The Alchemical Oedipus: Re-Visioning the Myth

The Oedipus myth is foundational to depth psychology due to Freud’s use of Sophocles’ play Oedipus Rex in the creation of psychoanalysis. But analytical psychology’s engagement with the myth has been limited despite the importance Jung also places upon it. The absence of a developed Jungian response to Oedipus means the myth’s psychologically constructive elements have been overlooked in favour of reductive Freudian interpretations. I examine whether analytical psychology can fruitfully re-engage with Oedipus by reinterpreting his story as a paternal rebirth. This is achieved by reincorporating those parts of the myth that occur before and after the period portrayed in Oedipus Rex. Such a move reintegrates Oedipus’ father, King Laius, into the story and unveils important parallels with the alchemical trope of the king’s renewal by his son. Using Jung’s method of amplification, Oedipus is recast as Laius’ redeemer and identified with the archetype of psychological wholeness, the Self. The contention is that such an understanding of Oedipus supports a clearer recognition of the potentially generative quality of human suffering, restoring to the myth the quality of moral instruction it possessed in antiquity.     

From philosophy to criticism of myth: Cassirer’s concept of myth

This article discusses the question whether or not Cassirer’s philosophical critique of technological use of myth in The Myth of the State implies a revision of his earlier conception and theory of myth as provided by The Philosophy of Symbolic Forms. In the first part, Cassirer’s early theory of myth is compared with other approaches of his time. It is claimed that Cassirer’s early approach to myth has to be understood in terms of a transcendental philosophical approach. In consequence, myth is conceived as a form of cultural consciousness which is constituted by specific symbolic processes. In the second part, the theoretical assumptions underlying Cassirer’s criticism of myth are discussed and compared with his earlier theory. It is argued that there is a strong conceptual and theoretical continuity between Cassirer’s early views on myth as a symbolic form and his later critique of technological use of myth.     

Revolt in the garden of eden: An alternative group model

The most common model used to highlight the significant features of a group revolt has been Freud's primal horde myth. In this essay the utility of this model will be briefly reviewed, then its most apparent limitation will be addressed. To wit, in this model the women play no active part in the revolution. On the other hand, as a model for group behavior the myth of the Garden of Eden preserves much of what is valuable in the primal horde myth, including the oedipal paradigm inherent in the revolution and, at the same time, offers a critical psychological understanding of the very active involvement women do have in groups before, during, and after the revolt. This is the main focus of this essay and will be explored in depth. Concomitant with this exploration, certain commonly observed behaviors of male group members during this critical phase of group life can also be better understood. Furthermore, the Garden of Eden myth highlights other important facets of the group revolt, and these will be noted. Finally a clinical example will be explored that vividly underscores the value of this alternative model.The author is grateful to Thomas Kohut, Ph.D., W. Donald Ross, M.D., and Walter Stone, M.D., for their valuable comments on an earlier version of this paper.     

THE WANDERING JEW IN SAMUEL BECKETT'S WAITING FOR GODOT

Very little attention has been focused on tracing evidence of the myth (or legend) of the Wandering Jew in Samuel Beckett's mould-breaking play Waiting for Godot (completed 1949), Rosette C. Lamont (1990) being the exception. This article suggests that Beckett used at least three disparate versions of the legend to derive much of the raw material in Godot. A good deal of the two vagabonds' dialogue may be derived from the generic myth of the Jewish carpenter whom, the day of the Crucifixion, Christ damned to a miserable life wandering the earth until the Second Coming. But the pair's predicament also fits perfectly with a little known version of the myth from Podolia (Ukraine) published as an annotation in English by Avrahm Yarmolinsky in 1929. Furthermore, important elements of Lucky's character may have been derived from Le Juif Errant, trois acts, prologue et intermède (1946), by the relatively unknown Alsatian surrealist Maxime Alexandre (1899–1976). Alexandre portrays Jews as bearing a heavy burden for mankind as guardians of humanity and of higher aesthetics, who will (exactly like Lucky) under no circumstances put down their heavy load. Although the origins of the myth are anti-Semitic, this reading appears to underline Beckett's reputation as a philo-semite.     

Oedipus the king: Quest for self‐knowledge – denial of reality. Sophocles’ vision of man and psychoanalytic concept formation

In the Oedipus myth we find a dramatic representation of the child’s passionate ties to its parents. In the play Oedipus the King, Sophocles relates the theme of the myth to the question of self‐knowledge. This was the predominant reading in German 19th century thinking, and even as a student Freud was fascinated by Oedipus’ character – not primarily as the protagonist of an oedipal drama, but as the solver of divine riddles and as an individual striving for self‐knowledge. Inspired by Vellacott, Steiner has proposed an alternative reading of Oedipus the King as a play about a cover‐up of the truth. The text supports both these arguments. The pivotal theme of the tragedy is Oedipus’ conflict between his desire to know himself and his opposing wish to cover up the truth that will bring disaster. It is this complex character of Oedipus and the intensity of his conflict‐ridden struggle for self‐knowledge that has made the tragedy to a rich source of inspiration for psychoanalytic concept formation and understanding both of emotional and cognitive development up to our own time.     

The personal myth: A re‐evaluation

This paper presents a re‐evaluation of Kris's personal myth. The notion has been used rather sparingly despite the Delphi Symposium in 1984 on the question of its clinical usefulness. After framing the notion of myth, some difficulties related to the question are identified. A clinical vignette exemplifies some of the ambiguities in its definition but stresses its clinical relevance. A discussion expands on these situations so as to propose three various aspects of personal myths to account for the two variants identified by Kris. The actualization of the underlying fantasy in the character organization is a third form and the technical aspect associated with it is reviewed from a new perspective. The family romance is revisited to reassess its role as the basis of the personal myth in the face of studies favouring an earlier development of the myth.     

Pushing the Monstrous to the Edge of the World; Shaking the Nightmare off the Chest: Hans Blumenberg and Walter Benjamin’s Philosophies of Myth

Abstract

This paper explores the philosophies of myth of Walter Benjamin and Hans Blumenberg. It defends the thesis that both approaches to myth, despite their differences, bring the longer, more ambiguous, legacy of the history of the human species into relation with the more familiar history of logos (a history of thinking). They do this by maintaining a distinction between myth as it probably first emerged, namely as a way of controlling human anxieties and vulnerabilities that arose as a consequence of the pragmatic, material conditions of the pre-historical world, and myth as the vast array of orally transmitted traditions left to history. In the case of both thinkers, this dichotomy illuminates myth, not as one category of human expression, but as a representation of the deeper vulnerabilities experienced by human beings, and the concerted, collective (largely failed) attempts to overcome them. Philosophy’s task in the face of a longer, darker history of the species, is a vigilant negotiation with the human frailties that might see its work undone.     

Characteristics of preschool and school-age children with imaginary companions

The authors investigated the prevalence and characteristics of children who experience or who have experienced imaginary companions. For the study, a self-administered questionnaire that sought information regarding the characteristics of children with and without imaginary companions was completed by 478 parents of children within the age range of 3 to 9.5 years. A significantly larger number of children with imaginary companions were reported to be first-born children, to be very imaginative, to incorporate myth in their play, and to explain events as magical. Overall, these results are interpreted to indicate that birth order, combined with characteristics such as imaginativeness and a predisposition to engage in fantasy, characterizes children with imaginary companions.     

MYTH, RITUAL, AND THE ARCHETYPAL HYPOTHESIS

Abstract. This paper reexamines the myth-ritual complex, considering myth as a psychobiological stereotype, the neurobiology of myth structuring, the neurobiology of myth transformation, and some religious implications of the myth-ritual complex. Relevant points of comparison between this neurobiological analysis of the myth-ritual complex and Jungian psychological theory are made throughout. Finally the neurobiology of transcendent experiences is considered along with a brief neuroepistemological consideration of the possibility of transcendence itself.     

IN THE BEGINNING: THE ROLE OF MYTH IN RELATING RELIGION,BRAIN SCIENCE,AND MENTAL WELL‐BEING

Building upon the insights of scholars attuned to story, narrative, and myth, this article explores the relationship between myth, science, and religion. After clarifying the interplay of the three terms—story, narrative, and myth—and the preference for the term myth, this article will argue that myth can serve as a medium through which religion, neuroscience, and mental well‐being interact. Such an exploration will cover the role of myths in religion, the neurological basis of myth, and the practices of narrative psychology and bibliotherapy. The article will conclude with suggestions for understanding and utilizing the relationship between myth and the scholarly study of the relationship between science and religion. This article ultimately suggests that myth can operate as a methodological aid to the science‐and‐religion field.     

WHAT IS “MYTHIC REALITY”?

Abstract. The topic of the March 2011 symposium in Zygon is “The Mythic Reality of the Autonomous Individual.” Yet few of the contributors even discuss “mythic reality.” Of the ones who do, most cavalierly use “myth” dismissively, as simply a false belief. Rather than reconciling myth with reality, they oppose myth to reality. Their view of myth is by no means unfamiliar or unwarranted, but they need to recognize other views of myth and to defend their own. Above all, they need to appreciate the grip that any belief aptly labelled myth has—a grip that holds at least as much for a false belief as for a true one.     

Rape Myth Acceptance among Social Work Students

It is important to examine rape myth acceptance and the pertinent situational factors that affect attitudes and beliefs concerning the act of rape, perpetrators, and survivors. This study examines the influence of alcohol consumption and perceptions of alcohol use on levels of rape myth acceptance among social work students. Results showed differences in levels of rape myth acceptance based on race or ethnicity and gender. Results also showed that the version of the vignette read by the participant was a significant predictor of rape myth acceptance. Respondents’ perceptions of alcohol consumption were also a strong predictor of rape myth acceptance levels. These results demonstrate there are multiple factors that influence social work students’ rape myth acceptance levels that need further examination.     

人类文明审美化道路之寓言 --以《神话研究》中普罗米修斯"神话创作"为例的述评

在布鲁门贝格看来,神话创作是推动文明发展的一个充分条件。它的充分性体现于它出于文化目的论的内在要求——征服现实绝对主义。这是神话创作性的合法性。惟其充分性而非必要性,对文明的书写只能是一种审美神话的寓言。这是神话创作的非法性。因此,审美神话的寓言式书写困境承诺斯替主义二元论而来,在西方审美思想史上绵延不绝的普罗米修斯神话创作中见出。在通盘重构西方审美思想史之后,布氏提出了令人不安的审美神话之后的解释学问题。     

THE MODERN STUDY OF MYTH AND ITS RELATION TO SCIENCE

The history of the modern study of myth can be divided into two main categories: that which sees myth as the primitive counterpart to natural science, itself considered overwhelmingly modern, and that which sees myth as almost anything but the primitive counterpart to natural science. The first category constitutes the nineteenth‐century approach to myth. The second category constitutes the twentieth‐century approach. Tylor and Frazer epitomize the nineteenth‐century view. Malinowski, Eliade, Bultmann, Jonas, Camus, Freud, and Jung epitomize the twentieth‐century approach. The question for the twenty‐first century is whether myth can be brought back to the physical world, but in a way compatible with science. The case of the myth of Gaia will be considered as a possible way of doing so.     

Will Capitalists Live Happily Ever After? – Political Myth: On the Use and Abuse of Biblical Themes – By Roland Boer

What would our world be like if all oppositions to capitalism were to be removed? The author describes a doomsday scenario instead of everlasting plenitude if capitalists have their ways. This conclusion comes from the author's masterful discussion of political myth and analysis of the narrative of Genesis to Joshua as a political myth. The narrative of the Hexateuch constructs and at the same time punishes all sorts of rebels who oppose the theocratic state it wishes to establish. But myth is uncanny in that the rebellion hides what it fears the most, the impossibility of such a state to come true, and needs what it desires to annihilate in order to persist as an unfulfilled fantasy that powers a political movement. The author argues that some politicians in Australia and the USA are abusing the logic of the political myth of the Hexateuch in order to support their capitalistic agendas and, therefore, the Left must tell the ending of the capitalist fantasy of endless production and expansion in order to reveal its contradictions.     

Oedipus and Cain: Brothers in arms

Abstract

It is widely known that Freud gives Oedipus a central place in both his psychoanalytic theory and praxis. Freud introduces the Oedipus myth as the crucial key for understanding the tragedy of human life. One of the most problematic issues innate to the human condition is aggression. This paper argues: (1) that Freud's insights into human aggression can at the very least be viewed as one-sided and problematic; and (2) that the heuristic potential of the Oedipus myth is, correspondingly, limited. It considers how the Hungarian psychiatrist and analyst, Lipót Szondi, tries to bridge this gap using the myth of Cain and Abel. The aim of this paper is to explore how Szondi's interpretation of this myth offers a much more subtle approach to human aggression. Szondi's alternative and distinctive look at aggressive phenomena offers an exciting and fruitful addition to Freud's interpretation as exclusively referring to sadism and/or the death instinct. This contribution wants to highlight Szondi's amendment to Freud's Oedipus and aims to show that psychoanalysis can benefit from taking into account the mythical figures of Cain and Abel.     

Deconstructing the Associations of Religiosity,Christian Denominations,and Non-Religions to Rape Myth Acceptance among University Students

Minimal research exists regarding the relationship between rape myth acceptance and religion. This study assessed rape myth acceptance of 503 university students’ disaggregated by five religious identities from 21 Division I postsecondary institutions. Except for Presbyterians, females disagree with rape myths at greater levels than males. Religiosity is a non-predictor for rape myth acceptance after controlling for students’ demographic and lifestyle characteristics. The least religious (Agnostics and Atheists) reject rape myths, whereas the most religious (Baptists and Presbyterians) show non-relationships with rape myths. Catholics accept rape myths, and religiosity functions as a moderator as highly religious Catholics reject rape myths.     

Transference and countertransference issues with sexually abused clients

Abstract

This paper explores some of the therapeutic issues which arise when working with sexually abused clients. It is suggested that both the client and the therapist may at moments take any of the three positions in the Oedipal triangle and that the mother, father and child status are interchangeable in the transference and counter-transference. It is also suggested that the Oedipus myth represents the failure of a family to contain sexual and murderous passions. I describe a Hindu myth which takes a similar triangle of passion but illustrates how containment is possible. It is proposed that this implies we need to re-evaluate the presence of the erotic in therapy in a more positive light. It is further suggested that the sexually abused client needs to experience the containment of passion if a healing process is to occur.     

Imagination and Reality: On the Relations Between Myth, Consciousness, and the Quantum Sea

There often appears to be a striking correspondence between mythic stories and aspects of reality. We will examine the processes of creative imagination within a neurobiological frame and suggest a theory that may explain the functions of myth in relation to the hidden aspects of reality. Myth is peppered with archetypal entities and interactions that operate to reveal hidden processes in reality that are relative to the human condition. The imagery in myths in a sense "sustains the true." That is, mythopoetic imagery keeps the interpretive process in experience closer to the actual nature of reality than the rational faculties operating alone are able to do. Indeed, whereas rationalizing can easily lead us awry, genuine myth rarely does. Explanations of events offered by cultures around the world are frequently couched in terms of mythic themes and events. An important function of myth is to provide a "field of tropes" that in-forms the lived experience of people. This paper focuses especially on those aspects of myth that represent facets of the quantum universe and give us clues as to the relationship between consciousness, symbolism, and reality.