JUNG'S COLLECTIVE UNCONSCIOUS

Jung and the Collective Unconscious

Jung and the Collective Unconscious

Introduction

The term 'unconscious' derives from the Late Latin term inconscium, composed of the negative form in, and conscium meaning conscious. This dimension of unawareness accounts for behaviour, symptoms and other phenomena which manifest regardless of rational and conscious choice and, on occasion, actually appear to be in open contrast to the will and desire of the individual concerned. This analytical psychology concept first identified by Carl Jung (1934/1981), which refers to inborn, unconscious material that is shared, among all humans and is accumulated across generations (Corlett & Pearson 2003, pp. 65-98. Jung broke with Freud's tradition and maintained that the unconscious consists not only of individual repressed experiences but also of memories or experiences from our ancestral past. He distinguished it from the personal unconscious particular to every individual. The existence of a collective unconscious would explain why so many humans are afraid of snakes or heights, given that these may be fears inherited from our ancestral past. Jung later changed this term to objective psyche, believing that it is common to everyone (Samuels 2005, pp. 32-67).

Discussion and Analysis

The collective unconscious, as conceived by Jung, is that area of personality that contains the archetypes and instincts. It is the phylogenic region of psyche that contains general propensities of modes of action and reaction. As such, it is the deepest substratum of mind and constitutes the psychic heritage of the human race. The collective unconscious is differentiated from the personal unconscious by the fact that the contents of the former have never been in the conscious sphere. The personal unconscious is located above the collective unconscious and shapes its contents through archetypal processes. For this reason the collective unconscious is sometimes called the objective psyche in order to differentiate it from the more individualistic contents of the personal unconscious.

Empirical evidence for the collective unconscious is found through the comparative study of religions, myths and fairytales. Analogous patterns and images can be discerned that are not explainable by other means, i.e. migration among disparate populations. These omnipresent motifs can be identified in various cultures, ethnic groups and civilisations existing throughout time. Similarly, the study of dreams will also reveal recurrent universal themes and symbols.

One can never have direct access to the collective unconscious but only experience its effects indirectly. The collective unconscious contains elements and forces that create typical patterns of human behaviour and experience both of the lowest-common-dominator and of the highest value. The former constitute behavioural patterns in which the person can become repetitive and compulsive while the latter may lead to powerful experiences filled with numinosity. Since Jung posited that the drive to individuation was also instinctive in man, the goal becomes one of increasing differentiation from the collective, both inner and outer. The concept of the collective unconscious becomes a heuristic device that allows one to use the technique of amplification in order to help the ego distinguish the non-personal from the lived personal history (Stevens 1994, pp. 8-63). With maturity, ...