and interpretation can skew answers in such as manner as to render these tests unreliable. For instance, a person who is naturally unassertive might view the actions of an

Carl Jung's Theory of the
Words: 1119 Length: 4 Document Type: Essay

The patient's behaviors are not however, atypical in relation to his experiences. He is just one of many individuals who find themselves immersed in alienation because they cannot live up to the high expectations placed on them by society, and in turn, by themselves. These childhood drives to reach "the highest truths and values" (Palmer, 1999) are often thwarted by personal failures. When one's role in life does not match

Jung Individuation in Jung's Personality
Words: 2588 Length: 7 Document Type: Research Paper

42). The competing opposites, material in consciousness and in the unconscious, must be reconciled because if there is an imbalance of power one way or the other, the psyche is off-kilter and not unified. For example, the shadow side of a person must be integrated into the conscious ego rather than denied or sliced away. A healthy personality will not allow one side of the self to dominate the

Jung Cognitive Science Is a
Words: 3276 Length: 11 Document Type: Essay

Our senses during the conscious are rarely honed, but our subconscious states, from millenia of evolutionary change, are able to detect subtleties that have freed up our conscious minds for more analytical growth. Many people view this as subtrefuge -- our subconscious secrets living in a world that lacks expression. Instead, Jung believes that all things may be viewed as paired opposites (yin and yang). So love/hate, good/evil, male/female,

Self the Concept of Self
Words: 3256 Length: 12 Document Type: Research Paper

The key to flexibility of motivation is intrinsically conflicting motivational structures. The self as defined by Jung is the core or central component that keeps these opposing forces operating as an integrated whole. To what closing stages does this process manage? It was formed by evolution and so survival is the architect but it is survival not just of the next generation but into an unclear future. The self

Sign Up for Unlimited Study Help

Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.

Get Started Now