Four Archetypes: (From Vol. 9, Part 1 of the Collected Works of C. G. Jung)

by C.G. Jung

Book Overview

One of Jung's most influential ideas has been his view, presented here, that primordial images, or archetypes, dwell deep within the unconscious of every human being. The essays in this volume gather together Jung's most important statements on the archetypes, beginning with the introduction of the concept in "Archetypes and the Collective Unconscious." In separate essays, he elaborates and explores the archetypes of the Mother and the Trickster,...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: B006SRVJN6
• ISBN13: 9780691150499
• Release Date: November 2010
• Publisher: Princeton University Press
• Length: 192 Pages
• Weight: 0.60 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.5" x 8.4"

Customer Reviews

Important work for undertanding Jung

The term "Archetype" has been greatly abused in popular speech. Yet in this monograph, Jung clearly states his ideas in this work well. The first portion of this work covers the basic ideas of archetypes in general, and looks at how these get played out in variants of the mother complex. The second portion looks at rebirth in spiritual, mystical, and life experiences. Here he looks at the psychology behind these experiences and I think there is a lot of material to contemplate here. The third element looks at psycho-cosmological elements of fairy tales and how the idea of the paternal spirit manifests in them. While I personally think Jung's analysis of the three-legged horse is somewhat faulty in this essay, the work as a whole is worth reading. The last element concerns the trickster. This is a short essay which has perhaps been more influential in popular culture than the other three combined. These these four essays represent an important and influential piece of Jung's work. I think that this work is a must-read for anyone interested in his ideas and methodology.

Well worth reading but...

You'd be better off with "Archetypes and the Collective Unconscious". A and the CU repeats the lectures/essays assembled here, together with a great deal of additional, and very valuable, material.