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The theories of the archetype and the collective unconscious are the most widely known and the least understood of any of Jung's contributions. Because of them Jung has been praised or condemned as poet, seer, or mystic; but too seldom has serious consideration been given to his own claim to be an empirical scientist. This is, perhaps, not surprising, for his works are diffuse and unsystematic, his literary style is often extravagant, and his use of language is sometimes logically odd. His methods of thought and exposition vary greatly with the context and, if this fact is neglected, isolated quotations seem to be contradictory and can be used to support diverse interpretations of his views. A casual reader of this book is likely to be left with a very muddled idea about what is meant by the term “archetype” for, as with many concepts of analytical psychology, a formulation can be attempted only after a laborious analysis of Jung's writings with a background knowledge of his method and aims. Such an analysis has not yet been done, but this volume might well be a convenient starting-point.
It includes twelve essays, written between 1936 and 1954, in which Jung presents theoretical and practical aspects of his mature concept of the archetype. An initial section, comprising three general expository papers, is followed by descriptions of particular archetypes—the mother, the child, the trickster, the Kore, the spirit, rebirth, and the mandala. In the final chapters the earlier discussions are brought to life, in a clinical setting, by a detailed description of the individual development of a middle-aged woman. Some of the papers have not been translated before((“Concerning the Archetypes, with Special Reference to the Anima Concept”, “Psychological Aspects of the Mother Archetype”, “Concerning Rebirth”, “Concerning Mandala Symbolism”), while others, such as the brief and admirably lucid exposition, “The Concept of the Collective Unconscious”, have not been readily availa