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fictionista's review against another edition
2.0
Super dry, although it tried to be a very simple read, it erred towards dry, and even condescending at times. Also, extraordinarily dated.
morgan_blackledge's review against another edition
4.0
AA has a phrase for disliking, discounting or dismissing something before completely understanding or trying it:
“contempt prior to investigation”
When it comes to the depth orientation, I am plainly guilty of contempt prior to investigation.
Some of my contempt for depth psychologically stemmed from needing tangibility and clarity in my early training as a clinician.
I rejected old, non-scientifically derived models in favor of more contemporary, “evidence based” approaches e.g. CBT/DBT/ACT etc.
This is not a bad thing.
It was (and remains) a necessary counterbalance to my chaotic, new-age hippy childhood, and my flaky (but fun as fuck) party with me punker young adulthood.
When I (finally) stumbled into therapy in my early thirties, my therpaist jolted me out of my confused dysfunction with a little CBT and a lot of simple common sense, something I was severely lacking but desperately needed.
If she had been a Jungian, I may not have survived that painful period. I needed boundaries, structure and confrontation.
After my anarchic, acid test of a prior life, I needed the clarity and tangibility of positivistic, rational scientific materialism.
I am very grateful to myself for asserting that need in my clinical training. I didn’t want to emerge from that experience without something very concrete. It was absolutely the right move, and I’m still deeply rooted in CBT/DBT/ACT.
I worked in addiction treatment for the next 10 years, and CBT/DBT/ACT was precisely suited for that environment.
Given all that….
As I transition from working in a short-term, crisis management, milieu driven, team based recovery context, into a longer term private practice context, the use value of the depth orientation (and psychodynamic psychotherapy more generally) is absolutely apparent.
And that makes sense, as these methods were created in, and for, the private practice context.
I’m grateful that I have the foundations of CBT/DBT/ACT to build upon, and the boundaries I learned to set as a clinician in residential treatment are priceless.
But the depth/dynamic way of conceptualizing and working is speaking to me in a way that I simply can’t ignore.
And I’m going with it.
Of course, there is lots (AND LOTS) of useless nonsense to parse through, particularly in these (50+ year-old texts), but I’m not looking to these types of books for valid truth claims.
I’m looking to them for something that is useful, and wise, even if imprecise and subjective.
With that lengthy preface.
I kind of loved this book.
And it sort of blew my mind.
I was already familiar with most of the constructs covered in the book.
But I have to say.
I am relating to them in a much different way than in the past.
The important issues covered herein include:
The role of unconscious processes (instincts and preconscious thoughts and feelings) in human functions.
The role of archetype in human functioning.
And the process of individuation i.e. the process of emerging from the structureless pure potentiality of childhood, into the focused, self aware, specificity and focus of adulthood.
Individuation entails a close examination and a very personal interpretation of psychological content, and the archetypal symbolism and themes found therein.
In this way of viewing the project of human becoming. Consciousness holds the keys to the unconscious. In other words, reifying our unconscious, undifferentiated psychological content into conscious, specific from is the definitive human endeavor. And we need explicit language and constructs to give specific form and meaning to the otherwise undifferentiated miasma of our phenomenological experience.
Reading this has me trying new things, and pursuing new directions in therapy.
I feel vital and curious.
I’m glad I waited.
The timing seems perfect.
4/5 stars ⭐️
Why not five?
I was hoping for more original work.
Most of this book was authored by contributors other than Carl Jung.
And (of course) the text is dated in areas.
It’s like over 50 years old.
But don’t let that stop you.
Go ahead and get it if you’re curious or otherwise so inclined.
“contempt prior to investigation”
When it comes to the depth orientation, I am plainly guilty of contempt prior to investigation.
Some of my contempt for depth psychologically stemmed from needing tangibility and clarity in my early training as a clinician.
I rejected old, non-scientifically derived models in favor of more contemporary, “evidence based” approaches e.g. CBT/DBT/ACT etc.
This is not a bad thing.
It was (and remains) a necessary counterbalance to my chaotic, new-age hippy childhood, and my flaky (but fun as fuck) party with me punker young adulthood.
When I (finally) stumbled into therapy in my early thirties, my therpaist jolted me out of my confused dysfunction with a little CBT and a lot of simple common sense, something I was severely lacking but desperately needed.
If she had been a Jungian, I may not have survived that painful period. I needed boundaries, structure and confrontation.
After my anarchic, acid test of a prior life, I needed the clarity and tangibility of positivistic, rational scientific materialism.
I am very grateful to myself for asserting that need in my clinical training. I didn’t want to emerge from that experience without something very concrete. It was absolutely the right move, and I’m still deeply rooted in CBT/DBT/ACT.
I worked in addiction treatment for the next 10 years, and CBT/DBT/ACT was precisely suited for that environment.
Given all that….
As I transition from working in a short-term, crisis management, milieu driven, team based recovery context, into a longer term private practice context, the use value of the depth orientation (and psychodynamic psychotherapy more generally) is absolutely apparent.
And that makes sense, as these methods were created in, and for, the private practice context.
I’m grateful that I have the foundations of CBT/DBT/ACT to build upon, and the boundaries I learned to set as a clinician in residential treatment are priceless.
But the depth/dynamic way of conceptualizing and working is speaking to me in a way that I simply can’t ignore.
And I’m going with it.
Of course, there is lots (AND LOTS) of useless nonsense to parse through, particularly in these (50+ year-old texts), but I’m not looking to these types of books for valid truth claims.
I’m looking to them for something that is useful, and wise, even if imprecise and subjective.
With that lengthy preface.
I kind of loved this book.
And it sort of blew my mind.
I was already familiar with most of the constructs covered in the book.
But I have to say.
I am relating to them in a much different way than in the past.
The important issues covered herein include:
The role of unconscious processes (instincts and preconscious thoughts and feelings) in human functions.
The role of archetype in human functioning.
And the process of individuation i.e. the process of emerging from the structureless pure potentiality of childhood, into the focused, self aware, specificity and focus of adulthood.
Individuation entails a close examination and a very personal interpretation of psychological content, and the archetypal symbolism and themes found therein.
In this way of viewing the project of human becoming. Consciousness holds the keys to the unconscious. In other words, reifying our unconscious, undifferentiated psychological content into conscious, specific from is the definitive human endeavor. And we need explicit language and constructs to give specific form and meaning to the otherwise undifferentiated miasma of our phenomenological experience.
Reading this has me trying new things, and pursuing new directions in therapy.
I feel vital and curious.
I’m glad I waited.
The timing seems perfect.
4/5 stars ⭐️
Why not five?
I was hoping for more original work.
Most of this book was authored by contributors other than Carl Jung.
And (of course) the text is dated in areas.
It’s like over 50 years old.
But don’t let that stop you.
Go ahead and get it if you’re curious or otherwise so inclined.
distractmepls's review against another edition
2.0
Brilliant...but so reductionist. Where most would analyze, Jung synthesizes. I have a complicated relationship with Mr Jung--I like some of his intellectual descendants, but, eh. Some things simply defy explanation.
unclerooibos's review against another edition
4.0
A nice introduction to Jungian thought. Unfortunate how Jung apparently reinforced heteronormativity in the lives of his patients. I can think of two examples from this work. The illustrations aren't very detailed. Worth the read.
davidshq's review against another edition
3.0
This is one of those books that leaves one feeling both learned and confused. Did I just grow or did I just waste my time? I am still uncertain. See my full review here: http://www.daveenjoys.com/2012/06/03/book-review-man-and-his-symbols-author-carl-g-jung-et-al/
superracoon's review against another edition
Interesting for writers and artists but how these ideas are supposed to help anyone in pain is beyond me.
silvio's review against another edition
5.0
What a genius Jung was. Having immersed myself in classical tantrik thought recently - maybe the highest metaphysics humanity has to offer - I sometimes couldn't help but think that the West, including Jungian psychology, is getting lost in the details while not observing the full picture. But that's cool. And important, too. Jung's stream of thought is maybe one of the best bridges one can find between the East and West in the exploration of experience (well, almost nothing beats psychedelic exploration though). This is definitely a paradigm-shifter. My favorite chapter was the one on the individuation process. But all of the book is gold. Yes. Thank you.
eozcar's review against another edition
3.0
Omitiendo el rigor científico, con este libro aprendes a dormir con los ojos abiertos.
ryalcoll28's review against another edition
3.0
In the first chapter, Jung delineates the differences between the unconscious/conscious mind, and, in the process, discusses archetypes and the process of individuation (though the actual term "individuation" isn't mentioned until a later chapter). I was especially taken by his observation that in our worship of "Rationalism" we've lost a connection with the subconscious strata that "primitive" man was so in tune with and that this loss is translated into our inability to find a deeper/spiritual connection to the natural world, which, as Jung accurately predicted, could have devastating consequences for the planet/humanity.
The second chapter is also fascinating in that it explores common motifs and symbols and dives deeper into Jung's concept of archetypes. I especially enjoyed reading the different interpretations the author offers for common folk/fairy tales.
That being said, Chapter three loses me. The concept of the animus/anima is far-fetched and is grounded in sexist assumptions. This chapter also engages in the very thing Jung warns against in his opening chapter: a reductionist take on the universal meaning of particular symbols without regard to the individual.
Chapter four offers a compelling look at contemporary art in the context of Jungian psychoanalysis and makes the compelling case that abstract/figurative art is ironically more naturalistic than might be superficially apparent; it was an interesting read. Chapter 5, however, is one long case study, that (while interesting) seems to make a number of interpretive leaps. It also makes you wonder to what extent these psychoanalysts make up dreams that lend themselves to their particular interpretive framework; for instance, too many of them are narratively coherent, which, are nothing like the fragmentary and incoherent dreams I've experienced. I also think dreams are more a working out of things we're consciously anxious about/struggling with, but this is, of course, based on my own experiences.
Overall, while I don't necessarily believe a lot of what this book is suggesting about dreams and their relationship to the ego/unconscious, it has a lot to say philosophically about each individual's relationship to self; furthermore, it's an interesting study of myths, rituals, and religion, making it a worthwhile read if you're interested in anthropology, mythology, or religious studies.
The second chapter is also fascinating in that it explores common motifs and symbols and dives deeper into Jung's concept of archetypes. I especially enjoyed reading the different interpretations the author offers for common folk/fairy tales.
That being said, Chapter three loses me. The concept of the animus/anima is far-fetched and is grounded in sexist assumptions. This chapter also engages in the very thing Jung warns against in his opening chapter: a reductionist take on the universal meaning of particular symbols without regard to the individual.
Chapter four offers a compelling look at contemporary art in the context of Jungian psychoanalysis and makes the compelling case that abstract/figurative art is ironically more naturalistic than might be superficially apparent; it was an interesting read. Chapter 5, however, is one long case study, that (while interesting) seems to make a number of interpretive leaps. It also makes you wonder to what extent these psychoanalysts make up dreams that lend themselves to their particular interpretive framework; for instance, too many of them are narratively coherent, which, are nothing like the fragmentary and incoherent dreams I've experienced. I also think dreams are more a working out of things we're consciously anxious about/struggling with, but this is, of course, based on my own experiences.
Overall, while I don't necessarily believe a lot of what this book is suggesting about dreams and their relationship to the ego/unconscious, it has a lot to say philosophically about each individual's relationship to self; furthermore, it's an interesting study of myths, rituals, and religion, making it a worthwhile read if you're interested in anthropology, mythology, or religious studies.