From the author's Preface: "This book is a collection of fairy tale interpretations I presented in a series of lectures at the C.G. Jung Institute in Zurich. I did not want to focus on a specific theme but rather to wander through many countries and types of fairy tales. I chose some that challenged me because they were unusual. I wanted to show both their diversity and their underlying similarities, so that one could appreciate what is common to all civilizations and all human beings, and I wanted to show how Jung's method of interpreting archetypal fantasy material could be applied to these diverse tales."
Archetypal Patterns in Fairy Tales is the first new volume of Dr. von Franz's legendary Zurich lectures to be published since 1980. There are in-depth studies of six fairy tales - from Denmark, Spain, China, France and Africa, and one from the Grimm collection - with references to parallel themes in many others. Featuring the symbolic, nonlinear approach she is famous for, it offers unique insights into cross-cultural motifs and individual psychology.
"Dr. von Franz has the rare ability to ground her psychological theories and insights in practical examples from everyday life. This makes her work equally accessible to both the general reader and the professional." - Fraser Boa, director of the von Franz film series The Way of the Dream.
Marie-Louise von Franz, Ph.D., is an acknowledged authority on the psychological interpretation of fairy tales, myths, dreams and alchemy. She is the author of many books on the application of Jungian psychology, including three classics in this series: REDEMPTION MOTIFS IN FAIRY TALES , ON DIVINATION & SYNCHRONICITY , and ALCHEMY : AN INTRODUCTION TO THE SYMBOLISM AND THE PSYCHOLOGY . |
