Jung is, like, OMG, so rad

this one goes out to danator, who gave me a reason to re-visit one of the most influential books in my life.
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I had originally planned to review lots of books in this here blog, but upon giving that a few tries I became horribly introverted about the whole effort. My main purpose in doing a review is generally to praise a particular book and convince other people it's worth reading.

The problem is, I'm the one doing the review. Whatever the finished product is, I fear that what I've actually achieved is to put something out there that might cause others who read it to think "Yeah, right. Thanks for the warning. No way in Hell am I going to put myself in your league sister." Kind of a 'tarred with the same brush' thing.

The other reason is, I get overwhelmed by, I guess, hero worship or something. I mean, really...who do I think I am? How am I

qualified to comment on something like 'Man and His Symbols'? I'd probably come off like some kind of a presumptuous, lame, sadass damn jejune American who thinks they can just go around and say stuff like they're all smart when actually they look really really stupid and everyone knows it. (Anyone cringing? Good. You're the person that was aimed at.)

I suppose what I really mean to say is, stick it up your ass if you can't hack it. I'm reviewing 'Man And His Symbols'.

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Man And His Symbols is good

by FirstNations

The best way to summarize it is 'Jung from many angles'...a collection of different articles written by Jungian practitioners, detailing their experiences using his theories. This suited the way I learn down to the ground (there are lots of purty pitchers and lots of repetition...the same general subject being approached from many different angles. I'm a little ADD.) I got more useful, relevant information out of that book, page for page, than I was able to glean from the remaining number of other psych texts I've ever read combined. This is not to say that I totally buy into Jungs' theories because he goes rampaging pretty damn far afield; face it-but he nails the structure of the creative unconscious dead. He defines it. He maps it out. It's fucking amazing.

Now, I read this book with my Tabers Encyclopedic Medical Dictionary at one hand and my ancient copy of Van Nostrands open at the other. I took notes. I put bookmarks in so I could go back and check passages, and I shamelessly dogeared the index. This is not a light read. Too bad. It still absolutely belongs in every creative persons' reference collection-no matter what your particular medium might happen to be.

For me, seeing this part of my odd brain defined, studied, explained and taken seriously, was an experience of the most profound awe. To re-use an awkwardly-worded image, this is the clearest view you may ever get of the "map of an underground river of story" that we all carry printed on our minds...and it's an incredible introduction to Jung.

The pictures are cool, too. At least the ones in my edition are.

I always thought it would be a particularly excellent book to own if you're the kind of person who gets wasted and then becomes really, really focused . If you like to get blazed and do mazes, or stare for hours at your M.C. Escher poster of a guys' hand drawing itself drawing a hand drawing itself, this may describe you! It certainly can't hurt, and it will impress more people than the 65 foot bubblegum wrapper chain you made last time.

So, yeah. Man And His Symbols. There ya go. Read it sometime.