Man and His Symbols

Very interesting ideas, but the evidence cited is literally just dreams. And rather than using just a few well-chosen dreams, half this book is the retelling of dreams.

The arguments are inconsistent too. Jung and his colleagues criticize Freud for having a kind of “symbol dictionary,” as in “if a lion appears in your dream, it means this and that.” The Jungians emphasize that dream/symbol interpretation is highly individual. And yet, there are apparently symbols provided by the “collective unconscious.” “A stone often represents the self in dreams.” ???

To reiterate: Jung's ideas are fascinating and entirely deserving of familiarization. But this book does a terrible job of selling/explaining them.

Jung's philosophy of life: “Man becomes whole, integrated, calm, fertile, and happy when (and only when) the process of individuation is complete.”