"Those conscious contents which give us a clue to the unconscious background are incorrectly called symbols by Freud. They are not true symbols, however, since according to his theory they have merely the role of signs or symptoms of the subliminal processes. The true symbol differs essentially from this, and should be understood as an intuitive idea that cannot yet be formulated in any other or better way (CW 15, p. 69, para. 105)."Earlier he had written as a definition of the symbol: 'A symbol always presupposes that the chosen expression is the best possible description or formulation of a relatively unknown fact, which is nonetheless known to exist or is postulated as existing' (CW 6, para. 814)." (p. 144) [Read more]
"Every psychological expression is a symbol if we assume that it states or signifies something more and other than itself which eludes our present knowledge. [“Definitions: Symbol” CW 6, para. 817.][Read more]
Symbol: ”Jung conjectures that the language of all human beings is full of symbols (Jung 1964: 3). For Jung, symbols are language or images that convey, by means of concrete reality, something hidden or unknown. They have a numinous quality only dimly perceived by the conscious mind. These symbols can never be fully understood by the conscious mind. In symbols, the opposites are united in a form that is “never devised consciously, but [are] always produced out of the unconscious by way of revelation or intuition” (Jung, 1964: 48). The function of a symbol is both compensatory and integrative. It is compensatory in that it illuminates something that belongs to the domain of the unconscious. It compensates for that which is hidden from our conscious. It is integrative in that it is a union of opposites, holding in tension the different aspects of the psyche. Jung posits individual and collective symbols. Individual symbols are peculiar to individuals. They arise out of the individual’s personal unconscious and, as a consequence, have little or no meaning to other individuals. Collective symbols are psychic images that arise out of the collective unconscious of a group, tribe, culture or nation. As such, they possess a functional significance for the community." (p. 887) [Read more]
Jung, C. G. (1967). The collected works of C. G. Jung: Vol. 5. Symbols of transformation (R. F. C. Hull, Trans.) (H. Read et al., Eds.). Princeton University Press. (Original work published 1952) https://doi.org/10.1515/9781400850945
Jung, C. G. (1968). Individual dream symbolism in relation to alchemy (R. F. C. Hull, Trans.). In H. Read et al. (Eds.), The collected works of C. G. Jung: Vol. 12. Psychology and alchemy (2nd ed., pp. 38-223). Princeton University Press. (Original work published 1936) https://doi.org/10.1515/9781400850877.39
Jung, C. G. (1968). Concerning mandala symbolism (R. F. C. Hull, Trans.). In H. Read et al. (Eds.), The collected works of C. G. Jung: Vol. 9 pt. 1. Archetypes and the collective unconscious (2nd ed., pp. 355-384). Princeton University Press. (Original work published 1950) https://doi.org/10.1515/9781400850969.355
Jung, C. G. (1969). Mandalas [Appendix] (R. F. C. Hull, Trans.). In H. Read et al. (Eds.), The collected works of C. G. Jung: Vol. 9 pt. 1. Archetypes and the collective unconscious (2nd ed., pp. 385-390). Princeton University Press. (Original work published 1955) https://doi.org/10.1515/9781400850969.385
Jung, C. G. (1968). A study in the process of individuation (R. F. C. Hull, Trans.). In H. Read et al. (Eds.), The collected works of C. G. Jung: Vol. 9 pt. 1. Archetypes and the collective unconscious (2nd ed., pp. 290-354). Princeton University Press. (Original work published 1950) https://doi.org/10.1515/9781400850969.290
Jung, C. G. (1976). The symbolic life (R. F. C. Hull, Trans.). In H. Read et al. (Eds.), The collected works of C. G. Jung: Vol. 18. The symbolic life (pp. 267-290). Princeton University Press. (Original work published 1954) https://doi.org/10.1515/9781400851010.265
Jung, C. G. (1976). Symbols and the interpretation of dreams. In H. Read et al. (Eds.), The collected works of C. G. Jung: Vol. 18. The symbolic life (pp. 183-264). Princeton University Press. (Original work published 1964) https://doi.org/10.1515/9781400851010.183
Ebooks available from the library:
Journal articles available from the library:
Bradshaw, S., & Storm, L. (2013). Archetypes, symbols and the apprehension of meaning. International Journal of Jungian Studies, 5(2), 154–176. https://doi-org.pgi.idm.oclc.org/10.1080/19409052.2012.685662
Charles, M. (2013). On the conservatism of post-Jungian criticism: Competing concepts of the symbol in Freud, Jung and Walter Benjamin. International Journal of Jungian Studies, 5(2), 120–139. https://doi.org/10.1080/19409052.2012.671184
Conger, J. (2012). A symbol hard as stone: The body and symbolic thought in the Freudian and Jungian traditions. Jung Journal: Culture & Psyche, 6(3), 44–57. https://doi-org.pgi.idm.oclc.org/10.1525/jung.2012.6.3.44
Hogenson, G. B. (2004). What are symbols symbols of? Situated action, mythological bootstrapping and the emergence of the Self. The Journal of Analytical Psychology, 49(1), 67–81. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.0021-8774.2004.0441.x
Rowland, S. (2011). Symbols that transform: Trickster nature in detective fiction. Journal of Jungian Scholarly Studies, 7(2), 1–14.
Rowland, S. (2015). Jung, art and psychotherapy re-conceptualized by the symbol that joins us to the wildness of the universe. International Journal of Jungian Studies, 7(2), 81–93. https://doi.org/10.1080/19409052.2014.905487