Understanding Jung Understanding Yourself

by Peter O'Connor

First published in 1985 this was the first introduction to Jung which related his theories to our everyday lives. Discover through this highly readable book that Jung’s views provide a full understanding of the concerns and anxieties of today. Sigmund Freud spoke to the generations who experienced the anxiety of sexual guilt and repression. Carl Jung speaks to our generation, who seek self-knowledge and a deeper understanding of life. This book outlines Jung’s theories and how we experience them in our personal relationships, marriages and dreams. It describes Jung’s eight psychological types and his thinking on the Self, alchemy, archetypes and the collective unconscious. Imperative for those who wish to gain insight into Jung and their own psyche.

Genres: Psychology

196 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 1986

Reviews

[Millie M · Rating 3 out of 5]

found this lying around the house. it’s very dated but i enjoyed learning about jung’s theories

[kayla · Rating 3 out of 5]

As the writer states many times, this book is a basic overview on concepts put forward by Jung.

It would be impossible to dive into any one concept in great detail due to the length of this book compared to Jung’s works.

I did find it interesting, though, seeing as I don’t know much about Carl. I enjoyed the chapter on the Collective Unconscious and plan to drive deeper in the future.

The chapter on marriage was interesting but not one of Jung’s major concepts so it seemed like it was more for the writers sake than the readers... still good.


The section on dreams was far to surface level, but as mentioned above, that would have taken an entire book to fully explain and question.

[Thomas Cullum · Rating 5 out of 5]

My review may be skewed as it was my first introduction to Jung's work but I found this a great book and the authors intention of leaving the reader hungry for more was successful

[William Schram · Rating 4 out of 5]

In "Understanding Jung, Understanding Yourself" by Peter A. O'Connor the author explores the teachings and writings of Carl Gustav Jung and how they can be applied to our lives. The book is really short and easy to read. While it might seem from the chapter titles that it goes into more detail or maybe is a really short anthology of Jung's works, that is not quite the case. O'Connor has chosen select snippets and samples from various writings of Jung but doesn't really include any complete texts. In that sense, this is a great introduction to Jung's writings.

There is a guide for further reading at the back of the book. I might look into some more of them if I can find them.