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It was with some trepidation that I embarked upon reading this latest of Jung biographies. Recent accounts of his life and work by McLynn and Noll have skewed the facts to present him in the worst possible light. To my surprise this biography is relatively even-handed, and comprehensive. I cannot say how much new material is included, but there is material which has been known within the Jungian community, but has never, to my knowledge, been in print before. The author is English, a professional biographer by trade, having written biographies of Nietzsche, Proust, Kafka, and others. He has a strong interest in theatre and has written plays in addition to biographical sketches of various playwrights. He also has a command of the German language, enabling him to study original texts to substantiate his interpretations. The book has an extensive bibliography, evidencing time spent in Jungian archives.
An example of the kind of gossip which has been part of the Jungian lore, but not readily accessible in print, is how the relationship between C. G. Jung, Toni Wolff, and Emma Jung ended. Hayman reveals how Jung pulled away from Toni late in her life and describes her as having died of a broken heart. Another area, which I found particularly interesting, was the portrayal of Jung's important relationship to Victor White. Today many Jungians are not aware of the significance of that relationship. Jung had a life-long struggle with organized Christianity, and he had hoped to influence modern- day Catholics through this relationship. He and White had a long-standing debate on the nature of evil, with White maintaining the Thomist position that it was an absence of good, privatio boni, whereas for Jung evil had a reality of its own. Their relationship broke on this question, and it was only at the time of White's impending death from cancer that they had further contact.
Hayman also explores Jung's relationship to Herman Hesse and to Martin Buber. Hesse had some analysis with