A Primer of Jungian Psychology [Paperback]

Calvin S. Hall (Author), Vernon J. Nordby (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 1999

The contributions of Carl Jung to understanding of the human psyche are immense. Starting as Freud's most famous disciple, Jung soon broke away from his mentor to follow his own lines of investigation and discovery. Many of Jung's ideas are now considered fundamentals in the study of the mind, but other, more controversial theories dealing with the psychological relevance of alchemy, ESP, astrology, and occultism are only now being seriously examined. This condensation and summary of Jung's life and work by two eminent psychology professors is written with deep understanding and extraordinary clarity and, along with its companion volume, A Primer Of Jungian Psychology is essential reading for anyone interested in the hidden depths of the mind.

Product Details

• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: Plume (January 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0452011868
• ISBN-13: 978-0452011861
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.3 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #371,649 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A superb summary of Jungian psychology, June 26, 2000

By 

A. C. Walter "awalter" (Lynnwood, WA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Primer of Jungian Psychology (Mentor) (Paperback)

This is an indispensable book for anyone beginning their studies in Jungian psychology. At 140 pages in length, the text is an easy read with no wasted words and no convoluted passages to unravel. It addresses Jung's entire system and provides succinct, memorable summaries of each concept.

The Book is broken up into seven chapters:
1. Carl Gustav Jung (biographical background)
2. The Structure of Personality (the psyche, conscious, personal unconscious and collective unconscious)
3. The Dynamics of Personality (psychic energy and values, the principles of equivalence and entropy, etc.)
4. The Development of Personality (individuation, transcendence and integration, etc.)
5. Psychological Types (thinking, feeling, sensation, and intuitive)
6. Symbols and Dreams
7. Jung's Place in Psychology.

For more eminently readable Jungian psychology, try Marie-Louise von Franz.

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A concise and practical introduction to Jung's psychology., October 21, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: A Primer of Jungian Psychology (Mentor) (Paperback)

This book is so clearly written that reading it becomes a numinous experience. Dr. Jung's unique knowledge of universal themes in myths, tales, and dreams, and of alchemy, and Eastern philosophy brings, together with the scientific Western approach, new elements to the understanding of the human psyche. Consequently, I would say that this analytic psychology's chief aim is individuation and self-realization. Hall and Nordby address this matter very lucidly showing the importance of transcendence and intergration in the process of individuation. Indeed, this process is one of self-knowledge, "Education is drawing out from the person, something that is already there in a nascent state, and not the filling up of an empty container with academic knowledge" (p.83). Altogether, this book is a cromprehensive work addresing concepts such as; the collective unconscious, archetypes, complexes, the shadow, introversion and extroversion, and it even includes a brief description of synchronicity. Undoubtedly, it is worth reading,

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Very cursory introduction, October 26, 2006

By 

R01 - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: A Primer of Jungian Psychology (Paperback)

It's a waste of money. Get it at the library, instead. The informational contents are minimal. The paper is of the lowest quality causing the contrast to be very low and very difficult to read. A much better introduction is "What Jung Really Said" by E.A. Bennet, ISBN: 0805210466.