C. G. Jung

Reviews

"More than ever we need Jung, whose intuitions are proving indispensable to understanding and interacting with the twentyfirst century, from issues of globalism and ecological crisis, to the challenges of living with technology. Jung: the Basics offers excellent starting points for complete beginners or for those seeking fresh psychological perspectives on history, modernity, symbolism, spirituality, the arts, creative practice and our relationships to each other and the planet. Suitable for clinicians in training and students of disciplines from the humanities to the social sciences, this book brings an important resource into accessible and exciting perspective for our times." - Susan Rowland (Ph.D.) is Chair of MA Engaged Humanities and the Creative Life at Pacifica Graduate Institute, and teaches on the doctoral program in Jungian psychology and Archetypal Studies. She is the author of Remembering Dionysus: Revisioning Psychology and Literature in C. G. Jung and James Hillman (Routledge 2017)

‘The basics are the essential facts or principles of a subject. This is what Ruth Williams has brilliantly given us in relation to the work of C.G. Jung, analytical psychology, Jungian analysis and Jungian Studies. Her book is accessible, beautifully structured and presented. She really knows her way around the Jungian world and can play the role of guide with consummate ease.’ - From the Foreword by Andrew Samuels, Professor of Analytical Psychology, University of Essex

"Ruth Williams discusses the unconscious, the structure of the psyche, the archetypes, and individuation, as well as psychological types, dreams, alchemy, and the vexed question of Jung's political engagement in a way that will, I hope, encourage the reader to look more closely at what Jung has to offer us in the twenty-first century. There are many different ways in which to approach Jung: through his indebtedness to German culture, for instance, or through applying his conceptual tools in the field of literary criticism or film studies, or through studying the institutional development of analytical psychology and the personalities involved in the Jungian movement. What is valuable about the account offered in this book is that it provides an overview of the ‘basics’ of Jungian thought in a way that is both helpful and clear. Jung once described the second part of Goethe’s Faust as ‘a link in the aurea catena’ — i.e., the Golden or Homeric Chain — ‘which has existed from the beginnings of philosophical alchemy and Gnosticism down to Nietzsche’s Zarathustra’; in engaging with this material Jung found that it was ‘unpopular, ambiguous, and dangerous’, and he believed he had embarked on ‘a voyage of discovery to the other pole of the world’. As one embarks on one’s own journey into Jung, it is good to have a guide such as this in one’s hands." - Paul Bishop, William Jacks Chair of Modern Languages at the University of Glasgow, UK; co-editor of The Ecstatic and the Archaic (Routledge)

"More than ever we need Jung, whose intuitions are proving indispensable to understanding and interacting with the twentyfirst century, from issues of globalism and ecological crisis, to the challenges of living with technology. Jung: the Basics offers excellent starting points for complete beginners or for those seeking fresh psychological perspectives on history, modernity, symbolism, spirituality, the arts, creative practice and our relationships to each other and the planet. Suitable for clinicians in training and students of disciplines from the humanities to the social sciences, this book brings an important resource into accessible and exciting perspective for our times."
- Susan Rowland (Ph.D.) is Chair of MA Engaged Humanities and the Creative Life at Pacifica Graduate Institute, and teaches on the doctoral program in Jungian psychology and Archetypal Studies. She is the author of Remembering Dionysus: Revisioning Psychology and Literature in C. G. Jung and James Hillman (Routledge 2017)

‘The basics are the essential facts or principles of a subject. This is what Ruth Williams has brilliantly given us in relation to the work of C.G. Jung, analytical psychology, Jungian analysis and Jungian Studies. Her book is accessible, beautifully structured and presented. She really knows her way around the Jungian world and can play the role of guide with consummate ease.’
- From the Foreword by Andrew Samuels, Professor of Analytical Psychology, University of Essex

"Ruth Williams discusses the unconscious, the structure of the psyche, the archetypes, and individuation, as well as psychological types, dreams, alchemy, and the vexed question of Jung's political engagement in a way that will, I hope, encourage the reader to look more closely at what Jung has to offer us in the twenty-first century. There are many different ways in which to approach Jung: through his indebtedness to German culture, for instance, or through applying his conceptual tools in the field of literary criticism or film studies, or through studying the institutional development of analytical psychology and the personalities involved in the Jungian movement. What is valuable about the account offered in this book is that it provides an overview of the ‘basics’ of Jungian thought in a way that is both helpful and clear. Jung once described the second part of Goethe’s Faust as ‘a link in the aurea catena’ — i.e., the Golden or Homeric Chain — ‘which has existed from the beginnings of philosophical alchemy and Gnosticism down to Nietzsche’s Zarathustra’; in engaging with this material Jung found that it was ‘unpopular, ambiguous, and dangerous’, and he believed he had embarked on ‘a voyage of discovery to the other pole of the world’. As one embarks on one’s own journey into Jung, it is good to have a guide such as this in one’s hands."
- Paul Bishop, William Jacks Chair of Modern Languages at the University of Glasgow, UK; co-editor of The Ecstatic and the Archaic (Routledge)

"The chapters are well defined and take the reader through the main Jungian concepts of; the unconscious, the psyche, archetypes, individuation, psychological types, dreams and alchemy. All the classic concepts that a Jung novice will hear, and perhaps even use in everyday language, without ever really comprehending the aetiology behind them. The joy of this book is its structure; huge topics are broken down into a comprehensive, yet digestible format."
-Melanie Pickles, MBACP, Integrative Counsellor working in Private Practice and PCSR member.

"Even the most experienced Jungian scholar will find this work useful as one can get so easily to the relevant topic. This is then backed up by a solid, well-researched reference and further resource section at the end of each chapter, thus inviting the reader to find out more and form their own conclusions. I very much hope that this work will be included in the reading list of any psychotherapy or counselling training."
-Alex Datziel, New Psychothrapist