Τhe Dictionary of #Psychology and #Psychoanalysis Trends 3
According to Carl Gustav #Jung
(1875-1961), it exists as the masculine component of the female
personality and as the feminine attributes of the male psyche,
respectively. This is the 'other half', the half that was taken from us
as we grew into a boy or girl. Both archetypes help people understand
the nature of the opposite sex, and because they contain 'deposits of
all impressions ever made' by a man or woman, so they, necessarily,
reflect the traditional ideas of masculine and feminine. As these
archetypes exist in our unconscious, they can affect our moods and
reactions by manifesting themselves as either prophetic statements
(Anima) or unbending rationality (Animus).
Art: One of the most
fascinating examples of the effect of archetypes and symbols in modern
painting is 'Summer and Winter' (2007) by fantasy and magic realism
artist, Michael Parkes. The painting plays upon the concept of the
opposite qualities of Summer-Winter, and the Animus-the Anima
Archetypes: Winter (Animus) is represented by the melancholic
middle-aged man dressed in formal black clothes, whereas, Summer (Anima)
by the seductive young woman in white stockings, seating half-naked on
top of the middle-aged man. Concepts such as optimism vs pessimism,
rationality vs emotion, confidence vs insecurity, black vs white and
extroversion vs introversion are, also, depicted in the painting.
