Psychology of the Unconscious, by Carl Jung: A Summary and Discussion

Tackling Jordan Peterson’s Reading List

Gemini image of Dr. Jordan Peterson discussing the unconscious mind with Carl Jung

I’ve been tackling Dr. Jordan Peterson’s book list and this was one of my favorites. It might not be particularly because of the content itself, but because it helped lay down some fundamentals and tie so many other ideas from other books together.

I’m thinking of his student Erich Neumann who wrote Origins and History of Consciousness and The Great Mother, as well as Mircea Eliade’s three volumes of A History of Religious Ideas among others. All of these readings tie back into the framework for understanding the psyche, especially the unconscious, as these ideas are mostly tied to our unconscious minds.

I’ll start with an overview of the main themes and then get into the ideas I had while reading this.

Overall Themes of Psychology of the Unconscious:

• Broadening the concept of Libido: Jung fundamentally redefines “libido” not as solely sexual energy (as in Freud), but as a more general psychic energy or life force that manifests in various forms, including creative, spiritual, and instinctive drives.
• The Collective Unconscious and Archetypes: This book is where Jung truly introduces and elaborates on his groundbreaking concepts of the…