Psychologist Carl Jung - Book Report/Review Example

? Psychologist Carl Jung School This paper explores the biographical information on Carl Jung and unearths his contributionsto the field of psychiatry/psychology. This paper explores the relevance of the historical and political atmosphere of Europe during Carl Jung’s lifetime and unveils the relation between history/politics and his contributions to psychology. This paper examines the origin, growth and development of Carl Jung as a psychiatrist/psychologist. This paper examines the scope of analytical psychology in the field of psychology. In addition, this paper scrutinizes the importance of Jung’s theories/contributions to psychology. Psychologist ~ Carl Jung Analytical psychology, within the context of psychology, is considered as an important branch which deals with human psyche. At the same time, the origin, growth and development of analytical psychology is interconnected with Carl Jung, an eminent psychologist/psychiatrist from Switzerland. To be specific, Jung’s theories/contributions within the field of psychology deeply influenced the growth and development of analytical psychology. From a different angle of view, historical/political context in Europe during Jung’s lifetime deeply influenced his personal and public domains. Still, his theories/contributions are interconnected with human life, especially the study of human mind. His interaction with Sigmund Freud, another psychologist, deeply influenced him in his growth and development as a psychologist/psychiatrist with deep knowledge and insight. Thesis statement: Within the context of psychology, historical background deeply influenced Jung’s theories/contributions). Carl Jung: biographical information Carl Jung, the Swiss psychiatrist, was born in Kesswil. His parents were Paul Achilles Jung (father) and Emilie Preiswerk (mother). Besides, his father worked as a pastor and his mother was from a rich family. This difference in social status created much tension in their family. In addition, Jung’s mother was affected by depression. Gradually, Jung’s mother’s illness forced him to build up a healthy relationship with his father. Later, Jung’s mother was able to be free from her illness but her illness deeply influenced him. For instance, his attitude towards women in his later life was deeply influenced by his mother’s behavior. During his childhood, at Humanistisches Gymnasium, Jung faced bully from another boy and it affected his education. This bad experience created a negative attitude in Jung’s mind towards education. Later, he came to realize that he needs to overcome his hatred towards education. So, Jung began to go through his psychiatric text book and got attracted towards psychiatry. Later, in the year 1895, Jung joined the University of Basel as a medical student. Papadopoulos (1992), opines that “Moreover, Jung was a product of that classical education of the nineteenth century in central Europe which included a solid grounding not only in Greek and Latin language and thought but also had an overall philosophical flavor” (p. 3). Gradually, Jung began to publish his works like Psychology of the Unconscious and Studies in Word Association. During the WWI, Jung served as a doctor in the army. Later in the year 1903, Jung decided to enter married life and his marriage with a wealthy Swiss lady, namely Emma Rauschenbach proved to be successful. Jung was a prolific writer as well as a psychiatrist. For instance, during his service as a psychiatrist, he used to write a number of books and conducted tours to America and other parts of Europe. Jung passed away in the year 1961. Relevance: Carl Jung’s life and his contributions to psychology One can easily identify that Jung’s life was dedicated to the field of psychology/psychotherapy. Jung’s relation with Sigmund Freud deeply influenced his contributions to the field of psychology/psychotherapy. Cortright (1997), states that “Jung, who was accused by the Freudians of romanticizing the unconscious, viewed the unconscious as a redeeming power of intelligence, creativity, and spiritual transcendence” (p. 82). But one must not misunderstand that Jung blindly accepted Freud’s theories. Instead, he accepted the core elements of Freud’s theories and made use the same to develop his own ideas. Earlier, Jung co-operated with Freud in his research work in psychiatry. Later, Jung came to realize that he needs to find out his own place in the same field. This realization helped him to be an eminent psychiatrist as well as a psychological theoretician. For instance, origin, growth and development of analytical psychology are indebted to Carl Jung. In short, Jung’s contributions are not limited to theories because he was interested in his career as a psychiatrist. From a different angle of view, his career as a psychiatrist deeply influenced his contributions to the field of psychology/psychiatry. As pointed out, his childhood memories, especially related to his mother’s depression and hallucination, deeply influenced his in formulating psychological theories. His contributions to psychology/psychiatry cannot be limited to the field of analytical psychology because he used to visit America and conducted lectures related to psychology/psychiatry. Besides, his interest was not limited to the field of psychology/psychiatry because he used to view human psyche from a different angle of view. To be specific, Jung connected psychiatry with theology. This helped him to provide ample importance to human mind and its influence on human behavior. In short, Jung’s most important contribution to the field of psychology is analytical psychology and other contributions are interconnected with his works and lectures. Carl Jung: historical background Carl Jung’s historical background can be divided into two: the relevance of historical background in Jung’s contributions and the relevance of Jung’s contributions. A. Relevance of historical background in Jung’s contributions Historical background is an important factor behind Jung’s contributions to the field of psychology/psychiatry. For instance, WWI and its after effects in Europe deeply influenced Jung’s contributions to psychology/psychiatry. Before WWI, Jung was able to free himself from the influence of Freud and his theories. So, one can see that separation from the relationship with Freud and the advent of WWI forced Jung to undergo a painful transformation. As a duty-minded citizen of Switzerland (say, Switzerland was neutral during the WWI), Jung was enrolled as an army doctor to provide medical treatment to the soldiers. This proves that Jung was ready to serve humanity during critical situations and his experience in psychiatry helped him to extend his service to other fields. The service as an army doctor helped Jung to have deeper understanding on the relationship between human mind and body. Within the context of historical events, Jung’s political views were liberal because he believed in liberty and individual freedom. Moreover, Jung gave ample importance to individual freedom and considered the state as the symbol of slavery. Jung considered that state is the hindrance between people and religious belief. For instance, Jung considered that the state acts like the omnipotent God, who is able to interfere in the lives of the people. So, Jung’s opinion on the state and its presence in human life is interconnected with the influence of the state on religious belief. Richards (2010), opines that “In the 1930s another voice became audible, apparently offering an inspiring reconciliation of ancient religious with modern Psychological wisdom- that of Carl Jung” (p. 335). Jung considered that the control of the state ultimately leads to the suppression of individual freedom and marginalization within the mainstream society. Some of Jung’s critics are of the opinion that Jung was not totally against Nazism and pointed out his work Civilisation in Transition, Collected Works Volume X as an example to prove the same. But Jung was not a Nazi sympathizer because his attention and interest was not in the growth of Nazi ideology in Europe, but in psychology/psychiatry. B. Relevance of Jung’s contributions The relevance of Jung’s contributions is not limited to the field of psychology/psychiatry. Instead, it extends to other fields like art, literature, visual media, popular culture and sociology. But Stevens (1990), opines that “That Jung was one of the greatest pioneers in the exploration of the unconscious there is little dispute, but it would be incorrect to assume that he was one of the first” (p. 10). Besides, Jung tried to solve the problem of alcoholism by making use of spirituality as an innovative tool. The formation of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), an organization which helps the alcoholics to be free from the clutches of alcohol, is deeply indebted to Jung. This is important because Jung considered that spirituality is an innovative tool to solve the problems faced by alcoholics. Jung believed that art can cure a number of mental problems like depression and trauma. Jung made use of art works to solve some mental problems seen among his patients. This is innovative because he discovered the healing power of art and made use of the same to solve the problems faced by his patients. Jung’s theories and ideas deeply influenced a number of prominent writers. For instance, one can see the influence of Jung’s theories in the work A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce. The literary work The Manticore by Robertson Davies, Jung’ theories are used to unveil the plot. Some other writers like Timothy Findley made use of Jung as a character (say, as a psychiatrist) in their work. Jung’s idea of ‘collective unconscious’ is made use by Peter Gabriel (say, a British singer and song writer) in his song, namely "Rhythm of the Heat". This is important because most of the artists/writers who are influenced by Jung made use of his psychological theories in their works. One cannot neglect Jung’s influence on visual media. For instance, in the movie A Dangerous Method, released in the year 2011, the relationship between Jung and Freud is used as the theme. In short, the relevance of Jung’s contributions cannot be limited to the sphere of psychology/psychiatry. Jung’s place in the history of psychology Jung’s place in the history of psychology can be divided into two: his contributions and the importance of the same within the history of psychology. A. Jung’s contributions As pointed out, Jung’s most important contribution to psychology is analytical psychology, which can be considered as a different school of psychology. Hill (2001), states that “Jung’s analytical psychology suggests the psyche had many aspects and that personality can be influenced unconsciously by complexes and archetypes” (p. 158). Jung’s analytical psychology provides ample importance to a number of unknown forces which influence human behavior. But Jung did not neglect the importance of mind in human behavior. In short, Jung’s analytical psychology is different from Freudian psychoanalysis. As pointed out, Jung’s contributions to psychology, especially to the field of psychology in Europe, is noteworthy. For instance, Jung’s disinterest in Nazi ideology did not prevent him from co-operating with the German authorities to reorganize a German institution, namely General Medical Society for Psychotherapy. Later, in the year 1939, Jung decided to discard his co-operation with German institutions/publications because the Nazis tried to control the same. The term extraversion/ introversion became popular in psychology because Jung usually used the same in his works. His evaluation of the term is different because he considered the same as a part of human character/behavior which tries to capture domination (say, extroversion upon introversion and vice versa). This domination decides human character/behavior. This explanation on term extraversion/introversion by Jung was helpful to understand human behavior and the secret behind the same. Jung popularized the term complex, which is interconnected with human emotions. One can see that complex decides an individual’s personality. Jung provided ample importance to the study of complex as a human characteristic. As most of Jung’s theories are interconnected with unconscious stage of mind, the study of complex gives insight into the secrets of human mind and emotions. One can see that the term collective unconscious is widely used, especially in the field analytical psychology. Jung coined and popularized this term. Jung’s other contributions include a number of works within the field of psychology/psychiatry like Psychology of the Unconscious (1912), Psychological Types (1921), and Aion: Researches into the Phenomenology of the Self (1951). B. Importance of Jung’s theories/contributions to psychology Jung’s theories/contributions to psychology are important because the same proclaimed the origin of a new era in psychology. Ashcraft (2011), states that “Jung was one of the first theorists to take a holistic approach to understanding personality” (p. 10). His theories were able to attract attention in Europe and America. Jung’s interest was not limited to the context of psychology. Instead, he made use of a number of fields of knowledge to formulate his theories in psychology. His theories shed light to the darker corners of human mind and discovered the secrets of human mind, especially the unconscious human mind. Jung’s collaboration with Sigmund Freud helped him to go beyond the traditional mode of exploring human mind. For instance, he made use of his childhood memories, hallucinations and emotional trauma faced by him to formulate his theories and ideas. For example, his decision to become a psychiatrist was interconnected with a traumatic situation in his life. His childhood memories and incidents within his private circle haunted him but he made use of the same to develop innovative ideas and theories. Jung provided ample importance to the relationship between psychology and religious belief in human life. This is important because religion and psychology are considered as separate entities with less similarity. His knowledge in mythology and folklore helped him to connect psychology and religious belief. He examined Western religious tradition through the eyes of a psychologist. This helped him to have deeper understanding on human psyche. Jung did not neglect the scope of Eastern religious tradition in the field of psychology. For instance, Jung’s commentary on the work Tibetan Book of the Dead proves that he provided ample importance to Eastern religious tradition. Jung’s contributions to the field of psychology resulted in the formation of post-Jungian approaches like classical and archetypal. The classical psychology strictly follows Jung’s theories but archetypal approach is flexible. In short, Jung’s theories/contributions to psychology are important because it guided psychology towards development and innovation. Findings The most important findings are: 1. Jung’s childhood memories related to his mother’s illness and his affectionate relationship with his father deeply influenced his later life. 2. The rich historical/political background of Europe during Jung’s lifetime influenced his contributions to psychology. 3. Jung’s relationship with Freud deeply influenced his attitude towards psychiatry. 4. Jung’s most important contribution to psychology/ psychiatry is the formation of analytical psychology. 5. Jung was able to build up a successful career as a psychiatrist and it deeply influenced his contributions as a writer. 6. Relevance of Jung’s contributions within the context of psychology is interconnected with his knowledge in a number of fields other than psychology. 7. Jung’s place in the history of psychology is important because he was able to formulate a psychological approach which transformed the scenario of psychology. 8. Jung’s theories/contributions to psychology are important because it paved the way for the development of analytical psychology as a different school/branch within psychology. 9. Jung’s interest in human psyche and religious belief was helpful to connect both the fields within the context of psychology. 10. Jung’s contributions to psychology, his lectures, and works related to psychology and psychiatry proves that psychology as a branch of knowledge is deeply indebted to him. Summing, Jung’s life story is the interconnected with the growth and development of psychology, especially the field of analytical psychology as a different branch. His deep knowledge in a number of branches of knowledge was helpful to build up a strong foundation in his career as a psychiatrist and as a psychological theoretician. The development within the field of analytical psychology to a number of branches proves his importance in the history of psychology. His interest in analyzing human psyche from a different angle of view, apart from other psychologists/ psychiatrists helped him to have deeper understanding of the relationship between human psyche (unconscious stage) and human behavior in different situations. In short, Jung’s contributions to psychology prove that he was distinctly ahead of other psychologists. References Ashcraft, D. (2011). Personality Theories Workbook. Belmont, CA: Cengage Learning. Cortright, B. (1997). Psychotherapy and spirit: theory and practice in transpersonal psychotherapy. Albany, NY: SUNY Press. Hill, G. (2001). A level psychology through diagrams. Oxford, Great Britain: Oxford University Press. Papadopoulos, R.K. (1992). Carl Gustav Jung : critical assessments. New York, NY: Routledge. Richards, G. (2010). Putting psychology in its place: critical historical perspectives. New York, NY: Taylor & Francis. Stevens, A. (1990). On Jung. New York, NY: Taylor & Francis Read More