Jungian archetypes in today’s global society Essay Example for Free

Jungian archetypes in todays international society EssayThis essay presents Jungian archetypes derived from the metaphysical formulations of Carl Gustav Jung aimed at understanding their impacts in todays global society. This essay also presents a list of individuals noted for their contributions for changing the image of the world whole different from those of the Medieval Periods and from these thoughts one tail end imagine the prospects of the future.This essay concludes with the citation of some present-day mortalalities, technologies, and significant events as objects of Jungs archetypes. Jungs theory of personality has tremendous influence on sociologythe science of society, social institutions, and social relationships or specifically the systematic study of the development, structure, interaction, and collective behavior of unionised groups of hu mankind being beings (Merriam-Webster 2004).In order to appreciate the impact of the personality theory of Jung in soci ological settings, it is necessary to mention key components of the theoretical constructs foremost of which is the collective unconscious(p)in which Jungian archetypes reside. The Ego is the conscious mindit is the seat of perceptions, memories, thoughts, and feelings from the viewpoint of an individual person it is regarded as the center of consciousness, write Hall Lindsey (118).The Personal unconscious mind is the region adjoining the ego consists of experiences that were once conscious but which have been repressed, suppressed, forgotten, or ignored (118). Under the Personal Unconscious argon various(a) complexesthe organized group or constellation of feelings, thoughts, perceptions, and memories that have mental life of their own and have the capacity to seize the personality and to utilize for its end, like Napoleons lust for power (118).The Collective Unconsciousconsidered as the storehouse of latent memory traces inherited from ones ancestral past, a past that includ es not only the racial history of humans as a separate species but their prehuman or tool ancestry as well It is the psychic residue of human evolutionary development, a residue that accumulates as a consequence of repeated experiences over many generations. If we humans today are afraid, for workout, of the dark or of snakes, it is because our primitive parents encountered many dangers in the dark and were victims of poisonous snakes, write Hall and Lindzey (118).And what a person learns is substantially influenced by the collective unconscious that exercises a directive or selective influence over the behavior of the person from the very beginning of life. Furthermore, the two unconscious regions of the mind, the personal and the collective, can be of immense dish up to humans the unconscious holds possibilities which are locked away from the conscious mind, for it has its disposal all subliminal contents, all those things which have been forgotten or overlooked, as well a s the wisdom and experience of uncounted centuries, which are laid down in its archetypal organs (119-120).The structural components of the collective unconscious are called by various names archetypes primordial images mythological images, and behavior patterns quotes Hall and Lindzey of Jung (1943). An archetype is a universal thought (idea) form that contains a large element of emotion (Hall and Lindzey 120). An example is the mother archetypean image or a perception of an individual accept by an infant irregardless of race anywhere in the world. How can this happen? It is a permanent deposit in the mind of an experience that has been constantly repeated for many generations. (Hall and Lindzey 121). Another example is an image of the fair weather which has been chancen by all inhabitants of the world (except the blinds) rose in the east and set on the west horizonsso that certain concepts and images of a supreme deity are off-shoots of the sun archetype (121). In a similar m anner, humans have been exposed through their existence to innumerable instances of great natural forcesearthquakes, waterfalls, floods, hurricanes, lightning, forest fires Out of these experiences on that point has developed an archetype of energy (121).On the other hand, two or more archetypes sometimes fuse together so that one can see the person of a Hitler as a form of fused archetypes of demon and hero so that one gets a satanic leader. Furthermore, myths, dreams, visions, rituals, neurotic and psychotic symptoms, and whole shebang of art contain a great deal of archetypal material, and constitute the best source of knowledge regarding archetypes, write Hall and Lindzey (122-123).Jung identified four key archetypes in his personality theorythey are briefly described here, namely The Personais a mask adopted by the person in reaction to the demands of social convention and tradition and to his or her own inner archetypal needs, quote Hall and Lindzey of Jung (1945). This p ersona is the role assigned to one by society, the get out that society expects one to play in life. The purpose of the mask is to make a definite impression upon others and it often conceals the real nature of the person.The persona is the human race personality contrasted with private personality that exists behind the social facade (Hall and Lindzey 122). The person archetype originates out of the experiences of the race in this case, the experiences consist of social interactions in which the supposal of a social role has served a useful purpose to humans throughout their history as social animals (122). The Anima and the Animusit is fairly well recognized and accepted that a human is a bisexual animal. On a physiological level, the male secretes both male and female sex hormones, as does the female.On the psychological level, masculine and feminine characteristics are found in both sexes. The feminine archetype in man is called the anima, the masculine archetype in charwom an is called the animus, quote Hall and Lindzey of Jung (1945, 1954b). These archetypes are the products of the racial experiences of man with woman and woman with man by living with woman throughout the ages man has be capture feminized by living with man woman has become masculinized (122-123). The Shadow archetype consists of the animal instincts that humans inherited in their evolution from lower forms of life, cites Hall and Lindzey of Jung (1948a).Consequently, the shadow typifies the animal side of human nature. As an archetype, the shadow is responsible for our conception of original sin when it is projected outward it becomes the devil and an enemy. It is responsible for the appearance in consciousness and behavior of unpleasant and socially reprehensible thoughts, feelings and actions. These then may either be hidden from public view by the persona or repressed into the personal unconscious (Hall and Lindzey 123). The Self archetype expresses itself in various symbols, t he chief one being the mandala or magic circle, writes Jung (1955a).The self according to Jung is the summation unity of all the systems that make up the personality. The self holds these systems together and provides the personality with unity, equilibrium, and stability. The self is lifes goal, a goal that people constantly attain for but rarely reach it motivates human behavior and causes one to search for wholeness especially through the avenues provided by religion, and it is here where the figures of Christ and Buddha are as highly differentiated expressions of the self archetype as one will find in the modern world, write Hall Lindzey (124).The foregoing presented an overview of the key Jungian archetypes. Hall and Lindzey write that the most salient feature of Jungs theory of personality is the emphasis that he places upon the forward-going character of personality development that humans are constantly happening or attempting to progress from a less complete stage o f development to a more complete one and that mankind as a species is constantly evolving more differentiated forms of existence (134).Table 1 shows the Table of Contents of a special edition of the Readers Digest magazine publisher capturing the significant contributions of popular and important persons the world has ever produced so far. Each one of the persons mentioned walked in the alleys of human endeavors leaving a legacy that benefited many generations to come after theirs including todays generation. Table 1. Table of Contents of a Pocket Book on popular and important subjects. Adapt from Readers Digest (n. d. ) I. Giants of the knowledge base of ScienceCopernicus The man who moved the World (pp. 3-8) GalileoBold Discoverer (pp.9-14)Sir Isaac Newton, Explorer of the Universe (pp. 15-20) The Evolution of Charles Darwin (pp. 21-28) Albert Einstein, the man, and the Theory (pp. 29-33). II. They Opened Our MindsSocrates A one-man(prenominal) Turning Point in History (pp. 37 -42) What Plato Says to Us (pp. 43-48) Aristotle Master Mind of 300 B. C. (pp. 49-52) Listen to Wisdom of Confucius (pp. 53-56) William James and the Adventure of Being Human (pp. 57-66) Emersons vital Message for Today (pp. 67-74). III. They Sought the True WayThe Man Called Jesus (pp. 77-82)Saint Paul Apostle to All Men (pp. 83-88) Islam the Misunderstood Religion (pp.89-98) Buddha, The learned person One (pp. 99-104). IV. They Fought for DemocracyThomas Jefferson, Architect of Democracy (pp. 107-112) The Prodigious Gifts of Benjamin Franklin (pp. 113-118) Woodrow Wilsons fight for Peace (pp. 119-124) We Must Never Deny Our Gratitude A portraiture of Winston Churchill (pp. 125-130). V. They Opened the DoorColumbus He Knew the World Was Round (pp. 133-140)Westward With Lewis and Clark (pp. 141-148) And Then Came Ford (pp. 149-158) Alexander Graham Bell The Man Who Tied the World Together (pp. 159-164). VI. Apostle of Human RightsAbraham Lincolns Hardest Decision (pp.167-172) Mr. Thoreau of Walden Pond (pp. 173-180) Gandhi Apostle of Non-Violence (pp. 181-188). VII. Giants of the finessesLeonardo da Vinci The Firs Modern (pp. 191-198) Delacroix He Opened the Door to Modern Art (pp. 199-202)Pablo Picasso, Artist of the Century (pp. 203-208) Beethoven the Incredible (pp. 209-214) Frederic Chopin Poet of the Piano (pp. 215-218) Mozart, Musics Wonder Child (pp. 219-224). VIII. They Took Us Into the FutureThe Day the Atomic Age Was born(p) (pp. 227-232) We Tamed Penicillin (pp. 233-238) With Ranger VII-To the Moon (pp. 239-245). What is the goal of human development?Toward what end are humans and mankind striving? Hall and Lindzeys answer to these questions is this the eventual(prenominal) goal is summed up by the term self-realization. Self-realization means the fullest, most complete differentiation and harmonious blending of all aspects of a humans total personality. To this end, there is one significant thing that appears to be consistent in all human hi storythis is what Hall and Lindzey write as progress which did not stop with the creation of humans just as humans represent an advancement over all other species of animals, so does civilized man represent an improvement over primitive man (134).Meanwhile, Koontz, ODonnell, and Heinz Weihrich, write Every group of people that performs near its total capability has some person as its head who is skilled in the art of leadership with at least three major ingredientsthe ability to comprehend that human beings have differing motivate forces at varying times and in different situations, the ability to inspire, and the ability to act in a way that will develop a mode for responding to an arousing motivations (663).Who are the prime persons and entities in the 1990s and in the current decade that could have influenced the direction of the world affairs in todays global society? I have a few names to mention before ending this essay the introduction of the internet in the early 1990s th at almost shattered the communication barriers overnight with Bill Gatess Microsoft Internet Explorer George W. Bush, Sr.and the first Gulf War in the centre East that reinforced the resentment of the Muslim world against Christendom and in particular the United States Osama Bin Landen and the 9/11 terrorism George W. Bush, Jr. and Weapons of Mass last with Iraq War astronomy and the Hubble Space Telescope that captured close-up photos of far-flung universes never before seen (Voit) and the twin rovers that traversed the Martian face with Intels microprocessors as enablers of nanotechnology.These never-ceasing human endeavors reflect Jungs archetypal descriptions present in all human undertakings in any given society around the world. References Hall, Calvin S. , and Gardner Lindzey. Theories of Personality. 3rd Ed.. New York, NY Wiley, 1978. Koontz, Harold, Cyril ODonnell, and Heinz Weihrich. Management. 7th ed. Tokyo, lacquer McGraw, 1980. They Changed Our World. Editors of Rea ders Digest. USA Berkely, (n. d. ). Voit, Mark. Hubble space telescope new views of the universe. Ed. Himmel, Eric. New York, NY Abrams.