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zjames 's review for:
King, Warrior, Magician, Lover: Rediscovering the Archetypes of the Mature Masculine
by Doug Gillette, Robert Moore
This book starts off pretty rocky, and I was worried I've have to write another negative review. The beginning feels pretty wish-washy and vague, and fails to deliver a solid framework for the rest of the book. It's a lot of "do this, don't do that" that feels very self-help and beneath the aims of the book.
Nevertheless, the authors push on, and start to deliver the goods at around page 50. Moore and Gillette use a Jungian perspective to draw upon the stories and myths that have been taught to young men throughout human history to anchor and guide them in their lives. They identify a problem for males in our society, where opposing forces encourage us to be spineless and weak, or immature and reckless.
Neither extreme is for the well-centered man. Instead, to put it very simply, the heroes of the past fell into roughly four different archetypes that emphasized four different qualities: judgement, aggression, transformation, and affection. If a man fells off-centered, then he is failing to implement one of these qualities into his life.
Judgement: many of the heroes of myth were kings who were expected to rule justly or the kingdom around them would falter. So, too, must a person rule their own life.
Aggression: a person must defend himself, and aggressively pursue his goals or he will not be where he wants to be in life.
Transformation: the magicians of the past pursued knowledge, reaching a higher level mentally, and were able to use this knowledge to help others transform their own lives too.
Affection: tenderness from men is something that is discouraged by many in our society, but if we look back to the ancient cultures, many of the heroes were affectionate poets and tender lovers, shattering our modern manly stereotypes. Losing this means we lose an entire aspect of being human.
Some of it starts to sound pretty new-agey, and my description here is an oversimplification, but it was fascinating to read and think about, nonetheless.
Minus one star because of the rocky start, and I wish the authors pulled a bit more from myth, rather than modern self-help. Campbell's "The Power of Myth" has set the standard for this.
Nevertheless, the authors push on, and start to deliver the goods at around page 50. Moore and Gillette use a Jungian perspective to draw upon the stories and myths that have been taught to young men throughout human history to anchor and guide them in their lives. They identify a problem for males in our society, where opposing forces encourage us to be spineless and weak, or immature and reckless.
Neither extreme is for the well-centered man. Instead, to put it very simply, the heroes of the past fell into roughly four different archetypes that emphasized four different qualities: judgement, aggression, transformation, and affection. If a man fells off-centered, then he is failing to implement one of these qualities into his life.
Judgement: many of the heroes of myth were kings who were expected to rule justly or the kingdom around them would falter. So, too, must a person rule their own life.
Aggression: a person must defend himself, and aggressively pursue his goals or he will not be where he wants to be in life.
Transformation: the magicians of the past pursued knowledge, reaching a higher level mentally, and were able to use this knowledge to help others transform their own lives too.
Affection: tenderness from men is something that is discouraged by many in our society, but if we look back to the ancient cultures, many of the heroes were affectionate poets and tender lovers, shattering our modern manly stereotypes. Losing this means we lose an entire aspect of being human.
Some of it starts to sound pretty new-agey, and my description here is an oversimplification, but it was fascinating to read and think about, nonetheless.
Minus one star because of the rocky start, and I wish the authors pulled a bit more from myth, rather than modern self-help. Campbell's "The Power of Myth" has set the standard for this.