Customer Reviews

The Beginner's Guide to Jungian Psychology

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4 star:		(1)
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1 star:		(2)

 

 

Jungian psychology is fascinating, nuanced and voluminous, - and Jung's writings themselves are a tough read for someone unacquainted with psychology because he addresses himself to his peers who already understand the jargon. Additionally, Jung being extremely intelligent and intellectual (Robertson, I would say is very intelligent but avoids coming off as intellectual) continually interrelates his ideas to religion, literature, art, mythology, while he writes which, while interesting, makes it hard for a beginner to extract just the basic ideas.

I've read three of Robertson's books on Jung and he has a gift for communicating Jung's basic ideas in a simple and useful manner.

If you have read a bit on Jungian psychology before, this book will re-enforce your knowledge and fill in some of the blanks, - or at the very least shed light on the subject in a different way. If you're new to Jungian psychology this book is an excellent starting point. Sure, - it's limited and not extremely precise - but it's a quick read and will save you a lot of head-scratching once you start reading more in depth treatments of Jung's work.

If you're stuffy or intellectual, this book isn't for you, but if you're looking for a down-to-earth springboard to Jung, this is it!

Here's a rarity among introductory books about Jung & his thought: clear, easy to read & follow, setting forth the basic ideas in ways which are easy to grasp ... all without dumbing down the material in any way. What Robertson does is provide the beginner with the overall feel of Jungian thought, sketching out the basic outlines & providing straightforward examples. Other books go into greater detail, of course, but a beginner could do far worse than start with this fine volume. Robertson's humane & humanist heart beats strongly in every page, and he's good company for what should be an ongoing & enriching journey into the Psyche. Recommended!

(For anyone concerned about the negative reviews, while some do raise fair objections & concerns, feel free to ignore those with an obvious ax to grind. A reading of Deirdre Bair's new biography of Jung will provide an honest & far more accurate picture of Jung's life & personality.)

Robin Robertson is a Jungian analyst, mathematician, and professional magician. This wonderful book, like his others, brings together the insight of the first of these professions with the clarity of thought of the second, and the delightful stage style of the third. I have found this to be the best introduction to Jungian ideas around. --Allan Combs; author of The Radiance of Being, and Synchronicity

Although I have an uncanny talent for technical writing, I typically can not tolerate reading it. I never cracked a book in high school or college unless the exam was taken from it or unless it was written in a user-friendly style. Although I have a Master's degree in Social Work, I have not had the opportunity to study Jung individually and in depth. Robertson's book has afforded me that opportunity with its easy to read style and wealth of basic introductory information. I plan to read Robertson's other works and highly recommend this one for anyone with an interest in dream interpretation for self development and spiritual growth.

For a person who is not into reading introductory materials written at the same level of the one being introduced, yet who wants an accurate, substantial presentation that is quite readable, I believe this book is for them. I have read bits and pieces of Jung and of what others had to say about Jung in addition to reading extensively Joseph Campbell, and I find this book very benificial in uniting and presenting coherently what is essential to Jungian psychology - and in helping me to have a better understanding of Joseph Campbell as well.

I am currently reading the Portable Jung and I do find this introductory book very beneficial to understanding Jung's writings.

Since Jung was a follower of Freud for awhile and since he did accept much of Freud's teaching, I feel it would behove anyone to read some introductory material or primer on Freud. Don't have to agree with or accept all of Freud's teachings, but an undestanding of him will certainly help one to have an understanding of Jung.

This book was a great overview of Jungian psychology and the process of individuation. The author is able to synthesize many of Jung's disparate ideas into one cohesive whole, giving the reader his or her bearings for future readings in Jungian psychology. This book is a great introduction to Jung's Collected Works and greatly helps the reader to orient him or herself for future study.

It shouldn't take long for any intelligent reader to discover in the course of his Jungian researches that many of Robertson's interpretations of Jung's psychology are more than a bit misleading in places. Instead of presenting a factual synopsis of Jung's actual work, Robertson has given a rather narrow, opinionated and self-congratulatory explanation of a few skeletal elements of the topic. He has even taken the horrific liberty of discarding some of Jung's original terms as unsatisfactory and replacing them with his own, (for instance, the exchange of "archetypes" for "cognitive invariants").

Robertson's dogmatized, systemized slant on "Jungian" dream interpretation is also laughably misguided (see, for example, page 20 or 189). As Jung himself says in "Man and His Symbols": "...it is plain foolishness to believe in ready-made systematic guides to dream interpretation, as if one could simply buy a reference book and look up a particular symbol. No dream symbol can be separated from the individual who dreams it, and there is no definite or straightforward interpretation of any dream. Each individual varies so much in that his unconscious complements or compensates his conscious mind that it is impossible to be sure how far dreams and their symbols can be classified at all."

For any reader who is genuinely interested in Jungian psychology, I would strongly recommend steering clear of this book. Try instead Jung's own "Man and His Symbols," a collection of essays written by Jung and other collaborators whom Jung selected himself, with the express intent of making his work understood by the non-technical public. It is misinterpretations like Robertson's that have, lamentably, led the psychological sciences of today to dismiss Jung's work as dogma and mysticism.

If you have ever heard of the work of Psychiatrist Carl Jung but thought that his work was only for professionals and intellectuals, this is the book for you. Robin Robinson PHD has used a reader friendly vocabulary to bring clarity and understanding within reach for the average person.
Exploring the background of Jung's personal, academic and professional development to prepare the reader for the unfolding of the very powerful concepts of the Shadow,the Collective Unconscious, Archetypes, Individuation and how the use of these insights can support and promote personal growth.
By the end of this book the thinking person will have new insights into the processes of their own perception and that of others, in a non-judgmental and balanced way. This is a handbook for anyone who wants to have access to these tools for living a more full and deliberate life.

It is a very good introduction to basic Junguian concepts, written in an easy-to-read style.
I would reccommend to anyone who wants to start with Jung's thought.

This book provides a great overview of Jung's theories of personality. Clear and easy to read without being simplistic.