Public Semester Program
Spring 2020

What in the world is a ‘Jungian analysis’? Who does the analyzing? What is analyzed? What happens? We will look at all these questions and more during this introduction to the Basic Jung series ‘Working as a Jungian Psychoanalyst’.

The lecture will give a brief overview of Jungian concepts and how they function in his understanding of the psyche.

Understood as an image that represents much more than its mere concrete form, the symbol opens a window onto the very roots of the world. It can be experienced as a revelation, but also used as a key to translation. If becoming possessed by a symbol imprisons us, then entering into dialogue with it liberates energy. Thus the symbolic equation is to depth psychology what the mathematical equation is to the natural sciences. It allows powerful analysis and forges deeply attuned solutions. To adopt a symbolic attitude is a truly vivifying experience.

The lecture will address the understanding of psychic suffering and illness from a Jungian point of view. How do healing and relief come about and what facilitates those in analytical work?

What is Jungian in our views on dreams, on the purpose of dreams, on the meaning of the weird situations and people in our dreams? An introduction on the function and the language of dreams is followed by a common discussion of a particular dream. Another dream is then discussed first in small groups, then with all while the different findings are compared and a conclusion on a possible meaning is drawn.

Jungian psychoanalysts use a theory of psychological development to assist their clients toward health and wholeness. This lecture will give an overview of how individuation theory is used in analysis.

We will try to encounter the man C. G. Jung.
What course did his life take? What are the turning points and stations in his life? Which people played important roles in Jung’s life and how did these encounters influence his work? We will embark on a journey of Jung’s life and work, illustrated with pictures and texts.

1) “On the Importance of Numinous Experience in the Alchemy of Individuation”
2) “On Modern Initiation into the Spiritual”
3) “The Individuation Process in Difficult Times: Jung’s Red Book Experience”

Toni Wolff first introduced her structural forms of the feminine in the Psychological Club in Zurich (1934). Her study is no less relevant today than it was 85 years ago. It speaks not only to women but also to the Anima of the man and helps understand why women react in so many different ways to similar situations . The short article will be available for copying.

Rituals are universal. All societies know rituals. All people consciously or unconsciously perform rituals or are part of rituals.
If a phenomenon exists universally, according to C. G. Jung we can speak of an archetypal event. Rituals are archetypically rooted.
The lecture illuminates the theme of rituals theoretically and illustrates the universality of rituals with examples from the world family.

** This course has been cancelled. **

We shall explore Jung’s perspectives on modern art and apply them to the work of Dutch artist Anton Heyboer (1924-2005). We will discuss the archetypal themes but also address the question if Heyboer’s art provides evidence of psychological development.

The lectures deal with Germanic cosmology, the main gods and the end of time. They describe Germanic culture through time and deal with neglected female and male archetypes, the consequences of cultural repression and archetypal illiteracy.
I. Introduction
II. Germanic cosmography, the gods and the end of time
III. Germanic mythology through time
IV. Women in the Norse world, Brünhild and the Ring
V. Odin, the undiscovered archetype of analytical psychologists
VI. A plea for education in archetypal geography
VII. On C. G. Jung’s essay “Wotan” (1936)
VIII. Outlook and literature

We will look at the anima as an archetype of relatedness and how its images map our inner landscape. We will attempt to move beyond gender biases and see if this intrapsychic complex can be integrated into a modern soul making perspective.

An exploration of the Grimm's tale 'The Little Donkey' (also called 'The Donkey') and the complexes a person is faced with on his/her individuation journey. We will contemplate the symbolic meaning and psychological implications of wearing and removing (a) skin. Please read Grimm's fairy tale 144 in advance: https://www.pitt.edu/~dash/grimm144.html

Starting from Maria Lassnig's self-portraits we will trace the numinous experience of staring eyes back to the Sumerian myth of Inanna's sister Ereshkigal, and to the Owl Goddess of the Neolithic, then come back to the impact of this powerful symbol in modern art.

The complex aspects of the Puella archetype are explored through composite clinical examples, myth and dreams as we try to define her. Disconnected from the Shadow she is bolstered by Persona adaptation but feels empty and without passion. The narcissistic wounding and early attachment problems lead to body numbing, distorted self-image and difficulty with intimacy. In clinical work, there is the issue of how to work with the symbolic, a necessary piece for individuation and accessing the Self.

We are presently living in times of great peril. Is there a lesson to be learned from this collective crisis? Does Analytical Psychology have an answer how to deal with these nigredo states? We look at Jung's own process of struggling with disorientation and uncertainty to search for wise ways of meeting contemporary challenges.

The ‘as if’ personality as linked with narcissism propels the Jungian process of individuation. The clinical material and dreams show internal splits and fractured selves. Emphasized is the concept of dissociation and its relationship to narcissism. Individuation calls for a deepening through accessing the shadow and connecting to the larger scope of the personality, the self.
The presentation uses a composite clinical example and the life and poetry of Sylvia Plath, American poetess of the mid- twentieth century.

Reflections on gender roles and the archetypal aspects of Anima and Animus as expressed through Art: a psychological interpretation of paintings from ISAP’s slide collection.

A lecture on how Jung developed his "map of the soul" using his mandala titled "Systema munditotius" as a point of reference.

** This course has been cancelled. **

The survival of the soul was a major question and interest for Jung throughout his entire life. We will explore why.

** This course has been cancelled. **

Inner personalities, secret societies, pseudonyms, heteronyms, masks and plays in the life and work of these 19th century artists.

** This course has been cancelled. **

The concept of archetype has been popularized in recent decades, sometimes leading to a generalized or superficial understanding. Archetypes are too often held conceptually without deeper, related experience. Yet according to Jung, archetype... “can be truly understood only if experienced as an autonomous entity.” (CWVII, ¶184) Distinguishing between ego identity and the mystical guest who enters the doorway of one’s being is a practice that enables the I/Thou relationship. “The better we understand the archetype,” Jung writes, “the more we participate in its life and the more we realize its eternity or timelessness.” (CW18, ¶1572)
Part lecture, part practical application, we will delve into the topic of archetype theoretically and experientially, working with the archetype of the circle as it effects conscious perception and body awareness.

In the Red Book Jung writes, “I had to become aware that I had lost my soul.” What is soul? What may it feel like when connection is lost? How might soul searching and reconnection take place? Loss and recovery of soul will be explored and illuminated through Jung’s personal experience.

With reference to Jung, Hillman, and others. Grimm's fairy tales 'The Water of Life' and 'The Fisherman and His Wife' will illustrate the difference between one-sided egocentricity of power and authority structures and potential wholistic rule of the Self on the other. Can Covid-19 help initiate restoration of wholeness and initiate the 'coronation' of a dynamic yet sustainable collective King/Queen archetype?
In preparation please use the links below to read the two fairy tales mentioned above as well as the article by Charles Eisenstein and the interview with Murray Stein.

• The Water of Life
• The Fisherman and His Wife
• Charles Eisenstein article
• Murray Stein interview

Special emphasis will be placed on the interactions among ego, shadow, animus, anima and Self and their role in individuation. Lecture with discussion and break out groups.

We will investigate the different ways of accessing the archetypal realm between the East and the West, shown with the help of the I Ching.

We will look at narcissistic wounding, its effect on the psyche and the healing process, using case work and with the aid of the Grimm's fairy tale. In preparation for this lecture please read Little Snow-White here: https://www.pitt.edu/~dash/grimm053.html