Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Well written, enjoyable but basic premise seems flawed, June 25, 2000
As a long time student of both astrology and Jungian psychology, I was delighted when I got my copy of "Secrets of Love & Partnership". The content is laid out in a clear easy to understand manner and the writing style was approachable and friendly. So what's the problem? The authors merge some concepts that don't seem to merge well and develop an astrological model of what we find attractive in romantic partners that I don't feel holds up to intense scrutiny. They begin by stating that we're initially attracted to those partners who's chart makes up for our own elemental weaknesses. If my chart is weak on water I'll be unconsciously looking for someone with a sun in Scorpio, a Cancer rising and 2 other planets in water to fill in the things I lack. I'm overstating here as an example - Banzhaf & Theler cover this topic in a perfectly acceptable well thought out manner. Where they seem to jump in the wrong direction is when they try and cobble Jung's concept of a contra-sexual archetype (the anima if we're men and the animus if we're women) on top of their discussion of elemental gaps.According to the authors the Sun represents a man in his mature aspect and Mars represents him in his puer or son aspect. A man's Moon shows what his mature feminine archetype would look like and Venus represents the maiden or daughter aspect. Their discussion of the difference between these two views, Father, Son - Mother, Daughter is very good and easy to understand, the problem comes when they apply a model that might have appeared to make sense for a man, to a woman. They claim that the Moon represents the self for woman and the Sun represents her animus or inner masculine. This statement completely violates basic astrological theory (at least as I've understood it these 30 years). Astrologically the Sun represents the SELF for both men and women. This isn't a concept that can be changed simply because someone wants to fit a neat idea in a book. What the authors would have us believe is that EVERY woman is caught in the trap of "projecting" her inner self (her sun sign) onto every male she meets. Now according to Jungian psychology this can and does happen, BUT it is directly related to a woman's level of individuation and not to the placement of planets. A woman, just like a man, is perfectly able to carry and develop her own sun without resource to a male partner. If you don't know much about astrology or Jungian psychology, this is not the book to read to get an introduction to either. Not because it's not clear and well written but because you'll form some wrong conclusions if you believe all of what you read. A fact made even more difficult by the fact that 90% of everything in the book is fine and it's only the 10% that drive their conclusions that is flawed. If you know Jungian psychology and astrology the book might be of some interest, if only to be controversially thought provoking. Does Venus really carry our immature image of self if we're women? Why? Does Mars carry our girlhood image of Mr. Right? Is there an image of Mr. Right that we can define in a cookbook format (mars in Virgo means you're attracted to man like this....) In the final analysis the book fails because it attempts to take a variety of deeply complex subjects (anima/animus, projection, individuation, astrology) and meld them together in a simple cookbook format that anyone without prior knowledge of any of the subject areas can understand. Unfortunately for the authors, the nature of sexual attraction is simply too multifaceted and too mysterious to be reduced into a few tables in one slim paperback
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5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Informative and has a nice layout, July 17, 2000
By A Customer
Jungian debate aside, Banzhaf/Theler's book is pretty informative. Their lay-out is simple and clear. The book is divided into feminine and masculine expression. In the feminine section, each of the twelve signs are discussed in terms of their Venus/Moon expression. A basic chart summary for that particular planet's feminized energy is located on the left page. On the right page, the authors further explore the planet's symbolism in essay form--which can run to about three pages in length. For the masculine section, the planet's sun/mars expression is summarized in a chart located on the left page, while on the right page, again, they offer an in-depth essay. The feminine chart is layed out as follows: archetype, element, type, style and taste, mature form, naive or distorted form, strength, problem areas, relationship strengths, relationship problems, basic mood, eroticism, places and situations where she may be encountered, basic principle.
The masculine chart is layed out as follows: archetype, element, type, basic attitude, mature form, naive or distorted form, strength, problem areas, relationship strengths, relationship problems, type of assertiveness, sexuality, typical professional areas, basic principle. Overall, this book is a handy reference and the authors make it so because of their well chosen key-words and their simple and logical layout.
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3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Well written, enjoyable but basic premise seems flawed, June 25, 2000
By A Customer
As a long time student of both astrology and Jungian psychology, I was delighted when I got my copy of "Secrets of Love & Partnership". The content is laid out in a clear easy to understand manner and the writing style was approachable and friendly. So what's the problem? The authors merge some concepts that don't seem to merge well and develop an astrological model of what we find attractive in romantic partners that I don't feel holds up to intense scrutiny. They begin by stating that we're initially attracted to those partners who's chart makes up for our own elemental weaknesses. If my chart is weak on water I'll be unconsciously looking for someone with a sun in Scorpio, a Cancer rising and 2 other planets in water to fill in the things I lack. I'm overstating here as an example - Banzhaf & Theler cover this topic in a perfectly acceptable well thought out manner. Where they seem to jump in the wrong direction is when they try and cobble Jung's concept of a contra-sexual archetype (the anima if we're men and the animus if we're women) on top of their discussion of elemental gaps.According to the authors the Sun represents a man in his mature aspect and Mars represents him in his puer or son aspect. A man's Moon shows what his mature feminine archetype would look like and Venus represents the maiden or daughter aspect. Their discussion of the difference between these two views, Father, Son - Mother, Daughter is very good and easy to understand, the problem comes when they apply a model that might have appeared to make sense for a man, to a woman. They claim that the Moon represents the self for woman and the Sun represents her animus or inner masculine. This statement completely violates basic astrological theory (at least as I've understood it these 30 years). Astrologically the Sun represents the SELF for both men and women. This isn't a concept that can be changed simply because someone wants to fit a neat idea in a book. What the authors would have us believe is that EVERY woman is caught in the trap of "projecting" her inner self (her sun sign) onto every male she meets. Now according to Jungian psychology this can and does happen, BUT it is directly related to a woman's level of individuation and not to the placement of planets. A woman, just like a man, is perfectly able to carry and develop her own sun without resource to a male partner. If you don't know much about astrology or Jungian psychology, this is not the book to read to get an introduction to either. Not because it's not clear and well written but because you'll form some wrong conclusions if you believe all of what you read. A fact made even more difficult by the fact that 90% of everything in the book is fine and it's only the 10% that drive their conclusions that is flawed. If you know Jungian psychology and astrology the book might be of some interest, if only to be controversially thought provoking. Does Venus really carry our immature image of self if we're women? Why? Does Mars carry our girlhood image of Mr. Right? Is there an image of Mr. Right that we can define in a cookbook format (mars in Virgo means you're attracted to man like this....) In the final analysis the book fails because it attempts to take a variety of deeply complex subjects (anima/animus, projection, individuation, astrology) and meld them together in a simple cookbook format that anyone without prior knowledge of any of the subject areas can understand. Unfortunately for the authors, the nature of sexual attraction is simply too multifaceted and too mysterious to be reduced into a few tables in one slim paperback
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