The hermeneutic background of C. G. Jung

Hermeneutics has been central to the practice of Jung's psychology from the beginning, although he never fully and consistently developed a hermeneutic method of inquiry and the literature addressing this aspect of his psychology is not extensive. In this paper(1) we undertake a critical re-examination of Jung's relationship to hermeneutic thought, based on his explicit references to hermeneutics in the Collected Works and his theoretical development of the notion of archetypes. Although Jung did not consistently formulate a hermeneutic approach to inquiry, his theoretical development of archetypes is rich in hermeneutic implications. In particular, his notion of the archetype as such can be understood hermeneutically as a form of non-conceptual background understanding. Some implications of this construal of archetypes for Jungian hermeneutics as a form of inquiry are considered.     

A Participant-Observer's Perspective on Psychotherapy Integration

Jacobson has raised a number of issues about the usefulness of psychotherapy integration. Some of his concerns stem from his doubt that people are capable of change, and some that appear to be the result of a misinterpretation of what constitutes psychotherapy integration. This article attempts to clarify some of these misunderstandings, which seem to be the result of equating psychotherapy integration with the integration of theories. Comments are also made about the research underpinings related to work in this area.     

“A Matter of Life and Death”: Kawabata on the Value of Art after the Atomic Bombings

This article explores the possible interpretations—and the implications of those interpretations—of a comment about the importance of art made by Yasunari Kawabata (1899–1972), later the first Japanese Nobel laureate for literature: that “looking at old works of art is a matter of life and death.” (In 1949, Kawabata visited Hiroshima in his capacity as president of the Japan literary society P.E.N. to inspect the damage caused by the atomic bombing of Hiroshima that helped end World War II. On his way back to his home in Kamakura, he stopped in Kyoto. He came under severe criticism for “sightseeing” at such a time. This comment was his response.) The introduction explains why we should take him seriously as a commentator on art. The body of the article examines why our looking at art might be more, not less, important after the post‐War situation, the kinds of art Kawabata might have meant, why some possibilities are more likely than others, and how they differ in what they offer us and the value of art under conditions of trauma and mass trauma.     

HENRY THOREAU, NATURE, AND AMERICAN DEMOCRACY

In a famous passage from "Slavery In Massachusetts," Thoreau writes, "The remembrance of my country spoils my walk. My thoughts are murder to the State, and involuntarily go plotting against her."¹ Here is Thoreau the anarchist, the misanthrope, the self-righteous angry young man, as he is so often portrayed in the secondary literature. It would be easy to consider the issue resolved: the conventional wisdom about Thoreau's misanthropy and anarchism are demonstrated, and there is little more to say. It would also be a significant mistake—one that has been made over and over again by commentators on both his political views and his nature writings. Thoreau's comment is not the climax of "Slavery in Massachusetts," but rather is the prelude to the climax. Consider the passage that follows and leads to the conclusion of the essay:     

Rawls and Rousseau: <Emphasis Type="Italic">Amour-Propre</Emphasis> and the Strains of Commitment

In this paper I try to illuminate the Rawlsian architectonic through an interpretation of what Rawls’ Lectures on the History of Political Philosophy say about Rousseau. I argue that Rawls’ emphasis there when discussing Rousseau on interpreting amour-propre so as to make it compatible with a life in at least some societies draws attention to, and helps explicate, an analogous feature of his own work, the strains of commitment broadly conceived. Both are centrally connected with protecting a sense of self which is vital for one’s own agency. This allows us to appreciate better than much of the literature presently does the requirement for Rawls that justice and the good are congruent, that a society of justice does not disfigure citizens’ ability to live out lives relatively unmarked by relations of domination. Some comments on G. A. Cohen’s critiques of Rawls are made.     

Misconceptions about Freud's seduction theory: comment on Gleaves and Hernandez (1999)

D. H. Gleaves and E. Hernandez (1999) write in relation to the seduction theory that "recent writers now argue that ... Freud never made discoveries of sexual abuse" (p. 332) and that "the assertion that Freud did not make discoveries of abuse is unwarranted" (p. 324). In this article an outline of the case that Freud had no adequate grounds for his 1896 claims of having uncovered infantile "sexual scenes" is given. Some of the more important misconceptions and erroneous arguments in Gleaves and Hernandez's article are then examined.     

Intellectual realism in children's drawings of cubes

Ninety-six children copied simple line drawings of perspective views of cubes and similar designs unlikely to be seen as representing objects. The views of cubes were copied much less accurately than the non-object patterns, and the errors made in copying the cubes involved replacement of properties specific to the single perspective view by properties more appropriate to the object itself. Some copies were drawn with the child continually looking at the model and unable to see his own copy, others were drawn in the normal way. Copies made in the former way were more accurate, but even under these conditions cubes were copied less accurately than the non-object patterns. The disadvantage of object pictures, as far as literal copying accuracy is concerned, was still present at 9 1/2 years of age, but was less than at 7 1/2. Two possible explanations are discussed. One is in terms of computational complexity, the other in terms of graphic motor schema. On the basis of the drawings obtained a few suggestions are made about the content and development of the data-structures for cubes.     

The Future of Luther's Theology

Abstract : Some historical observations need to be made about Luther in his own time before his thought can be made useful for our future. First, theology was a collaborative undertaking for Luther and his Wittenberg colleagues. Second, theology was tied to their Reformation agenda of teaching a new way of practicing Christianity in accord with the gospel. That agenda required radical changes: a conversion of religious efforts to please God into advocacy of the neighbor; expansion of the church beyond Rome into an ecumenical assembly of holy and active believers; and a theological reorganization of public life that blurred the line between theology and ethics. In these areas, adapted to the 21st century, lies the greatest utility of Luther's theology for the future.     

Inhibition and the control of behavior. From Gall to Freud via Phineas Gage and the frontal lobes.

In his On the Functions of the Brain and Each of Its Parts, Franz Joseph Gall proposed that significant behaviors resulted from certain independent, irreducible, and fundamental faculties or propensities. There seems to be nothing in his system for explaining how two or more faculties interact, especially how one comes to predominate over another, other than the implicit notion that the stronger will be manifested. This peculiarity of Gall's system is consistent with the predominately "excitatory" physiology of his time in which there was no place for an independent inhibitory process. Despite the experimental demonstration of inhibitory phenonema, the sensory-motor physiological theories in the last three quarters of the 19th century were similarly deficient. The lack is seen most clearly in the experimental and clinical literature on frontal lobe function, especially in relation to the kinds of changes seen in the Gage case. The deficiencies of sensory-motor physiology are also to be found in Freud's model of the mental apparatus and in his concept of inhibition via a lateral cathexis. In the paper an attempt is made to trace the historical sequence of these ideas and to make their experimental and theorectical basis explicit.     

Robbing a Man of His Illusions: Response to Herbert Fensterheim and Stanley Messer

The suggestions made by Fensterheim and Messer regarding increasing ego strengths and pointing out patterns of interaction were found to be useful ones in treating this angry patient. Some other interventions derived from an integrative perspective are also described. The author is still grappling with the problem of stripping this man of his illusions.     

MAINTAINING RESPECTABILITY: RESPONSE TO NICHOLAOS JONES

Nicholaos Jones argues that theology is not a respectable discipline because of its inability to meet the standards of contemporary science. Although Jones makes a bold claim, I suggest that he has not made his case by focusing on the question of defining science and metaphysics appropriately, the analysis of the literature he cites, and his central claim that theology presupposes the absolute certainty of God.     

Fifteen years of doing qualitative research on psychotherapy

The conduct of qualitative research in psychology goes against the grain of customary praxis and thus raises many challenges. The author summarises the experience of having spent a large part of his academic career using the grounded theory form of qualitative research. In the account, he indicates how he became interested in this methodology and describes his experience of using, publishing and teaching it. These considerations are contextualised in the sociology of research praxis in psychology. The appraised is made that a movement toward acceptance of qualitative research is currenuy under way in the counselling and psychotherapy research community, albeit cautiously in some quarters. Some implications of this development are addressed.     

Child abuse and deprivation: soul murder

Soul murder involves the deliberate traumatization or deprivation by an authority (parent) of his charge (child). The victim is robbed of his identity and of the ability to maintain authentic feelings. Soul murder remains effective if the capacity to think and to know has been sufficiently interfered with--by way of brainwashing. Questions are raised about pathogenesis. Some suggestions are made about treatment of those whose pathogenic fantasy life has been so influenced by traumatic reality. The need to identify with and to maintain the illusion of a good parent enforces the difficult resistance of denial (brainwashing becomes self-enforced). Paradoxically, in order to survive and adjust, some of these people so traumatized as children develop unusual strengths and gifts.     

从《周易》看鲁迅精神与民族魂

易学是中国文化的源头活水,是中华民族五千年生生不息的精神象征。鲁迅先生是中国现代文学的奠基人,被誉为“民族魂”。尽管鲁迅精神的构成有多方面的因素,但源于《周易》的中华民族优秀文化传统无疑对鲁迅的精神世界和文学创作翻译活动产生了最为直接和重要的影响。本文就鲁迅思想源于“易遭”的民族精神、鲁迅与《周易》精神的一脉相承进行分析论述。     

Bilingualism and systemic psychotherapy: some formulations and explorations

Bilingualism has risen dramatically due to increased migration patterns all over the world. This paper offers an overview of the current literature dealing specifically with bi- and multilingualism, and identifies a gap in systemic and family therapy literature about the subject of bilingualism. In the light of this, the author proposes a working definition of bilingual families. Some case examples illustrate different aspects of working systemically with a bilingual family and highlight potential challenges for a therapist, such as the assumption of more knowledge and expertise. The tools suggested relate to a rethinking of some modernist ideas regarding hypothesizing, and both the use of a social constructionist perspective and of self of the (bilingual) family therapist. A case is made for the exploration of meanings of difference including the lingua-cultural one. The author ends with a plea to start including more specific cultural issues such as bilingualism in systemic therapy practice.     

Ellis and Epictetus: Dialogue vs. Method in Psychotherapy

Some recent commentators have found problems in the scientific status of Ellis's REBT, which seem not to be present in Beck's CBT. We argue that this may be partly because they drew differently from the traditions of thought available to them, which appears most clearly in their first published articles. Beck's articles were more in the modern medical tradition, whose history forms part of the search for method leading to abstract knowledge and control that has been so powerful a feature of Western culture. Ellis was more discursive in style and drew more explicitly on the dialogic tradition, in which obstacles to self-awareness and freedom are removed by enlisting the power of reason through question and answer. Socrates and Epictetus are the classical representatives of this tradition, and Ellis's first article shows clear signs of being modelled on Epictetus. Later, however, though continuing in this tradition in his personal style and popular self-help books, Ellis also developed abstract models and methods that belong to the medical tradition. His dual allegiance has made him vulnerable to criticism from both sides.     

B. F. Skinner: The Writer and His Definition of Verbal Behavior

Skinner's definition of verbal behavior, with its brief and refined versions, has recently become a point of controversy among behavior analysts. Some of the arguments presented in this controversy might be based on a misreading of Skinner's (1957a) writings. An examination of Skinner's correspondence with editors of scientific journals shows his sophisticated mastery of English and his knowledge of contemporary approaches of linguistics, and might help to settle the meaning of the passages involved in the controversy. A more precise definition of verbal behavior, deduced from Skinner's distinction between verbal and nonverbal operants, is suggested, and a possible reason why Skinner did not define verbal behavior in the terms proposed by this alternative definition is discussed. The alternative definition is more compatible with a functional approach to behavior and highlights what is specific to verbal behavior by pointing to the conventions of the verbal community. Some possible consequences of adopting this alternative definition are described.     

A child of a Lesser God

This paper describes work with a man who was severely disabled physically. It taught me the profound emotional effects of such disability; but the effects of his feeling that he had not been loved because of his disability seemed even more important and farreaching. Everything was much worse because of the development stage at which it had all occurred. It is important to make known the use which he made of analytical psychotherapy, for others like him could be helped.

I refer to some of the psychoanalytical literature which proved relevant to my work with this patient, give a report of his case, and describe the incidence of his sessions. After describing the beginning stage, I write selectively of work around the two main themes which can be identified: one, when he seemed locked in the closed system which constituted his inner world (Fairbairn 1958) from which he could gain relief only by sabotaging himself and the therapy; the other, when little by little the system began to open and gradually some investment in life began to emerge. There is then a brief account of the ending planned to a known date. The paper ends with some reflections on the work.     

The internal world of Don Giovanni

The author tries to account for the disturbing impact of Mozart's opera Don Giovanni. Some writers idealize Don Giovanni's power and vitality. The author view is that Mozart's music depicts him as a much emptier character, using phallic narcissism as a way of surviving a psychic catastrophe by projecting his pain into others. The music shows how Giovanni lives in projective identification with many other objects and part-objects, masculine and feminine; and how he seduces them into complicity with his defensive system. This situation is contrasted musically with the world of the other characters, particularly the women, who are depicted as more ordinary, more complex and, in fact, more sensual.     

NOTES ON CONTRIBUTORS

Louis L'Amour is one of the most prolific and popular writers of our time. He has published more than 85 novels, many of which have been made into movies for theatres or television. His first novel, Hondo, was published in 1953 and his latest in 1984, The Walking Drum.

Mr. L'Amour's interest and dedication to education, in the classical sense, is liberally evidenced through the characters of his novels. Beginning in his early books with characters who lamented the fact that they were uneducated or self-educated and growing toward the latest novel that has a genuine scholar as the main character. His latest book is not a western but takes place in medieval Europe.

It may be of value to introduce pre-adolescents and adolescents to Mr. L'Amour's works in the public school libraries. It may do more than introduce them to a gifted, action and adventure, storyteller. It could help to improve reading skills with the added possibility that they may become interested in some of the classical literature given reference in his novels. Another possibility is that they may be persuaded of the value of an education through the many references the subject in the novels.