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''Man and His Symbols'' is the last work undertaken by
Carl Jung Carl Gustav Jung ( ; ; 26 July 1875 â€“ 6 June 1961) was a Swiss psychiatrist and psychoanalyst who founded analytical psychology. Jung's work has been influential in the fields of psychiatry, anthropology, archaeology, literature, philo ...
before his death in 1961. First published in 1964, it is divided into five parts, four of which were written by associates of Jung: Marie-Louise von Franz, Joseph L. Henderson,
Aniela Jaffé Aniela Jaffé (February 20, 1903 – October 30, 1991) was a Swiss analyst who for many years was a co-worker of Carl Gustav Jung. She was the recorder and editor of Jung's semi-autobiographical book '' Memories, Dreams, Reflections''. Life Jaffé ...
, and
Jolande Jacobi Jolande Jacobi (25 March 1890 – 1 April 1973) was a Swiss psychologist, best remembered for her work with Carl Jung, and for her writings on Jungian psychology. Life and career Born in Budapest, Hungary (then under Austria-Hungary) as Jolan ...
. The book, which contains numerous illustrations, seeks to provide a clear explanation of Jung's complex theories for a wide non-specialist readership. Jung wrote Part 1, "Approaching the Unconscious," of the book in English:


Origin of the book

The idea for this work developed in two stages. In the spring of 1959, the BBC asked journalist (and future politician) John Freeman to interview Carl Gustav Jung at his home in
Küsnacht Küsnacht is a municipality in the district of Meilen in the canton of Zurich in Switzerland. History Küsnacht is first mentioned in 1188 as ''de Cussenacho''. Earliest findings of settlement date back to the stone age. There are also finding ...
, Switzerland, for the television show ''Face to face''. Forty minutes long, it was broadcast on 22 October 1959. Among those who saw it was Wolfgang Foges, who managed Aldus Books. He considered it a pity that at that time Jung remained very little known to the general public, especially compared to
Sigmund Freud Sigmund Freud ( , ; born Sigismund Schlomo Freud; 6 May 1856 – 23 September 1939) was an Austrian neurologist and the founder of psychoanalysis, a clinical method for evaluating and treating psychopathology, pathologies explained as originatin ...
. He then begged Freeman to help him convince Jung to express the fundamentals of his thinking in the form of a popularization book. Freeman returned to Jung's house but Jung then rejected the idea. Two factors then came into play, which lead Jung to finally accept the offer: the unusual abundance of mail he received as a result of the BBC show as well as a dream he had, in which he addressed a crowd listening attentively. When Foges asked Jung, a week later, he responded favorably but posed two conditions: that the book be written with some of his collaborators and that Freeman ensure its coordination. 


Structure of the book

Abundantly illustrated, the book consists of five parts: * Exploration essay of the unconscious (Carl Jung) * Primitive myths and modern man ( Joseph L. Henderson) * The process of individuation ( Marie-Louise von Franz) * Symbolism in the plastic arts ( Aniéla Jaffé) * Symbols within an individual analysis (
Jolande Jacobi Jolande Jacobi (25 March 1890 – 1 April 1973) was a Swiss psychologist, best remembered for her work with Carl Jung, and for her writings on Jungian psychology. Life and career Born in Budapest, Hungary (then under Austria-Hungary) as Jolan ...
). Jung finished his chapter barely ten days before the onset of the illness that led to his death (this is his very last article) and after he had approved the draft of his collaborators. After Jung's death, Marie-Louise von Franz assumed the responsibility of taking over the coordination and drafted the conclusion.


Extracts

* "Modern man does not understand to what extent his 'rationalism' has placed him at the mercy of this underground psychic world. He freed himself from "superstition" (at least he believes so) but in doing so he lost his spiritual values to an alarming degree. His moral and spiritual traditions have disintegrated and he is paying for this collapse with a disarray and dissociation that is rampant throughout the world." * "Today we talk about 'matter', we describe its physical properties, we conduct laboratory experiments to demonstrate some of its aspects. But the word 'matter' remains a purely intellectual concept, which has no psychic meaning for us. ... Likewise, what was once 'the spirit' is now identified with the intellect. It has deteriorated to fall within the limits of thought egocentric." * "Despite our proud claim to dominate nature, we are still its victims because we have not yet learned to dominate ourselves."


Editions

A German-language edition of the book, ''Der Mensch und seine Symbole'', has been published by Patmos Verlag. The illustrations included in this edition are in color. The book was published in France at the same time as the original edition: in 1964. The reissues remained unchanged, with the same pagination. The book has been reprinted several times since initial publication, including: * (Doubleday hardcover, 1964) * (Dell Publishing paperback, 1968) * (Picador paperback, 1978)


See also

*''
Twelve Dreams ''Twelve Dreams'' is a 1981 play by James Lapine that was inspired by a case study contained in Carl Jung's 1964 book ''Man and His Symbols''. The case concerns a 10-year-old girl who gave her father, a psychiatrist, an unusual Christmas present †...
'' - 1981 play by
James Lapine James Elliot Lapine (born January 10, 1949) is an American stage director, playwright, screenwriter, and librettist. He has won the Tony Award for Best Book of a Musical three times, for ''Into the Woods'', '' Falsettos'', and '' Passion''. He ...
inspired by a case study contained in the book.


References


External links


for Research in Archetypal Symbolism'':
A pictorial and written archive of mythological, ritualistic, and symbolic images from all over the world and from all epochs of human history. {{jung Symbolism Mythology books 1964 non-fiction books Works by Carl Jung Books published posthumously