The Jung Podcast

JUNG PODCAST #31 - JUNGIAN ANALYSIS 2In this episode I continue with Murray Stein's quote on analysis; I examine issues such as frequency and length of session, couch vs. chair."Jungian analysis, which takes place in a dialectical relationship between analyst and analysand, has for its goal the analysand's movement toward psychological wholeness. This transformation of the personality requires coming to terms with the unconscious, its specific structures and their dynamic relations to consciousness as these become available during the course of analysis. Transformation also depends upon the significant modification of the unconscious structures that shape and control ego-consciousness at the beginning of analysis, a change that takes place through the constellation of archetypal structures and dynamics in the interactive field between analyst and analysand" (Stein, 1995, p. 33).

JUNG PODCAST#30 - ANALYSIS 1In this episode I begin to discuss the central idea of the practice of Analytical Psychology, that of Jungian Analysis. Before I delve into the topic, I discuss why people come to analysis, and what happens in the first hour. I focus on Murray Stein's definition of analysis : “Jungian psychotherapists hold the notion of psychological development, of ‘stages of life', and we ask ourselves questions about the levels of psychological development demonstrated in the narratives offered by the people who come to us. Does a person's discourse show a good match, we wonder for instance, between chronological age and psychological attitudes? The full clinical impression of a person's level or degree of psychological development takes many sessions and much observation to formulate in depth and detail. It is an estimate of their achieved individuation. Individuation is a term used to indicate a person's potential for full psychological development. In its simplest formula, individuation is the capacity for a wholeness and evolved consciousness. The aim of analysis is to increase and to promote individuation in patients.” (Stein, 2006, p197)

 JUNG PODCAST #28 - INDIVIDUATION 3In this episode I continue with Murray Stein's stage 2 (adapting/adjusting) of individuation, with an emphasis on some of the extremes of behaviour that occur in adolescence. I use ideas from Klein and Blos to expand on these behaviours.

JUNG PODCAST #27 IN INDIVIDUATION 2In this episode I continue with the material on individuation. I examine the early use by Jung of the term 'Individuation', then work through some of the issues of Jung's conceptualization of the personality in terms of the first and second halves of life. The latter part of the episode begins with the first of three stages of individuation as conceptualized by Murray Stein - the containing/nurturing stage.

JUNG PODCAST #26 - INDIVIDUATION 1In this episode we begin working through Jung's central idea of Individuation. The first episode will focus on material from the Collected Works of Jung. I attempt to define individuation and give examples of some of the tricky issues that crop up whenever we deal with the topic. Issues such as Why individuate anyway? What are collective values? What has the encounter with the unconscious to do with this process of individuation? Why is individuation seen as a crime against the collective values?

JUNG PODCAST #25 - FEEDBACK3In this episode we deal with important questions regarding enantiodromia, dream interpretation and poetry (haiku)

 JUNG PODCAST #3 - MODEL OF THE PSYCHE PART 2 - RE-RECORDED

JUNG PODCAST #24 - FEEDBACK2This episode continues with subscriber feedback and questions. Two very important questions regarding projection and the Shadow are dealt with.

JUNG PODCAST # 23 - FEEDBACKThis episode deals with listener feedback and questions.

JUNG PODCAST #22 - ACTIVE IMAGINATION 2We continue to work through Jung's critical essay on the Transcendent function. I give specific guidance as to how one might enter into an active imagination. Very important in this process is being aware of the real risks that delving into the unconscious pose.

JUNG PODCAST #21-ACTIVE IMAGINATIONMany subscribers have asked me to deal with the topic of active imagination. In this episode I introduce both active imagination and the transcendent function, as both concepts are linked. Active imagination, or “dreaming with your eyes open? and the transcendent function (the bridging function that mediates the opposites) are central ideas within Analytical Psychology. Why then did Jung refuse to publish the only clear essay on the two areas he wrote in 1916 until 1956? What is it about the transcendent function that is so mysterious. This, and the next few episodes attempts to deal with that very question.

JUNG PODCAST #20 - INTERPRETATION OF FAIRY TALES PART 7A final interpretation of Grimm's "Nixie of the Mill-Pond". This completes the material on the introduction to a Jungian interpretation of Fairy Tales.

JUNG PODCAST #19 – THE INTERPRETATION OF FAIRY TALES PART 6We continue our amplifications of the symbols of the fairy tale we are interpreting, The Nixie of the Mill-Pond. Central symbols such as the golden comb, golden spinning-wheel, and golden flute are dealt with. The amplifications of these symbols are rather extensive in an attempt to demonstrate just what we are able to do with symbols, especially those found in fairy tales or dreams. Bear in mind as you listen to this episode that all the characters of the tale are structures of the psyche viz. The miller is the ego, the wife is the anima etc. The central symbol dictionaries used are Cooper, Cirlot, Biedermann and Herder, as well as von Frantz's texts of the interpretation of fairy tales and the feminine in fairy tales.

JUNG PODCAST #18 - THE INTERPRETATION OF FAIRY TALES PART 5In this episode we continue with the interpretation of "The Nixie of the Mill-Pond" with a focus on which symbols to amplify and how.

JUNG PODCAST #16 - FAIRY TALES 3In this episode we continue with a Jungian approach to fairy tale interpretation. I introduce the "Moreau Guidelines", a concise overview of how one may interpret a fairy tale. The Moreau Guidelines are covered in detail. The first step of an interpretation, using these guidelines is explained, with examples from Grimm's (Rapunzel, The Devil's Sooty Brother, The Raven). Four core ideas are presented : all elements of the fairy tale are elements of a single psyche; all the characters in the fairy tale represent structures of the same psyche; we have to take an interpretive stance for the fairy tale based on whether we feel the tale represents a masculine or a feminine psyche; all the elements of the tale are symbolic.

Jung Podcast #2 - Jung's Model of the PsycheIn this episode I cover the fundamental aspects of the psyche and review the core structures associated with each such aspect. To assist in our model development, I have used Jung's topographical model of the psyche. We begin with seeing the psyche as comprising four aspects – consciousness, the personal unconscious, the collective unconscious and the body. The structures within the first three aspects are the ego, complexes and archetypes respectively. The five functions of the ego are reviewed. The contents of the personal unconscious, in the form of complexes, are dealt with in depth to assist in gaining an understanding of how, when our complexes are constellated, they imp[act certain of the ego's functions. Archetypes are simply defined as symbol-producing structures of the collective unconscious. A link between the three strata of the psyche (conscious, personal unconscious, collective unconscious) is made with the body. THIS IS A RE-RECORDING OF THE SAME EPISODE IN AN ATTEMPT TO IMPROVE THE AUDIO QUALITY

JUNG PODCAST #15 – FAIRY TALES 2In this episode we continue with Luthi's analysis of the European Folk Tale. In the previous episode we dealt with the one-dimensionality and the abstract nature of the fairy tale. In this episode, Luthi's ideas about the depthlessness of the fairy tale is reviewed. These three issues of fairy tales – one-dimensionality, abstractness and depthlessness are all critical aspects in dealing with a Jungian interpretation of the fairy tale. We also deal with why the fairy tale is so important to interpret from a Jungian perspective, primarily because it offers the purest example of the collective unconscious and also gives us a detailed sense of the process of individuation of the human psyche. Finally, this episode has a reading of the text of the classic Grimm's tale of “The Nixie of the Mill-Pond?, the tale we'll use as a basis for our first interpretation.

JUNG PODCAST #14 - FAIRY TALES 1This episode deals with a new and critical issue in our study of Analytical Psychology, that of the interpretation of Fairy Tales. You may ask why we should address this issue? Well, in interpreting the Fairy Tale, we get to examine an example of what von Frantz says is ‘the purest and simplest expression of collective unconscious psychic processes.' As a dream is a pure example of symbolic material, but more often about the contents of the personal unconscious, the Fairy Tale represents the contents of the collective unconscious, the archetypes. The other critical issue in the interpretation of Fairy Tales is that we see in the tale an example of an individuation process. Working with Fairy Tales takes our knowledge of the psychodynamics and structures of the psyche to a deeper level and, together with the interpretation of dreams and art, enables us to interpret a wide variety of symbolic material such as movies, literature and expressive art.

In this episode, the third and final part on Jung's typology, I cover the tricky issue of determining one's superior function. Also, we understand why Jung argued that the process of differentiation was vital to our individuation as it permits the development of a broader use of all of our typology, by making the four functions more conscious. The episode also deals with the role of the inferior function in our psyche, as a "portal" between the unconscious and consciousness through which we experience the Shadow, the Anima and the Animus (amongst others).

Welcome to the Jung Podcast.The purpose of the podcast is to provide core information about Carl Jung's Analytical Psychology. Ever wondered what your dreams mean?  - what an archetype is? - what is the Shadow?  These and other such issues are answered in the Jung Podcast. Very soon you should be able to discuss not only your dreams, but movies and art in terms of Jung's model. The podcast starts with the assumption that you are new to Jung and by the third episode, with the new material you have learned, assumes that you have a working knowledge of the basic model - all through just listening to a very clear, and simple explanation of Jung.

JUNG'S THEORY OF TYPOLOGY PART 2In this episode I continue with an overview of the extraverted and introverted attitudes, as well as review the four functions in terms of the perceiving and judging functions. We also examine the superior and inferior functions in an attempt to understand how these are simply ways of dealing consciously with the world. As the inferior function is an attribute of the psyche that often trips us up, this is a critical aspect of our continued development of the fundamentals of Carl Jung's Analytical Psychology. Examples are given to aid our understanding of these aspects of typology.

JUNG PODCAST #11 JUNG'S THEORY OF TYPOLOGY part1In this episode I introduce the fundamentals of Jung's theory of typology. I overview some of the issues pertaining to the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator and offer statements from Jung that caution us against viewing type as a rigid form of categorisation of people.  The two attitudes – extraversion and introversion are explained using quotes from Jung, Beebe and Sharp. In order to understand Jung's idea that introversion is the withdrawal of libido from the object and extraversion is the investing of the object with libido I offer basic ideas from object relations theory and a critical quote from John Beebe who argues that libido is invested in or withdrawn from an archetypal image.

In this episode I cover the interpretation of an actual dream, using the material covered to date.

Part 2 of the Model of the Psyche. This episode has been re-uploaded to deal with difficulties some subscribers had with the download.

This is the third part of a Jungian Approach to Dream Interpretation. In this episode we deal with the types of compensatory dreams we may have and examine the critical issue of whether to take an objective interpretation to the dream, or a subjective interpretation. www.jungian.ca

In this, the second episode that deals with dreams, we begin with practical approaches to dream recall. Mention is also made of useful ideas about sleep hygiene techniques you can use to aid sleep. Types of dreams that we may have are explained, including traumatic, childhood, recurrent and prospective. The vast majority of dreams we have are compensatory or complementary. Finally we examine those dreams that cause us to feel ashamed or embarassed - nasty dreams in which we do things that we find objectionable.

In this episode I introduce a Jungian approach to dream interpretation. The focus of this episode is the issue of sleep and why we should interpret dreams at all. For more on this topic, including references, please see my webpage at www.jungian.ca

This episode is part 2 of the Persona

In this episode I cover the archetype of the Persona as well as begin to address the issue of what a symbol is.

In this episode, I review the concept of projection and examine three core archetypes of the psyche, that of the Shadow, the Anima, and the Animus. For comments and questions about this episode, please contact me at jbetts5@telus.net or through my website at www.jungian.ca