Jungian Archetype – The Shadow, The Self, Animus and Persona

carl jung was a Swiss psychiatrist who helped to understand a little better what archetypes are and how they work through his important contribution to the subject.

In today’s study, we gather important information about the origin and meaning of archetypes and the way they can influence our lives. Follow next!

What is the origin of archetypes?

According to Jung, archetypes originate and exist in the so-called collective unconscious, and can influence the way we experience things and situations.

According to the book “The nature of the psyche”, written by the psychiatrist himself, the archetypes are present in the most important stories that occurred in the world, being deeply inserted in religious, philosophical, scientific and also ethical contexts.

Nowadays, the perception of these has changed a little in order to fit into the current context. Over time, ideas based on archetypes were created in order to apply and adapt them according to what we live in today through our own conscience.

Jung’s archetypes

The scholar Jung brings us that it is not possible to define an exact number of existing archetypes, and these can be defined as universal and hereditary, however primarily he came to identify 4 large groups that will be treated below.

The shadow

Being considered as part of the unconscious, the archetype of the shadow is seen as the representative of instincts such as life and sex.

It is composed of some feelings, most of which are considered unwanted by us. Are they:

WeaknessesDesiresRepressed IdeasInstinctsDisabilities

As its name suggests, this archetype is considered dark, perhaps because it also represents what is unknown to us and the much-feared chaos.

Although it is unwanted, Jung said that we all have it within ourselves, and it can appear to us in different forms, among which are snakes, demons and even dragons and monsters through visions or even dreams.

self

The Self archetype represents a person’s consciousness and unconsciousness. Its creation occurs from the integration of different aspects of our personality.

This archetype was often represented by Jung through geometric figures such as circles and squares or through mandalas.

Animus or Anima

Understanding this archetype may seem a little complex at first, but it is a female psyche within a male figure (Animus) or a male psyche within a female figure (Anima).

It is seen as the main way to communicate with the collective unconscious, representing our true image and not the one we present to others, that is, our “true self”.

There is also the possibility of combining these two components, giving rise to the divine couple or syzygy. In turn, when the union of both there is the representation of integrity, completion and unification.

Persona

The last great archetype according to Jung is the persona, which can be defined as the way we present ourselves to the world.

Therefore, if we go to the meaning of the origin of the word persona, which means “mask”, we can say that the same individual can have several personas when presenting himself to something or someone.

This mask can surface in many situations in order to hide or even protect the so-called self from a more negative image in front of other people, thus hiding your true self.

The other archetypes described by Jung

Although Jung has classified the archetypes that we brought here into 4 large groups, as we said earlier, the psychiatrist himself made it clear that the number of existing archetypes can be vast.

So we brought here some of the other archetypes that were previously described by Jung, as well as their main characteristics.

Father: Represents power and authority Mother: Comfort and nutrition Wise Old Man: Wisdom and intelligence Child: Innocence and rebirth Trickster: Lying and trouble

It is important to point out that besides these there are many others and that just as they can have many interesting qualities, they can also have a very strong shadow side.

Therefore, the study as well as the vast understanding about the archetypes before deciding to use them is extremely important.

Going a little further

The archetypes govern and organize the world, the mind and the behavior of beings acting in the collective unconscious in a powerful way.

Much has been said about archetypes, but as the theme is vast, there is a lot of disconnected and subjective information.

With that in mind, we recommend that you get to know Practical Archetype Training.

This course will treat archetypes with a Real, Practical and Intelligent approach, teaching you to use these forces in order to bring about profound changes in your life.

Know now the practical archetypes course CLICKING HERE or in the image below.