The Origins and History of Consciousness
| File:The Origins and History of Consciousness (German edition).jpg Cover of the first edition | |
| Author | Erich Neumann |
|---|---|
| Original title | Ursprungsgeschichte des Bewusstseins |
| Translator | R. F. C. Hull |
| Language | German |
| Subject | Consciousness |
| Publisher | Rascher Verlag, Princeton University Press |
Publication date | 1949 |
| Publication place | Germany |
Published in English | 1954 |
| Media type | Print (Hardcover and Paperback) |
| Pages | 493 (English edition) |
| ISBN | 978-0691163598 |
| LC Class | 53-12527 |
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The Origins and History of Consciousness (German: Ursprungsgeschichte des Bewusstseins) is a 1949 book by the psychologist and philosopher Erich Neumann, in which the author attempts to "outline the archetypal stages in the development of consciousness". It was first published in English in 1954 in a translation by R. F. C. Hull. The work has been seen as an important and enduring contribution to Jungian thought.
Summary
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The book includes a foreword by Jung, who praises it and compares its emphasis on "matriarchal symbolism", and use of the symbol of the ouroboros, to his own work. Jung credits Neumann with making a valuable contribution to a psychology of the unconscious by placing the concepts of analytical psychology on an evolutionary basis.[1] introduction of the book talks about how our understanding and growth of mind are influenced by deep psychology, particularly the ideas of C.G. Jung. It says that our mind develops in certain patterns, called archetypes, which are like pictures in our mind that guide how we think and feel. These patterns are not just personal but are shared by all people because they come from a part of the mind that we all have in common, called the collective unconscious. The book aims to show that these archetypes play a big role in myths and that by understanding them, we can better understand ourselves and the problems we face. The book also wants to connect these ideas to therapy, helping both individuals and society. It argues that by exploring these deep parts of the mind, we can find new ways to solve old problems and improve our mental health.[2]
Publication history
The Origins and History of Consciousness was first published in 1949 by Rascher Verlag. In 1954, it was published in R. F. C. Hull's English translation by Princeton University Press.[3]
Reception
The psychologist James Hillman argued that Neumann's "Apollonic definition of consciousness" led him to mistakenly conclude that consciousness as such is masculine even in women.[4] The philosopher Walter Kaufmann singled out The Origins and History of Consciousness as a "perfect illustration" of the "utterly tedious, pointless erudition coupled with a stunning lack of even elementary concern with objections and alternatives" that distinguishes "most of the literature on archetypes and the collective unconscious". He described Neumann as dogmatic and accused him of operating "with a notion of evidence" similar to that of theologians who prove points with biblical verses. He criticized him for failing to consider diffusion as an alternative explanation for the presence of a given phenomenon in multiple cultures.[5] The book has been described as "Jungianism at its learned best" by the critic Camille Paglia, who identified it as an influence on her work of literary criticism Sexual Personae (1990) and her personal favorite among Neumann's works. She described Neumann's theory of "centroversion" as "idiosyncratic."[6][7]
See also
References
- ↑ Jung 1973, pp. xiii–xiv.
- ↑ Neumann, Erich (2014-08-24). The Origins and History of Consciousness. Translated by Hull, R. F. C. (Reprint ed.). Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. ISBN 978-0-691-16359-8.
- ↑ Neumann 1973, pp. iv–vi.
- ↑ Hillman 1992, p. 289.
- ↑ Kaufmann 2009, pp. 353–354.
- ↑ Paglia 1993, p. 114.
- ↑ Paglia 2018, pp. 430–443.
Bibliography
- Books
- Hillman, James (1992). The Myth of Analysis: Three Essays in Archetypal Psychology. New York: HarperPerennial. ISBN 0-06-092293-1.
- Jung, Carl (1973). "Foreword". The Origins and History of Consciousness. Princeton: Princeton University Press. ISBN 0-691-01761-1.
- Kaufmann, Walter Arnold (2009). Discovering the Mind: Volume Three: Freud, Adler, and Jung. New Brunswick and London: Transaction Publishers. ISBN 978-0-88738-395-3.
- Neumann, Erich (1973). The Origins and History of Consciousness. Princeton: Princeton University Press. ISBN 0-691-01761-1.
- Paglia, Camille (1993). Sex, Art, and American Culture: Essays. London: Penguin Books. ISBN 0-14-017209-2.
- Paglia, Camille (2018). Provocations: Collected Essays. New York: Pantheon Books. ISBN 9781524746896.
- Stevens, Anthony (1996). Private Myths: Dreams and Dreaming. London: Penguin Books. ISBN 0-14-017278-5.