The Dilemma of the Individual in Modern Society - The Undiscovered Self

An interesting combination of essays or texts, this edition has a relatively brief essay marked by the effect of its date of composition -- 1956 -- with a longer, more complex argument as to the nature of symbols and their revelatory role in uncovering the "collective unconscious," a concept perhaps inherited by Jung from some earlier figures in he history of psychoanalysis, but fully developed in his later thinking.

THe 1956 book is underlined by the collapse of true Soviet empire in Hungary, which happened at the same time as the Egyptian closing of the Suez Canal, and its rescue for international shopping by what he ironically calls, "the Charge of the Light Brigade" of the Israeli army to re-open this major shipping Channel, from the Mediterranean to the Red Sea and back. Was this an effect lot a continuing cause of modern man's continuing lack of a discovered, fully individual Self, still in the grip of the "mass man," which to Jung was a major cause of the Second World War, still fresh in European affairs? It is, of course, difficult to untangle one's thinking from this combination of historical events, although it is equally obvious that the discovery of one's true self continues to the present day, with the continuation of nationalism and the claim of American exceptionalism as the current day's news continues in a drumbeat of victories and defeats in the pursuit of al-Quaeda by drone warfare?.

The two works, together, work as an exceptional introduction to Jung's thought, where the translations perhaps reduce Jung from the knotted difficulty of his German composition. Some readers do not see it that way; you will be the judge for yourself.

Today in America it seems to me that religion, particularly Christianity, is under attack by media. Even though I do not practice a formal religion, I find this unsettling. I didn't understand why I found it so disturbing until I read this quote from Jung's The Undiscovered Self: "In order to free the fiction of the sovereign state--in other words, the whims of those who manipulate it--from every wholesome restriction, all socio-political movements tending in this direction invariably try to cut the ground from under the religions. For, in order to turn the individual into a function of the State, his dependence upon anything besides the State must be taken from him." I don't really want to go off on a political tangent, but I think Jung's words, published in 1957, are especially relevant today, since I also believe that media has become, for the most part, an arm of government. I'd highly recommend this book to any thinking person. I would not recommend the RFC Hull translation, however, as it seemed clumsy to me throughout. I often had to read the same sentence multiple times because of awkward syntax. But the work itself is provocative and stimulating.

Today in America it seems to me that religion, particularly Christianity, is under attack by media. Even though I do not practice a formal religion, I find this unsettling. I didn't understand why I found it so disturbing until I read this quote from Jung's The Undiscovered Self: "In order to free the fiction of the sovereign state--in other words, the whims of those who manipulate it--from every wholesome restriction, all socio-political movements tending in this direction invariably try to cut the ground from under the religions. For, in order to turn the individual into a function of the State, his dependence upon anything besides the State must be taken from him." I don't really want to go off on a political tangent, but I think Jung's words, published in 1957, are especially relevant today, since I also believe that media has become, for the most part, an arm of government. I'd highly recommend this book to any thinking person. I would not recommend the RFC Hull translation, however, as it seemed clumsy to me throughout. I often had to read the same sentence multiple times because of awkward syntax. But the work itself is provocative and stimulating.

An interesting combination of essays or texts, this edition has a relatively brief essay marked by the effect of its date of composition -- 1956 -- with a longer, more complex argument as to the nature of symbols and their revelatory role in uncovering the "collective unconscious," a concept perhaps inherited by Jung from some earlier figures in he history of psychoanalysis, but fully developed in his later thinking.

THe 1956 book is underlined by the collapse of true Soviet empire in Hungary, which happened at the same time as the Egyptian closing of the Suez Canal, and its rescue for international shopping by what he ironically calls, "the Charge of the Light Brigade" of the Israeli army to re-open this major shipping Channel, from the Mediterranean to the Red Sea and back. Was this an effect lot a continuing cause of modern man's continuing lack of a discovered, fully individual Self, still in the grip of the "mass man," which to Jung was a major cause of the Second World War, still fresh in European affairs? It is, of course, difficult to untangle one's thinking from this combination of historical events, although it is equally obvious that the discovery of one's true self continues to the present day, with the continuation of nationalism and the claim of American exceptionalism as the current day's news continues in a drumbeat of victories and defeats in the pursuit of al-Quaeda by drone warfare?.

The two works, together, work as an exceptional introduction to Jung's thought, where the translations perhaps reduce Jung from the knotted difficulty of his German composition. Some readers do not see it that way; you will be the judge for yourself.

I read this volume while preparing to teach a summer General Psychology course and was absolutely blown away by how relevant Jung's thinking is to today's world.

This powerful book is so far removed from the Gen Psy textbook blather about Jung, (basically blowing him off in a paragraph or two as "a former disciple of Freud who focused on dreams and Christianity and had a falling out with the great master..."),that I found myself marvelling over it and reading passages out loud to my long-suffering family.

Jung's thinking is fresh and powerful and remains on target in this strange new world where the East is erupting on a daily basis, and East is meeting West in sometimes uncomfortable new ways.

"Gegenwart und Zukunft," was written in 1956, in Switzerland, in German. It could have been written last week, in America, in any language, and kept its original German title which means "Present and Future."

I will use this book, not in Psychology as I had planned, but in History 112/Political Science, where we discuss not only WW1 & WW2 but also 9/11 and current events. It is an awesome, and universal, read.

Kim Burdick
Stanton, Delaware

Avoid the trial and focusing on the reflection of life. Sounds and Rhythms of the sun. Cultural rejection in a state of crisis. Find the place that scares you the most and confront it with glee. Unite yourself with culture to learn about the past. Important on the understanding manor.

In his little book 'The Undiscovered Self', C.G. Jung describes the problem of science vs. religion. For modern man, science has become the preferred language of experience. Every thing must be measured by length, mass, charge and time to be useful, and what falls outside these categories becomes irrational and superfluous. The Church on the other hand simply asks men to have more Faith when confronted with such questions as 'why is there so much evil in the world'? Or 'why is there seemingly no justice?' or 'why do the evil prosper while the good suffer?'So on one side is the cold sterilization of the scientific method and on the other the hot demand of 'you must have more Faith!'To me, the Reality that science and religion are describing is the same entity, it's just explained in different terms. Science deals in empirical conditional truths while religion deals in solid mythical truths. And mythical in the sense that the Bible, in spite of the fact it is not scientifically verifiable in many ways, still contains a wealth of spiritual truths.These truths, these scientific and religious truths stand alone and are equally valid, and even share some characteristic at least in the fact that both camps have truths that are universal.On the one hand, the theory of gravity is universal in it's simplicity and application to all material objects, as 'thou shalt not kill' is universal on the spiritual side of things in that the dignity in humanity is to be revered and held sacred for all mortal souls.Some evangelical Christians have a problem when one applies the word 'mythical' to the Christian experience. But it is only mythical in the sense that Jesus currently cannot be measured by length, mass, charge or time. 'Blessed is he who believes, yet has not seen', He said.When Jesus came to earth, born of a humble birth, raised in humble surroundings in the country, He did not couch his teachings in greek rationalist terms. He spoke in simple parables, largely for the audience He was confronting. This my friend, is the language of Myth, although it be a Living Myth!Einstein, in his turn, I think raised a few empiricist eyebrows when he declared that imagination is more important than intelligence.So what makes a teacher great, whether scientific or spiritual, is the fact he can step outside the normal mode of communication for his field of expertise, spirituality in Christ's case, scientism in Einstein's case, and speak scientifically, though spiritual, and speak spiritually, though scientific!Science, to me is a function of the state, where it serves to improve the lives of millions materially of people. Jesus, when He said 'Render unto Caesar what is Caesar's', gave the State and all of it's sciences, props.It would do science some good to have more of it's outspoken teachers who would appreciate the spiritual more in the human experience.But for now, there is still the great divide, the great schism of our time, in my humble opinion.

_In this book Jung correctly predicted that Communism had to collapse from within. No one else saw that coming. Why should they? For, as he points out, the mass state had all the force of the big battalions on their side- politics, science, and technology were their natural allies. And yet they collapsed.

_Should we rejoice in this? Why? Jung points out that the West is every bit as materialistic as our former Communist opponents. Our spiritual base is gone- in the place of true religion we have aging cults that serve the status quo. There is no inner power there. Every place Jung uses the term Communist, you can substitute Corporate and you have the same animal. That is because both are hierarchical structures where the individual counts for nothing. Indeed, the self-knowledge or individualization that would produce true men and women capable of standing up to the hierarchy is actively discouraged. They are trapped in the illusion of statistical man and of the organization- neither of which really exist. Only a few at the top can exercise the power of a true individual, and even they are usually no more than mouthpieces for the undeveloped masses and their unconscious drives.

_The hope for Jung lies in true religion. The freedom and autonomy of the individual depends on deep inner experience of a metaphysical nature. This is not "faith"; it is direct knowing. Even the deepest faith may melt away with time and circumstances- but not direct experience. It is only this that gives the individual the power to stand up to mass tyranny- and to the World itself. When you haven't made this breakthrough (which requires deep introspection, effort, and, yes, suffering) then other things get deified and charged with demonic energy- money, work, political influence...

_The shallow, rootless mass-man and his organizations are always going to lose, eventually, to the man with deep religious connection to the Macrocosm. Jung the Gnostic, Jung the Christian, Jung the Alchemist, Jung the Magician saw this. The individuated man has the cosmic correspondence within himself.

_In this book Jung correctly predicted that Communism had to collapse from within. No one else saw that coming. Why should they? For, as he points out, the mass state had all the force of the big battalions on their side- politics, science, and technology were their natural allies. And yet they collapsed.

_Should we rejoice in this? Why? Jung points out that the West is every bit as materialistic as our former Communist opponents. Our spiritual base is gone- in the place of true religion we have aging cults that serve the status quo. There is no inner power there. Every place Jung uses the term Communist, you can substitute Corporate and you have the same animal. That is because both are hierarchical structures where the individual counts for nothing. Indeed, the self-knowledge or individualization that would produce true men and women capable of standing up to the hierarchy is actively discouraged. They are trapped in the illusion of statistical man and of the organization- neither of which really exist. Only a few at the top can exercise the power of a true individual, and even they are usually no more than mouthpieces for the undeveloped masses and their unconscious drives.

_The hope for Jung lies in true religion. The freedom and autonomy of the individual depends on deep inner experience of a metaphysical nature. This is not "faith"; it is direct knowing. Even the deepest faith may melt away with time and circumstances- but not direct experience. It is only this that gives the individual the power to stand up to mass tyranny- and to the World itself. When you haven't made this breakthrough (which requires deep introspection, effort, and, yes, suffering) then other things get deified and charged with demonic energy- money, work, political influence...

_The shallow, rootless mass-man and his organizations are always going to lose, eventually, to the man with deep religious connection to the Macrocosm. Jung the Gnostic, Jung the Christian, Jung the Alchemist, Jung the Magician saw this. The individuated man has the cosmic correspondence within himself.

_In this book Jung correctly predicted that Communism had to collapse from within. No one else saw that coming. Why should they? For, as he points out, the mass state had all the force of the big battalions on their side- politics, science, and technology were their natural allies. And yet they collapsed.

_Should we rejoice in this? Why? Jung points out that the West is every bit as materialistic as our former Communist opponents. Our spiritual base is gone- in the place of true religion we have aging cults that serve the status quo. There is no inner power there. Every place Jung uses the term Communist, you can substitute Corporate and you have the same animal. That is because both are hierarchical structures where the individual counts for nothing. Indeed, the self-knowledge or individualization that would produce true men and women capable of standing up to the hierarchy is actively discouraged. They are trapped in the illusion of statistical man and of the organization- neither of which really exist. Only a few at the top can exercise the power of a true individual, and even they are usually no more than mouthpieces for the undeveloped masses and their unconscious drives.

_The hope for Jung lies in true religion. The freedom and autonomy of the individual depends on deep inner experience of a metaphysical nature. This is not "faith"; it is direct knowing. Even the deepest faith may melt away with time and circumstances- but not direct experience. It is only this that gives the individual the power to stand up to mass tyranny- and to the World itself. When you haven't made this breakthrough (which requires deep introspection, effort, and, yes, suffering) then other things get deified and charged with demonic energy- money, work, political influence...

_The shallow, rootless mass-man and his organizations are always going to lose, eventually, to the man with deep religious connection to the Macrocosm. Jung the Gnostic, Jung the Christian, Jung the Alchemist, Jung the Magician saw this. The individuated man has the cosmic correspondence within himself.

_In this book Jung correctly predicted that Communism had to collapse from within. No one else saw that coming. Why should they? For, as he points out, the mass state had all the force of the big battalions on their side- politics, science, and technology were their natural allies. And yet they collapsed.

_Should we rejoice in this? Why? Jung points out that the West is every bit as materialistic as our former Communist opponents. Our spiritual base is gone- in the place of true religion we have aging cults that serve the status quo. There is no inner power there. Every place Jung uses the term Communist, you can substitute Corporate and you have the same animal. That is because both are hierarchical structures where the individual counts for nothing. Indeed, the self-knowledge or individualization that would produce true men and women capable of standing up to the hierarchy is actively discouraged. They are trapped in the illusion of statistical man and of the organization- neither of which really exist. Only a few at the top can exercise the power of a true individual, and even they are usually no more than mouthpieces for the undeveloped masses and their unconscious drives.

_The hope for Jung lies in true religion. The freedom and autonomy of the individual depends on deep inner experience of a metaphysical nature. This is not "faith"; it is direct knowing. Even the deepest faith may melt away with time and circumstances- but not direct experience. It is only this that gives the individual the power to stand up to mass tyranny- and to the World itself. When you haven't made this breakthrough (which requires deep introspection, effort, and, yes, suffering) then other things get deified and charged with demonic energy- money, work, political influence...

_The shallow, rootless mass-man and his organizations are always going to lose, eventually, to the man with deep religious connection to the Macrocosm. Jung the Gnostic, Jung the Christian, Jung the Alchemist, Jung the Magician saw this. The individuated man has the cosmic correspondence within himself.

_In this book Jung correctly predicted that Communism had to collapse from within. No one else saw that coming. Why should they? For, as he points out, the mass state had all the force of the big battalions on their side- politics, science, and technology were their natural allies. And yet they collapsed.

_Should we rejoice in this? Why? Jung points out that the West is every bit as materialistic as our former Communist opponents. Our spiritual base is gone- in the place of true religion we have aging cults that serve the status quo. There is no inner power there. Every place Jung uses the term Communist, you can substitute Corporate and you have the same animal. That is because both are hierarchical structures where the individual counts for nothing. Indeed, the self-knowledge or individualization that would produce true men and women capable of standing up to the hierarchy is actively discouraged. They are trapped in the illusion of statistical man and of the organization- neither of which really exist. Only a few at the top can exercise the power of a true individual, and even they are usually no more than mouthpieces for the undeveloped masses and their unconscious drives.

_The hope for Jung lies in true religion. The freedom and autonomy of the individual depends on deep inner experience of a metaphysical nature. This is not "faith"; it is direct knowing. Even the deepest faith may melt away with time and circumstances- but not direct experience. It is only this that gives the individual the power to stand up to mass tyranny- and to the World itself. When you haven't made this breakthrough (which requires deep introspection, effort, and, yes, suffering) then other things get deified and charged with demonic energy- money, work, political influence...

_The shallow, rootless mass-man and his organizations are always going to lose, eventually, to the man with deep religious connection to the Macrocosm. Jung the Gnostic, Jung the Christian, Jung the Alchemist, Jung the Magician saw this. The individuated man has the cosmic correspondence within himself.

_In this book Jung correctly predicted that Communism had to collapse from within. No one else saw that coming. Why should they? For, as he points out, the mass state had all the force of the big battalions on their side- politics, science, and technology were their natural allies. And yet they collapsed.

_Should we rejoice in this? Why? Jung points out that the West is every bit as materialistic as our former Communist opponents. Our spiritual base is gone- in the place of true religion we have aging cults that serve the status quo. There is no inner power there. Every place Jung uses the term Communist, you can substitute Corporate and you have the same animal. That is because both are hierarchical structures where the individual counts for nothing. Indeed, the self-knowledge or individualization that would produce true men and women capable of standing up to the hierarchy is actively discouraged. They are trapped in the illusion of statistical man and of the organization- neither of which really exist. Only a few at the top can exercise the power of a true individual, and even they are usually no more than mouthpieces for the undeveloped masses and their unconscious drives.

_The hope for Jung lies in true religion. The freedom and autonomy of the individual depends on deep inner experience of a metaphysical nature. This is not "faith"; it is direct knowing. Even the deepest faith may melt away with time and circumstances- but not direct experience. It is only this that gives the individual the power to stand up to mass tyranny- and to the World itself. When you haven't made this breakthrough (which requires deep introspection, effort, and, yes, suffering) then other things get deified and charged with demonic energy- money, work, political influence...

_The shallow, rootless mass-man and his organizations are always going to lose, eventually, to the man with deep religious connection to the Macrocosm. Jung the Gnostic, Jung the Christian, Jung the Alchemist, Jung the Magician saw this. The individuated man has the cosmic correspondence within himself.

This short book will seem prophetic. Although it was published in 1957, and written with Communism as the mass movement in mind, it is not hard to see the same threat still present today, wearing different clothes—it is easy to see in the charged US political and social dialogue of 2017. One cannot help feeling disappointed that 60 years later, much of what we should have learned from those experiences has already been forgotten.

Dr. Jung states that meaningfulness of life is a concept that applies to and can be experienced only by the individual, and not by the State. The State has no consciousness, and its value depends on the spiritual and moral stature of the individuals composing it. If a free society is to survive and prevent the evils of “mass movement”, the individual must prevent himself from dissolving in the crowd. He can best do this via religious experience and an immediate relation with God, combined with understanding and acceptance of his inner (unconscious) self.

Dr. Jung draws a distinction between “religion” and “churches”, which sometimes “try…to rope the individual into a social organization and reduce him to a condition of diminished responsibility, instead of raising him out of the torpid, mindless mass and making clear to him that he is the one important factor and that the salvation of the world consists in the salvation of the individual soul.”

I did not conclude that “mass movement” will ultimately always lose to the individual. This is a battle that will need to be fought repeatedly by each generation in countless societies.

A couple of interesting quotes that seem meant for our times (remembering that this was written in 1957!):

- "Exotic races have ceased to be peepshows in ethnological museums. They have become our neighbors, and what was yesterday the prerogative of the ethnologist is today a political, social and psychological problem. Already the ideological spheres begin to touch, to interpenetrate, and the time may not be far off when the question of mutual understanding in this field will become acute. To make oneself understood is certainly impossible without far-reaching comprehension of the other’s standpoint. The insight needed for this will have repercussions on both sides. History will undoubtedly pass over those who feel it is their vocation to resist this inevitable development, however desirable and psychologically necessary it may be to cling to what is essential and good in our own tradition."

- "Considering that the evil of our day puts everything that has ever agonized mankind in the deepest shade, one must ask oneself how it is that, for all our progress in the administration of justice, in medicine and in technology, for all our concern for life and health, monstrous engines of destruction have been invented which could easily exterminate the human race….It is not that present-day man is capable of greater evil than the man of antiquity or the primitive. He merely has incomparably more effective means with which to realize his proclivity to evil."

Overall I would recommend the book to anyone willing to put the work into reading it. I myself found that Dr. Jung’s writing style did not make this an easy read; although this is an English translation from the original German, I believe it is the author's overly complex style that is to blame. I did find myself a bit let down at the end when I found that no doorway to discovery of this inner self was pointed to other than "the psychologist."

_In this book Jung correctly predicted that Communism had to collapse from within. No one else saw that coming. Why should they? For, as he points out, the mass state had all the force of the big battalions on their side- politics, science, and technology were their natural allies. And yet they collapsed.

_Should we rejoice in this? Why? Jung points out that the West is every bit as materialistic as our former Communist opponents. Our spiritual base is gone- in the place of true religion we have aging cults that serve the status quo. There is no inner power there. Every place Jung uses the term Communist, you can substitute Corporate and you have the same animal. That is because both are hierarchical structures where the individual counts for nothing. Indeed, the self-knowledge or individualization that would produce true men and women capable of standing up to the hierarchy is actively discouraged. They are trapped in the illusion of statistical man and of the organization- neither of which really exist. Only a few at the top can exercise the power of a true individual, and even they are usually no more than mouthpieces for the undeveloped masses and their unconscious drives.

_The hope for Jung lies in true religion. The freedom and autonomy of the individual depends on deep inner experience of a metaphysical nature. This is not "faith"; it is direct knowing. Even the deepest faith may melt away with time and circumstances- but not direct experience. It is only this that gives the individual the power to stand up to mass tyranny- and to the World itself. When you haven't made this breakthrough (which requires deep introspection, effort, and, yes, suffering) then other things get deified and charged with demonic energy- money, work, political influence...

_The shallow, rootless mass-man and his organizations are always going to lose, eventually, to the man with deep religious connection to the Macrocosm. Jung the Gnostic, Jung the Christian, Jung the Alchemist, Jung the Magician saw this. The individuated man has the cosmic correspondence within himself.

This 1957 essay is Jung's major statement on the "Big Picture". In Jung's view, the person who does not know him or herself, who does not understand his or her strengths as an individual, will necessarily fall victim to mass-mentality. Mass-mentality is the Unconscious played out on the global scale, and if left to its own devices, it will continue to produce tragedies similar in scale to what the human race experienced in the two world wars. The antidote, Jung argues, is self-knowledge. This is not philosophical self-knowledge, but rather psychological self-knowledge - a reckoning with one's animal instincts, one's shadow, one's dreams and fantasies. Ultimately, Jung says self-knowledge must involve a spiritual experience - an experience of tradition religious truths as relevant in one's own life. Only this kind of experience will protect a person from the trap of mass-mentality; moreover, the development of culture and perhaps even the survival of the race depend on such individuals who can resist mass-mentality when it is strongest. For Jung, the hope of the human race and the world at large depended ultimately on the inner work individuals do in their most intimate inner world. For Jung, the personal is the political, but in a much more profound way than that in which anyone else has ever used that phrase.

(I read this book some time ago, but the 'insights' from one of the reviewers prompted a response.)

Whoever cautions against discussing politics and religion should simply place their interests elsewhere, otherwise a great danger awaits them in these pages: opposing thoughts, the bane of an ungrounded yet overly-opinionated mind!

This deceptively slim tome represents a distillation of Jung's work, a succinct expression that only dedication and honesty can bring out of one's lifetime efforts. What could be more preponderant during an era of rampant conformity such as ours than a bitterly ironic "self-less-ness": originality in thought and deed is discouraged (sometimes violently) if it goes against the grain of established institutional, national, or credo character; our excesses (including population) move unchecked from psyche through biosphere; not to forget the pall of an undeniably burgeoning shadow that is mass-infantilism coupling with powerful cutting edge technologies: how could we possibly stem the tide of an enantiodromia? The search for Self does not posit an extreme isolationist necessity, but it does lean very heavily towards a need to critique, to question conventional "wisdom", and to test further all of the time-tested truths--reducing them to quaint relics if they be obstinately intractable, or fail to be deepened and rejuvenated.

What a shame that another reviewer here, "Dr." W.G. Covington, Jr. (exemplar of the problem), places Jung's entire validity on whether or not he subscribes to the literal interpretation of tenets in Christianity; perhaps if Jung was "Young", he would be more credible as a visionary. Understanding Christianity as a symbolic (or at the very least, cultural) union between Creator and Creature on the one hand, or a universally immanent manifestation/transformation on the other does nothing to harm the "truth" of the matter, but neither does it mitigate the mythological significance. That is the larger point here: Jung was not anti-Christianity, but he was neither a supporter of organized [Western] religion--the Church especially; and based on the zeitgeist, he saw the negative portents of stale and dogmatic spirituality becoming the pretexts hastening the very evils that our childishly-external belief system is desired to fend off!

Thoreau once wrote: "It is for want of a man that there are so many men." Those words are truer now then at inception, in today's world where pseudo-individuality is a cult following viewed on "reality programs". Some choose the surface of the persona, others the recesses of the group; but where in the middle-ground is the individual, the social-rebel?

This book was an interesting read for me. The authors writing style was quite easy to comprehend. There were not too many words; the book moved along quite smoothly.

I almost felt that I was sitting in the room listening to a story. I have a back ground with psychology and dream analysis. I have a love and appreciation for how deep both topics can go.

I won't say I learned a lot from this book. Most of the examples confirmed what I already knew.

The information was true about the subconscience. It touched on how a lot of people don't want to face their true colours. People prefer to ignore or blame others. As individuals we can expand in so many ways. This book helps inform us on how we can improve.

This book is more for beginners. I loved the writing but felt bored with the information presented. I am interested in reading more work by this author.

I am in the process of trying to understand my journey. This book opened my mind to some ways to be more aware.

I would not read this book again. A more mature reader seriously into dream analysis would like this book. Definitely more for beginners.

Thanks very much,

Have a nice day.

This is an excellent book and a really easy read. I have read some reviews that see this work as difficult to get through. I can only surmise that's the result of the dumbing down of our society and our educational system. This book is basic, short, and gets to its point quickly and cogently. It's an excellent representation of our present society that reduces complex issues to pop slogans that misrepresent the facts and are only politically expedient. It is as relevant today as when it was written. perhaps even more so.

This is essentially Jung's version of "Civilization and its Discontents," a broadly sketched overview of Who We Are and How We Got Here. Jung basically argues for the importance of the individual as opposed to the mob, the latter taking the form of totalitarianism. Despite many references to the Iron Curtain (this book first appeared in the 1950's), it is not really "dated," unless you want to argue that contemporary society has since become immune to the dangers of mindless group-think. Jung's point here has nothing specifically to do with Communism.
Still, I found some of Jung's thought tediously familiar. Let's face it, practically every intellectual from Rousseau to the Unabomber has believed that their contemporaries had somehow lost touch with their true nature, and has had their own ideas about reuniting us all with our Inner Whatever-you-call-it. In its general outline, "The Undiscovered Self" does not exactly represent an advance in human thought--at least not in my view. But Jung does have some compelling insights, particularly his notion (which I cannot help but think is the absolute truth) that human conflicts essentially boil down to the tendency to project our own weaknesses (our "shadow side") onto others. It will, if nothing else, give you something to think about.
Also, this book (in the R.F.C. Hull translation) taught me my favorite word of the day: "chiliastic."

Written as a psycho-spiritual summary a few years before his death the great psychiatrist puts his finger on the heart of the problem in our world today: Failure of the "Third Birth" the birth of the spiritual self, leading to false spiritual searches like addiction,power craving, excessive materialism, and no compassion. As an antidote he suggests SPIRITUS CONTRA SPIRITUM tapping the inner power of the true spirit of the Omniverse residing in the undiscovered spiritual self against all false spirits dominating today's flawed material world.

Dreadful. I was expecting wisdom; instead I got within a few pages the absurdity of a statement -- repeated, by the way -- that religion is essential to morality. I should have thought that anyone who'd read even moderately in philosophy would know better than to make such statements.

I seldom feel as close to Holiness reading Psychologists, such as Adler, Erickson, Fosdick, Freud, Fromm, as this latest gem of Carl G. Jung! My trip to England's Canterbury Book stores, took me into Carl Jung's "Answer to Job". More recently delving into Robert Johnson's "Balancing Earth and Heaven" I was exposed to Madame Jung thru Helen Luke and ideas of "synchronicity." Prof Jung referred often to this idea in his "Undiscovered Self!"

"Most people confuse 'self-knowledge' with knowledge of their conscious ego personalities. Anyone who has ego-consciousness, at all takes it for granted he knows himeslf." People measure their self-knowledge by what the so-called average person knows of himself...coming forth as a very limited knowledge. Chapter Four, "The Individual's Understanding of Himself" begins: "The contradiction, the paradoxical evaluation of humanity by man himself is in truth a matter for wonder...man is an enigma." That Jungian statement opened the door for Robert A. Johnson and Karen Armstrong to use his same adverbs as "enigmatically and implicitly" for efforts to describe their personal crises!

Chapter Six, "Self-Knowledge" Jung sums-up as "a positive answer only when the individual is willing to fulfill the demands of rigorous self-examination and self-knowledge. If he follows his intention, he will not only discover important truths about himself but...will have suceeded in deeming himself worthy of serious attention and sympathhetic interest."

Then he relates the unconscious as an "only accessible source of religious experience. It is the medium from which the religious experience seems to flow." Even a young college student can grasp such a simpliciity as synchronicity! I was overwhelmed by this Gem...Retired Chap. Fred W Hood

Although much of this is dated by Jung's constant references to the evils of communism and references to the Iron Curtain, it remains a valuable treatise on the effects of relying too strongly on outside sources for one's raison de etre. Jung deftly explains the common thread of blind faith running through religious, political and scientific beliefs. Pastor, President, Professor: all these people become mouthpieces for dogma. Follow the cults of personality at your own peril. The only way out is through the undiscovered self, the unconscious connection to the "God" archetype. Faith is important. Beware, be aware, be wary of what and who you trust. Summary: Inquire within.

You will not find one book on the store which surpasses the explosive nature of Jung's masterpiece upon those who have read and UNDERSTOOD the exgient importance of this work.
IOW Jung's book is something unique and decisive about the world , past/present and future.
Yes Jung's book will continue to become the single most essential reading for those who seek answers to the downward spiral of this entire planet. Mankinds final days on earth is explored by Jung, as to the hows and why's, wherefores.. ONly those who seek God in Christ and only these few will submit to God's Holy Sons in the final days of the antichrist empire.
Although I see from reading the comments, most only grasp a inkling of what Jung is really getting at.
This book needs a insight which has experienced gnosis, and has read history, some classics, (Plato, Greek Plays, the bible, etc) and is over the age of 50.
Jung's finest work, which still needs some updates due to the recent tech society which has polluted this world.
Jung had no idea that computers would come in to create the monster which controls, dominates, and will completely destroy all those who worship, follow and love this great monsterous beast (money, power, ingnorance, addictions),
Only read this book if you are committed to Christ and His Holy Kingdom. All others stay away please.
Paul
New Orleans

Note, Jung wrote this masterpiece Spring 1956
as you will also note from my profile, I was born, Feb 2, 1956
Coincident?
Or can we employ the Jung's incredible concept, Synchronicity.
That is 2 completely unrelated events, yet somehow immensely interrelated.
No I do not believe in all that kooky astrology garbage, I am speaking of my birth synchronsizes with Jung's birth of his masterpiece.
Folks there is no such thing as coincidences in the spiritual realm. In the spiritual realm all events have meanings and purpose.

Rereading Jung's book, on 1st chap,,amazing how much Jung's ideas need correction, re-vision, updates, etc.
Recall Jung wrote this in 1956,,a world completely dif from this post tech comp world we inhabit today.
Jung could not forsee this monster's nature of 2014.
Jung writes in a spiritual language , as we know the spirit is not stagnant but fluid, and like alchemy needs constant analysis.
Amazing how I can see where Jung needs updates, revisions, corrections, whereas 30 yrs ago at age 28, I could hardly understand exactly what Jung was getting at.
This is not a easy book yet the single most important book om the entire the store offerings.
In 20 yrs you will see what I mean when you see the comments reaching in the hundred of thousands.
This book will have the most comments posted on all amzon in 20 yrs from now.
My guess is about 350,000 in the yr 2034,,with about 20K 1 star votes saying the book is all bunk,,it is these 20K who have been consumed by the antichrist monster, completely.

_In this book Jung correctly predicted that Communism had to collapse from within. No one else saw that coming. Why should they? For, as he points out, the mass state had all the force of the big battalions on their side- politics, science, and technology were their natural allies. And yet they collapsed.

_Should we rejoice in this? Why? Jung points out that the West is every bit as materialistic as our former Communist opponents. Our spiritual base is gone- in the place of true religion we have aging cults that serve the status quo. There is no inner power there. Every place Jung uses the term Communist, you can substitute Corporate and you have the same animal. That is because both are hierarchical structures where the individual counts for nothing. Indeed, the self-knowledge or individualization that would produce true men and women capable of standing up to the hierarchy is actively discouraged. They are trapped in the illusion of statistical man and of the organization- neither of which really exist. Only a few at the top can exercise the power of a true individual, and even they are usually no more than mouthpieces for the undeveloped masses and their unconscious drives.

_The hope for Jung lies in true religion. The freedom and autonomy of the individual depends on deep inner experience of a metaphysical nature. This is not "faith"; it is direct knowing. Even the deepest faith may melt away with time and circumstances- but not direct experience. It is only this that gives the individual the power to stand up to mass tyranny- and to the World itself. When you haven't made this breakthrough (which requires deep introspection, effort, and, yes, suffering) then other things get deified and charged with demonic energy- money, work, political influence...

_The shallow, rootless mass-man and his organizations are always going to lose, eventually, to the man with deep religious connection to the Macrocosm. Jung the Gnostic, Jung the Christian, Jung the Alchemist, Jung the Magician saw this. The individuated man has the cosmic correspondence within himself.

Not only communist masses, known the most at the time of the written interview, but more, much more. And if we recall today's breed of averaged minds in the broadly given axioms of "living standard" as a primary stone of judgement of personal success, we must admit that the majority of psychiatric "infection", as Jung says, lies in the economically most advanced, western democracies (States - Jung). Let's be ourselves, whatever that might be, but know about it, Jung teaches us.
Extraordinary book !

One of Jung's friendlier books to the nonclinician, and an explanation of how the rejuvenation of the individual leads to that of society as a whole. Somewhat unbalanced by Jung's clear preference for the person over the group.

The ideas presented by Jung in this book are fascinating, coherent, intelligent and, in many ways still original. They are also important ideas in a century that is just as full of moronic and potentially dangerous causes as the last century was.

It is a short book but it made me say "wow" out loud more than once.

Jung sees virtually everything as symbolic which drastically blinds him to Truth. He writes, "...before the coming of Christianity mankind believed in a life after death and therefore had no need of the Easter event as a guarantee of immortality." This single sentence fragment negates the entire message of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. It was NOT symbolic. It happened, it had to happen, and it wasn't an option. This is the Gospel. Jung is explicit in his denial of this reality as he writes, "The danger that a mythology understood too literally, and as taught by the Church, will suddenly be repudiated lock, stock and barrel is today greater than ever. Is it not time that the Christian mythology, instead of being wiped out, was understood symbolically for once?" It was LITERAL! NOT SYMBOLIC! IT happened just as the Bible described. The disciples suffered intense persecution and death for reality, not for symbols.

Jung has some insightful things to say about Communism's vacuum and failure. He is sadly misguided in knowing about the reality of spiritual matters.