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Dictionary of Symbols
This comprehensive and thought-provoking guide explains the language of symbols. Tom Chetwynd describes the major characteristics that recur in all symbolic material.
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First published July 15, 1982
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
December 19, 2021
A very different book than I expected from the cover art. I have found much of the content useful in the situations I am in right now, but this might not be the case for all readers. Furthermore, several of the theories the author relies on in some chapters I genuinely do not understand.
In his ”Dictionary of Symbols”, author Tom Chetwynd does not just Iist the meanings that particular symbols have in art, literature, religion etc throughout the course of human history. He also delineates the symbols' role in different psychological schools of thought and their methods for dream interpretation, to the point that Chetwynd starts with a ”how to use this book” introduction going through the basics of dream interpretation. Since I have rekindled my interest in dream interpretation over the course of 2021 as a result of suddenly having more weird and complicated dreams than typical, I have found these parts handy for getting a clear meaning out of my dreams. However, I also get mostly useful results out of the methods provided by Freudian and Jungian psychology, those 2 schools of psychology Chetwynd focuses on here, and I know from experience that these do not achieve the desired results for everyone. Another thing I appreciate is Chetwynd clearly explaining many concepts in Jungian psychology I find confusing in Jung's own formulation. (as mentioned in my reviews here for ”The Portable Jung” and ”Man and His Symbols”, I find Jung's methods useful in practice but I don't always find his own explanations for why they work satisfying and he often uses very different language to describe them than I would myself)
I should mention that Chetwynd has a rather loose definition of ”symbol” extending it to motifs and narrative devices, concepts in psychology, even stock characters in literature. Several entries are devoted to explanations for Chetwynd's favourite literary works (e. g. Kenneth Grahame's ”The Wind in the Willows”) and his analysis of their central themes. There aren't anywhere as many illustrations as one might expect from title, quite a few people picking it up will probably be disappointed as a consequence.
As can be expected from an author who is a huge fan of C. G. Jung and his disciples, Chetwynd takes religion and occultism very seriously so he describes the various symbols' roles in different religious and occult traditions in great detail as well. The entries for alchemy, astrology, Kabbalah, Tarot, and so on function as concise and accessible introductions to those traditions. Chetwynd also takes great pleasure in citing all his sources, so I have gotten an impressive reading list out of him.
So why just 3 stars? Well, as befits a book relying on Freudian and Jungian psycho-analysis Chetwynd's ”Dictionary of Symbols” contains quite a few parts on sexual symbolism and human sexuality... and to be frank, his sexual politics baffle me. On one hand he sometimes describes homosexuality and unusual levels of nonconformity to gender roles as results of a dysfunctional relationship to the anima/animus... yet elsewhere he describes bi/pansexual and nonbinary people as having a more completely realised self than people who do not fall into any of those 2 categories. Since I am not a LGBT person I know I should tread carefully here, but the matter of fact is that I myself can't make heads or tails of where Chetwynd is going with this.
Bottom line: I found much of this book useful for dream analysis as well as making heads and tails of traditional occultism; the author's sexual politics, however, I do not understand at all so even I find it hit-and-miss. It is also near certain that people who have no use for Freudian and Jungian psycho-analysis will get much less out of this book than I did.
In his ”Dictionary of Symbols”, author Tom Chetwynd does not just Iist the meanings that particular symbols have in art, literature, religion etc throughout the course of human history. He also delineates the symbols' role in different psychological schools of thought and their methods for dream interpretation, to the point that Chetwynd starts with a ”how to use this book” introduction going through the basics of dream interpretation. Since I have rekindled my interest in dream interpretation over the course of 2021 as a result of suddenly having more weird and complicated dreams than typical, I have found these parts handy for getting a clear meaning out of my dreams. However, I also get mostly useful results out of the methods provided by Freudian and Jungian psychology, those 2 schools of psychology Chetwynd focuses on here, and I know from experience that these do not achieve the desired results for everyone. Another thing I appreciate is Chetwynd clearly explaining many concepts in Jungian psychology I find confusing in Jung's own formulation. (as mentioned in my reviews here for ”The Portable Jung” and ”Man and His Symbols”, I find Jung's methods useful in practice but I don't always find his own explanations for why they work satisfying and he often uses very different language to describe them than I would myself)
I should mention that Chetwynd has a rather loose definition of ”symbol” extending it to motifs and narrative devices, concepts in psychology, even stock characters in literature. Several entries are devoted to explanations for Chetwynd's favourite literary works (e. g. Kenneth Grahame's ”The Wind in the Willows”) and his analysis of their central themes. There aren't anywhere as many illustrations as one might expect from title, quite a few people picking it up will probably be disappointed as a consequence.
As can be expected from an author who is a huge fan of C. G. Jung and his disciples, Chetwynd takes religion and occultism very seriously so he describes the various symbols' roles in different religious and occult traditions in great detail as well. The entries for alchemy, astrology, Kabbalah, Tarot, and so on function as concise and accessible introductions to those traditions. Chetwynd also takes great pleasure in citing all his sources, so I have gotten an impressive reading list out of him.
So why just 3 stars? Well, as befits a book relying on Freudian and Jungian psycho-analysis Chetwynd's ”Dictionary of Symbols” contains quite a few parts on sexual symbolism and human sexuality... and to be frank, his sexual politics baffle me. On one hand he sometimes describes homosexuality and unusual levels of nonconformity to gender roles as results of a dysfunctional relationship to the anima/animus... yet elsewhere he describes bi/pansexual and nonbinary people as having a more completely realised self than people who do not fall into any of those 2 categories. Since I am not a LGBT person I know I should tread carefully here, but the matter of fact is that I myself can't make heads or tails of where Chetwynd is going with this.
Bottom line: I found much of this book useful for dream analysis as well as making heads and tails of traditional occultism; the author's sexual politics, however, I do not understand at all so even I find it hit-and-miss. It is also near certain that people who have no use for Freudian and Jungian psycho-analysis will get much less out of this book than I did.
March 26, 2021
Brilliant but NOT this edition - very small print
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews