Jung: A Very Short Introduction

I have enjoyed a dozen books in the ‘Very Short Introduction’ series but I must say this one on Jung is the best I’ve come across. You will not find a clearer presentation of the life and psychology of Carl Jung. Quite an accomplishment since Jung’s approach to the psyche and therapy is revolutionary and multifaceted. Since the subjects covered in this short introduction are so rich in content, for the purposes of this review here are a few quotes along with my comments, starting with Jung’s break with his teacher and mentor in the world of psychoanalysis – Sigmund Freud.“As time passed, Jung’s differences with Freud became harder to conceal. Two of Freud’s basic assumptions were unacceptable to him: (1) that human motivation is exclusively sexual and (2) that the unconscious mind is entirely personal and peculiar to the individual.” ---------- Turns out, this is the difference for Jung that made all the difference. In Jung’s view, we humans have many reasons for doing what we do well beyond the boundaries of sexuality. And also, the human unconscious taps into the entire range of experiences we have developed as a species over millions of years“Moreover, beneath the personal unconscious of repressed wishes and traumatic memories, posited by Freud, Jung believed there lay a deeper and more important layer that he was to call the collective unconscious, which contained in potenitia the entire psychic heritage of mankind. . . . The existence of this ancient basis of the mind had first been hinted to him as a child when he realized that there were things in his dreams that came from somewhere beyond himself. Its existence was confirmed when he studied the delusions and hallucinations of schizophrenic patients and found them to contain symbols and images which also occurred in myths and fairy-tales all over the world. --------- Again, Jung acknowledged there is a personal component to the unconscious realm we encounter in our dreams, but this is only the start: there is an ocean of unconscious energy deeper and wider than the personal – the collective unconscious. Thus, Jung’s lifelong fascination with symbols, such as mandalas, numbers, mythic animals, light-infused and shadowy superhuman presences.“What distinguishes the Jungian approach to developmental psychology from virtually all others is the idea that even in old age we are growing toward realization of or full potential. . . . aging was not a process of inexorable decline but a time for the progressive refinement of what is essential. ‘The decisive question for a man is: is he related to something infinite or not?’ ---------- A critical difference from Freud: what happens in our psyche isn’t always about working out our relationship with our mother and father buried in our personal past; rather, every stage in the human cycle, childhood, adolescence, young adulthood, middle age, old age, has its own powerful psychic energies and challenges. It is our task to accept the challenges at each stage of our life to reach the full flowering of our humanity. Thus, for Jung, psychotherapy isn’t so much about curing illness as it is about personal growth.“Jung held it to be the business of the psychologist to investigate the collective unconscious and the functional units of which it is composed – the archetypes, as he eventually called them. Archetypes are ‘identical psychic structures common to all’, which together constitute ‘the archaic heritage of humanity’. ---------- The author devotes two entire chapters to Jung’s archetypes: the Self, the ego, the shadow, the persona, the anima/amimus. And, what is an archetype? By way of example, we read: “One example which Jung frequently quoted was that of a schizophrenic patient who told him that if he stared at the sun with half-closed eyes he would see that the sun had a phallus and that this organ was the origin of the wind. Years later Jung came across a Greek text describing an almost identical vision.’ In other words, the archetype images we encounter in dreams belong to a common dream language we share will all humans, including our prehistoric ancestors and peoples of all world cultures and societies. And, according to Jung, these archetypical images can be understood as promptings to encourage our growth.“In working on a dream the starting-point for Jung was not interpretation but ‘amplification’ – that is, to enter into the atmosphere of the dream to establish its mood as well as the detail of its images and symbols, in such a way as to amplify the experience of the dream itself. Then its impact on consciousness is enhanced. ---------- Dreams are central to Jungian analysis. And if you are interested in pursuing Jung’s vision of what it means to live a full human life, reading this small book would be a great place to start.

Pages are missing. I purchased the Kindle version of this book. In the first 6 pages, 2 are missing. I hope as I proceed, no more pages are missing. I think I will like this book, if only there weren't gaps!

Jungian writers are usually complex beings with complex language, a high level of education, abstraction and symbolic understanding. Probably that is why the attract like-minded people, but not everybody wanting to know a bit about Jung is prepared for the complexity and depth of Jungian everyday talk. If you know nothing about Jungian Psychology and want to start from the foundations without having to go through bothersome highly complex language, this is your book.This basic introduction has everything you need to know about Jung, the man, how his life and personality shaped his contribution to Psychology and Science in general, the basic concepts and themes of Jung's approach to the human psyche, mental illness, psychoanalytical practice, his troublesome relationship with Freud and his supposed pro-nazism. The chapter on Dreams perhaps the weakest part, mostly because the dreams chosen from Jung seem a bit complex and too symbolic for a book that tries to be approachable and addressed to the general public.The language used is concise, approachable with the bare minimum technicalities, yet, with enough depth to make you understand the basics on which to build your knowledge about Jung and Jungian Psychology.This is a good Kindle edition with good-quality photos, but the final index is not linked, unfortunately.

I found "Jung: A Very Short Introduction" an excellent biography of a highly noted psychologist and psychiatrist, one who endorsed a worldview vastly different from that of his one-time colleague, Sigmund Freud. Jung was convinced that ultimate reality is a reality that includes spirit, whereas Freud vociferously argued in favor of atheism and a repudiation of all spiritual faith.I was impressed by Jung's psychological theories, as discussed by the biographer, Anthony Stevens. I was interested enough in Jung's concepts on the analysis of dreams to order a book on Jungian dream analysis,  Jungian Dream Interpretation: A Handbook of Theory and Practice (Studies in Jungian Psychology By Jungian Analysts, 13) .It is highly encouraging and refreshing to learn about a brilliant modern psychiatrist who did not buy into a strictly materialistic worldview. That is one reason why I consider Jung's psychological theories worthy of very serious consideration. A psychiatrist who knows that ultimate reality is of the spirit is light-years ahead of the rabidly atheistic psychiatrists who are strict materialists, and who shun the world of mind and spirit.Stevens' brief biography of Jung is an engaging little volume on the life of one of the greatest modern psychologists, and it is worthy of being read by anyone who has interest in learning a little about Karl Jung and his concepts of the human psyche.

One cannot cover everything authoratatively in this series, but I think that the main goal is to stimulate further reading and interest in Jung and his works. This book succeeds.Having read a lot of Jung in my early 20s I thought that it would be merely a review read, a sort of re-primer of my existing knowledge, which was, I must admit, clouded with a notion that Jung was little more than an interesting anti-rationalist, or -- at worst --- a dedicated metaphysician.I was wonderfully reminded that even as Jung taps into things that are commonly regarded a perhaps a little flaky by those students of modern science, he always seems to raise a question of central relevance to humanity. It is these questions and his never ending quest to probe them --- not solve them --- that reminded me of why I was interested in this man in the first place.A stimulating read.

I really enjoyed reading ths Very Short Introduction to Jung. I've had a long-standing interest in Jung, which was first triggered by reading the late Christopher Bryant's excellent books on the links between Jungian thought and Christian spirituality. The author of this Very Short Introduction, Anthony Stevens, is clearly a great expert on Jung and presents the ideas of this enigmatic thinker in an accessible and highly readable format. The fairly long opening chapter provides an overview of Jung's life and this is followed by wonderful chapters on archetypes and the collective unconsicous, the stages of life, psychological types, dreams, therapy, Jung's alleged anti-Semitism (allegations that the author refutes), and a very good short concluding chapter, which sums up Jung's legacy to Western civilisation. If you are interested in finding out about Carl Jung and his thought, this book is very good place to begin.

I read a larger book on Jung about a decade ago, a biography, but this “very short introduction,” is much better. It deals mainly with Jung’s theories and ideas, versus, say, his childhood or his relationship with his wife. The slim volume reinforced that Jung really had to something to say. True, I find some of his constructs a little unusual and don’t know what he saw, for instance, in the I-Ching , but his idea of the Self and the Shadow, his typologies, and his notion of the collective unconscious and archetypes are fascinating. There’s also an intriguing bit on Jung’s supposed anti-Semitism and pro-Nazi leanings. This book is jam packed with interesting concepts and knowledge. Carl Jung remains, for me, very intriguing, more so than his more famous Viennese mentor. Five stars.Troy Parfitt is the author of War Torn: Adventures in the Brave New Canada

... so says the author, Anthony Stevens, about our man Jung; psychiatrist, psychotherapist, cultural critic and part-time guru.Now this Very Short Introduction is divided into eight sizeable chapters, which include a beefy biography, a run-down of Jung's most prominent theories, their relation to therapeutic involvement, and then some tailings on how Jung's legacy stands today. The biographical detail in the first chapter is pretty full, which given the complexity of Jung's upbringing and adult life is pretty handy, though presumably the following quote, "In my life No.2 has been of prime importance, and I've always tried to make room for anything that wanted to come from within", has been included for its comedy value alone.In comparison to the VSI to Freud, Jung has less of a tangible narrative, and although his own work is known for its obscurity, perhaps breaking down the chapters further to make them lighter and easier to reflect upon would have helped. But, chewing through the chapters on Archetypes, the Stages of Life, and Psychological Types does give you a basic sense of the major texts, which Stevens sums up as Jung's "attempt to compensate for his sense of personal oddity and isolation."I'm a big fan of Jung, certainly of his requirement for Individuation through meditative reflection and self-exploration, and the best thing to be said for this volume is how well it contrasts him as an individual against the prevalent cultural and academic trends of his time; as part Western academic, part Eastern mystic. It's a reasonable summary, but I'd say if you want a real sense of the man and his perspective before delving into the deeper stuff, give `The Undiscovered Self' a read first.

If you’re mildly curious about Jung and Jungian analysis, this isn’t a bad place to start. It’s fairly short and provides a reasonably clear introduction to Jung’s ideas - notably archetypes and the collective unconsciousness. The basic problem is that it’s written by an eminent Jungian analysis, which means there is no serious attempt to justify or test the validity of Jung’s claims. It’s hard to avoid the conclusion that the whole business is little better than fanciful speculation - appealing, in the author’s words, to the ‘educated, well-off… not suffering from any clearly defined neurosis, but from senselessness and aimlessness in their lives’.

I have studied various works by Jung and, as most of us have, had heard many concepts and quotes attributed to him.I found this introduction to be very enlightening because it focused as much on the man - his upbringing, family, education, and the context of teachers and teachings within which he operated. This gave me a much clearer understanding of where his quotes, ideas and concepts came from - and how revolutionary many of htem were.The way the book swings from the macro of the zeitgeist within which his ideas were birthed, to the personal issues and struggles of the sage himself, helped me to identify with a man who was sure he was on a journey - and had a resposibility to share what he had learned.What was also very enlightening was the way that a couple of Jung's most significant personal dreams were described and interpreted.I love the way Jung is described as one who didn't lock things down as 'the truth' but was always open to refinement, augmentation and even plain correction. It's also clear that under all his psycho-analysings, he had a strong concept of a personal God - but equally felt that God's logic was somewhat flawed and could do with man's help on the couch. (Ok, I know....Jung never used couches in his sessions, but it's an interesting idea.)