"JUNG AND THE COLLECTIVE: Conscious Grounding in Uncertain Times"
AND
"WHEN THE CENTER WILL NOT HOLD: The Dangers of Collective Shadow Projection" Presented by CAROLYN BATES, PH.D.
August 24 & 25, 2018
LECTURE: "JUNG AND THE COLLECTIVE: Conscious Grounding in Uncertain Times".......
"It is, unfortunately, only too clear that if the individual is not truly regenerated in spirit,
society cannot be either, for society is the sum total of individuals in need of redemption."
- C.G. Jung, "The Undiscovered Self" -
None of us are immune to the currents of cultural and societal change happening around us, inparticular when
they feel so seismic in nature. In addressing the cultural anxiety and uncertainty not only in our current political
climate but in the swirling changes of world events, Jung's understanding of the collective and his ideas of the
ego's relationship to "the other" may guide us in how to better ground ourselves. In this lecture, Dr. Bates
explored the eruptions of cultural shame that contribute to the current schisms in our country and how the
archetypal imagery found in the ancient myth of Poseidon and Medusa may help us understand the forces at play.
Dr. Bates' lectureincluded a power point.
WORKSHOP: "WHEN THE CENTER WILL NOT HOLD: The Dangers of Collective Shadow Projection".......
"Where force rules, there is no love, and where love reigns force does not count."
- C.G. Jung, "Vol 17," para 109 -
It is possible that we can find the tension of these opposites -- power and eros -- wrestling at the core of most
shadowed conflict: intrapsychic, interpersonal, familial, socio-political and cultural? Jung described the need to
understand this "old truth" of force and love, each the shadow of the other, if we are to live more deeply
integrated, individuated, and meaningful lives. Jung clarifies that hidden within conflict lays and invitation to
meet Shadow -- both individual and collective --at key moments in the process of psychological growth. To do
shadow work is to make a difference in the matters of the world at large, but it must be done in consort with Eros.
Such work can contribute to the psychological growth of a single person, of an entire people, and even of a
collection of nations. In this workshop, Dr. Bates explored the things that threaten us -- that feel ominous and
frightening to us -- presents us with valuable opportunities for individuation. Using the myth of Psyche and Eros,
workshop participants were invited to explore how both myth and fairytale can help recognize shadow, its
projection and its recall. This workshop included a power point, discussion, the sharing of dreams, and writing.
Prior to her workshop, Dr. Bates encouraged participants to view two films: Bill Condon's 2017 version of the fairy
tale Beauty and the Beast and Anthony Harvey's 1968 film The Lion in Winter.
Carolyn Bates, Ph.D. is a psychologist and diplomate Jungian analyst in Austin, Texas. In addition to her analytic
practice, she currently serves as President of the Texas Seminar of the Inter-Regional Society of Jungian
Analysts' training institute. She offers lectures, workshops, and classes on dream interpretation, the symbolism
of pilgrimage, the feminine archetype in dreams and fairy tales, ethics and the depth psychotherapy process, and
the phenomenon of synchronicity and trauma in the collective.