Swamplands of the Soul: New Life in Dismal Places (Studies in Jungian Psychology By Jungian Analysts) [Paperback]

James Hollis (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Review

Life is a constant and cascading series of struggles large and small with the vicissitudes and setbacks of life. States of happiness and contentment are ephemeral and under constant erosion by states of guilt, grief, betrayal, doubt, depression, deprivation, anger, terror, and change. Swamplands Of The Soul: New Life In Dismal Places presents the Jungian perspective: By encompassing both the meadow and the bog, the goal of life is not happiness but meaning. And meaning, though it may not be all sunlight and blossoms, is nonetheless real. Swamplands Of The Soul explores the quicksands where we have all been entrapped from time to time. Swamplands Of The Soul lights a beacon by showing what these "quicksands" mean in terms of our individual journey through life and the engendering of soul. For as James Hollis maintains, it is precisely where we encounter the "gravitas" of life that we also uncover its purpose, its dignity and its deepest meaning. Thoughtful and reflective reading. -- Midwest Book Review

Product Details

• Paperback: 155 pages
• Publisher: Inner City Books (August 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0919123740
• ISBN-13: 978-0919123748
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.8 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #60,291 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #62 in Books > Professional & Technical > Professional Science > Behavioral Sciences > Behavioral Psychology

More About the Author

James Hollis has a private analytic practice and is the executive director of the Jung Educational Center.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

37 of 38 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A life saver!!, January 19, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Swamplands of the Soul: New Life in Dismal Places (Studies in Jungian Psychology By Jungian Analysts) (Paperback)

This book brought me back from the depths of despair! I HIGHLY recommend it for anyone experiencing extreme guilt, grief, loss, betrayal, doubt, loneliness, depression, despair, obsession, addiction, anger, fear, angst or anxiety. The book goes through every one of these topics in great detail. It explains their causes, symptoms, and ways of overcoming them. It explains the opportunity for growth that is inherent in our struggles, providing inspiration and hope when it is most needed. I will warn that the author uses some vocabulary that non-psychologists won't know. Just keep your dictionary handy. It's well worth the effort.

47 of 50 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A warm and wise little book on the dark corners of the soul., August 14, 1996

By A Customer

This review is from: Swamplands of the Soul: New Life in Dismal Places (Studies in Jungian Psychology By Jungian Analysts) (Paperback)

This is the latest of a wonderful series of small, warm, wise books by Jungian analyst James Hollis. This one visits the dark places of our soul that are far too often avoided from fear or mere inattention. There is a poetry that runs through Hollis' work that is rare in Jungian literature. Perhaps it's there because he loves poetry himself so much and quotes it extensively and aptly, but his own prose reads like poetry, yet without sacrificing lucidity. I can't imagine anyone not learning something from this and other books by James Hollis.

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Deeply Authentic Life, May 16, 2003

By 

Stephanie Silva (Urban Los Angeles) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Swamplands of the Soul: New Life in Dismal Places (Studies in Jungian Psychology By Jungian Analysts) (Paperback)

For those of us who struggle with uncommonly difficult fates -- and the attendant uncommonly difficult mother, father and other nearly autonomous swollen complexes -- James Hollis is among the few unsentimental Jungian analysts who writes with an integral awareness of object relations theory and the DSM and the paradoxes of individuation and an authentically lived life of integrity. "Consciousness broadens and enriches us, though it may be dearly paid for." Good case and dream studies and a discerning teacher. An unfortunately melodramatic title, but recommended.