Jung On Evil

Illuminating selections from Jung’s writings on the nature of evil Well-known for his articulation of the “shadow side” of human individuality and culture, C. G. Jung wrote a great deal about the question of evil throughout his life and in scattered places in his work. In this book, Murray Stein brings together key selections of Jung’s writings on the subject. In Jung’s early work on the unconscious, he considered the role of evil in the mental processes of the severely disturbed. Later, he viewed the question of moral choice within the framework of his ideas about archetypes and discussions about moral choices, conscience, and the continual ethical reflection that is necessary for all of us. The material here includes letters to Freud and Father Victor White and writings ranging from his Answer to Job to his travel piece on North Africa.

Well-known for his articulation of the "shadow side" of human individuality and culture, C. G. Jung wrote a great deal about the question of evil throughout his life and in scattered places in his work. In this book his position is pieced together from many sources. In his early work on the unconscious, for instance, he considered the role of evil in the mental processes of the severely disturbed. Later, he viewed the question of moral choice within the framework of his ideas about archetypes and discussions about moral choices, conscience, and the continual ethical reflection that is necessary for all of us. The material here includes letters to Freud and Father Victor White and selections from his writings ranging from his Answer to Job to his travel piece on North Africa.

Evil became a central issue for Jung as he grew older. His early investigations of the place of evil in the mental processes of the severely disturbed led him to consider the concept of evil in greater depth when exploring the role of analysis in ethical and cultural transformation. Jung on Evilbrings together his important writings on good and evil. It includes his attempts to comprehend the worst excesses of the Second World War, as well as discussions about moral choices, conscience and the continual ethical reflection that is necessary for all of us. Leading analyst Murray Stein provides a clear and concise introduction that gives an accessible account of Jung's ideas about evil. It will be invaluable to all those interested in the problems of ethics, religion and psychology in the modern world.

This book brings together the work of Carl Gustav Jung and Hans Urs von Balthasar, two of the most creative thinkers in psychology and theology in the twentieth century, to critically compare their ideas on the perennial question of God’s involvement with evil. In later life Jung embarked on a project relating to Christianity, with psychotherapeutic and theological intentions, forming his collection of essays, Symbolik des Geistes, in which God and evil was a major theme. Balthasar gave significant attention to Jung’s psychology in his own theological trilogy, but opposed the approach to God and evil that Jung presented. In this book Les Oglesby provides a thorough examination of convergences and divergences in Jung and Balthasar’s thinking, their different approaches to the origins and reality of evil, as well as their alternative theological orientations. The book culminates with a study of each man’s understanding of the central event of Christianity, Christ’s death on the Cross and his descent to the dead and discusses how Balthasar’s ‘vertical’ and Jung’s ‘horizontal’ approach to this major happening can be held together fruitfully with one another. Illustrating how analytical psychology and Christian theology can mutually enrich one another when they are held in creative tension, this book invites reflection on the meaning of the central symbol of Christianity, and God’s involvement with evil as an aid to integrated psychological living and theological maturity. It will prove fascinating for students of psychology and religion as well as for Jungian analysts and practical theologians.

In Fieldnotes from a Depth Psychological Exploration of Evil, Robin L. Gordon presents an accessible account of an attempt to define and understand the nature of evil. Gordon takes on the role of guide to this confusing land, tying together threads of Jungian theory, philosophy, etymology, neuroscience and history, as we are led on a personal journey of discovery. Gordon begins by analysing what a twelfth-century meeting between Chinggis Khan and Taoist priest Ch’ang-Ch’un can tell us about the presence of opposing traits and the nature of evil in human beings. We learn what depth psychology has said about evil and the shadow part of our psyches, and examine examples of human behaviour throughout history to understand the etymological, philosophical and historical understandings and definitions of evil. Gordon’s own relationship with her work, and the feelings that arise when researching the psychological framework of Nazi doctors, genocide in Rwanda, Bosnia and Syria, and the functionality of serial killers, are interrogated. We then return to Chinggis Khan’s and Ch’ang-Ch’un’s relationship, attempting to build a real and practical definition of "evil", and assessing their dialogues as a metaphor for Jung’s views of the transcendent function. Fieldnotes from a Depth Psychological Exploration of Evil will be essential reading for academics and students of Jungian and post-Jungian studies, sociology, criminology and philosophy. It will also be a key resource for Jungian analysts and psychotherapists interested in the study of evil and its impact on society and the psyche, as well as anyone investigating and redefining their own meanings of evil, past and present.

Explores the religious symbolism present throughout the Bible as it reflects the nature, needs, and processes of the human consciousness

In a unique epistolary style, authors Murray Stein and Elena Caramazza share their rich and reflective conversations surrounding the themes of temporality, shame, and evil through letters, essays, and email correspondence. Ignited by Wolfgang Pauli’s "The Piano Lesson," Stein and Caramazza study the function of temporality and consider the importance of shame and evil to this relationship. In this book Stein shows how Pauli, as a result of his contact with C.G. Jung and analytical psychology, embarked on a thought experiment to merge two currents of scientific thought: quantum physics and depth psychology. In his work of active imagination "The Piano Lesson," Pauli playfully brings together the former, which supplies a causal explanation of the mechanics of the material world, and the latter, which supplies an approach to meaning. The problem of how to merge the two currents in one language is presented in Pauli’s symbolic solution, piano music, which combines the black and white keys in a single harmony. This music symbolizes a unified theory that combines the explanations of causality and the meaning delivered by synchronicity. Presenting an original approach to synchronicity and dis-synchronicity, this interdisciplinary and innovative exchange concludes with a script written by Murray Stein, inspired by Pauli, as well as an afterword by influential Jungian scholars. This book will be a key reference for undergraduate and postgraduate courses and seminars in Jungian and post-Jungian studies, philosophy, psychoanalytic studies, psychology, and the social sciences.