Psychology of the Unconscious

What It's About

First published in 1912, this is the book in which Jung moved decisively beyond Freudian orthodoxy. It begins by contrasting two modes of thought: logical, directed thinking and the dreamlike, associative thinking of fantasy and myth. It then analyses the fantasies of a young American woman, known as Miss Miller, which had been published by the Swiss psychologist Théodore Flournoy. Jung compares her imagery with myths and epic poetry from many cultures, arguing that individual fantasies echo universal, ancestral patterns. The book was controversial from the start. Its redefinition of libido as general psychic energy, rather than purely sexual drive, ended Jung's friendship with Freud. Critics have also called its method sprawling and speculative, since it rests on a printed text and a patient Jung never met. Jung substantially revised the work decades later, so this early version differs from the one most readers know today.

Key Concepts

Libido as a broad, creative life energy rather than solely sexual desire; the difference between directed thinking and fantasy thinking; the hero and sun-god myths as symbols of the psyche's struggle for renewal; the symbolic meaning of the mother and of rebirth; and the idea that myths reveal how unconscious energy takes shape in images.

About the Author

Carl Gustav Jung (1875–1961) was a Swiss psychiatrist and the founder of analytical psychology. He trained and worked in Zurich and became one of Freud's closest early collaborators before the two parted ways. He went on to develop a psychology centred on symbolism, myth and the deeper layers of the psyche, and he remains one of the most influential figures in modern psychology.

About This Edition

This is a 1916 translation by Beatrice M. Hinkle.