In this blog post, we will look at what consciousness, personal unconscious, and collective unconscious are and what role they play based on Carl Gustav Jung’s analytical psychology.
Carl Gustav Jung’s analytical psychology explains the mind in three levels: consciousness, personal unconscious, and collective unconscious. Consciousness is the only part of the psyche that an individual can directly know, and it grows through consciousness of emotion, thought, sensation, and intuition in infancy. These four elements are not used equally, and some children have stronger thoughts and others have stronger emotions. And through the process of personalization of consciousness, new elements are created, which Jung called the “self.” The self is composed of awareness, perception, memory, thought, and emotion, and if it is not recognized as an existence by the self, it cannot be recognized. And since the self removes unnecessary parts before the experience reaches the level of consciousness, the self acts as a gatekeeper to consciousness.
The self plays an important role in human growth and development. In the process of transition from infancy to adulthood, the self is gradually established through interaction with the outside world. In this process, the self recognizes its own limitations and at the same time develops the ability to explore its possibilities. This development of the self provides important clues to understanding how humans are formed and developed as social beings. The self also has an important influence on the formation of moral judgment and values. Humans form their own unique life experiences and worldviews through the self, which is reflected in their actions and decisions. The self is not just a mental construct, but a core part of human existence.
What happens to experiences that are not recognized by the self? If they are not important or credible at the time of experience, they are stored in the “personal unconscious” and can be easily brought to consciousness whenever needed. The unconscious mind sometimes interferes with the conscious mind’s work, and sometimes it helps the conscious mind’s work. For example, a childhood trauma may be repressed in the unconscious mind and suddenly come to the surface in a particular situation. This is the work of the unconscious mind, but it also gives us the opportunity to understand ourselves more deeply and grow. In addition, the unconscious can be expressed in various forms, such as dreams and artistic creations. Dreams contain messages from the unconscious, and by interpreting them, we can understand the contents of the unconscious. Artistic creation is also an expression of the unconscious, and artists express and explore their inner world through their works. This unconscious function plays an important role in the psychological growth and self-understanding of individuals.
Meanwhile, the most important of Jung’s achievements is his discovery of the “collective unconscious.” According to Jung, the personality of an individual is the historical product of their ancestors and the container that holds their contents. This was called the “collective unconscious,” which is the result of the accumulation of experiences repeated over many generations, and it refers to the possibility of reproducing the experiences of past generations. The way a baby perceives its mother is that it is born with a preliminary perspective on the mother. The contents of this collective unconscious are called archetypes.
The existence of the collective unconscious means that human beings are not formed solely through personal experience, but are also influenced by the history and culture of humanity as a whole. This suggests that our behavior and way of thinking are not simply personal, but based on the shared experiences and wisdom of humanity. The collective unconscious has a profound impact on our lives, and its traces can be found in various cultural phenomena such as our dreams, art, religion, and mythology. Jung sought to explain how the human psychological structure is formed through the collective unconscious and how this helps humans understand themselves and the world.
Among the archetypes, the persona archetype, the anima archetype and animus archetype, the shadow archetype, and the self archetype play an important role in people’s personalities. The persona is the mask or appearance that an individual shows to the public, and it is intended to give a good impression so that society will recognize it. However, when a harmful persona believes that one persona is expressing its true nature, the ego identifies only with that persona, preventing the other aspects of the personality from developing at all. If the persona is the face one presents to the world, the inner self has an anima and an animus. Anima refers to the feminine aspect of the male psyche, and animus refers to the masculine aspect of the female psyche. Men inherit femininity and subconsciously create certain standards, which influence their acceptance or rejection of women. The first projection of animus is directed at the mother, and animus is directed at the father. Jung believed that a healthy personality could not be achieved unless an individual expressed both genders.
Anima and animus refer to the overall psychological wholeness of human beings that transcends gender. In other words, both men and women can grow into more complete human beings when they accept and integrate their opposite gender. This integration allows humans to live more balanced lives and develops their ability to understand and accept various perspectives and emotions. This goes beyond the stereotypes of the roles of men and women in modern society and is an important foundation for each individual to discover and express their true self.
The shadow is an alter ego of mine in the unconscious, and when I am pointed out a flaw by a friend, I feel anger because I am meeting my shadow that I was not aware of at all through the friend’s point out. In other words, if you hate someone, there is a chance that you are suspecting that your weaknesses, which are found in others, are being projected onto that person. On the other hand, the archetype of the self is the central archetype in the collective unconscious, organizing and harmonizing the archetypes in the consciousness. If someone feels that they and the world are in harmony, it means that the archetypes of the self are effectively performing their role.
Understanding the spiritual world is a difficult task. The spirit is not a fixed object that is expressed once and then ends, like a rock or a tree, but a dynamic system that is constantly changing. The spiritual world transcends human conscious experience and contains infinite possibilities, which have a profound impact on our lives. Exploring the various aspects of the spirit is a process of self-understanding, and through this process, we can grow into more complete beings.
Jung’s analytical psychology is a tool for exploring the various layers of the psyche, and it offers us a way to understand the deep parts of the unconscious beyond the self. It is a philosophical journey that goes beyond simple methods of psychotherapy to explore the fundamental meaning of human existence and the purpose of life.
In conclusion, Jung’s analytical psychology has made an important contribution to understanding the complexity and depth of the human mind, and his theories continue to inspire many psychologists and philosophers today. His work is a powerful tool for helping individuals grow psychologically and achieve self-actualization, and it can provide us with insights that can help us live better lives. The exploration of the mind is an endless journey, and Jung’s teachings are an important guide on this journey.
