The Art of Inquiry: A Depth-Psychological Perspective

by Joseph Coppin, Elizabeth Nelson

In this clear and readable book, the authors show that research guided by the soul is rich, passionate, and meaningful. Borrowing from their expertise as scholars and teachers, they blend philosophy and practice to describe what scholarly research undertaken from the perspective of the soul might look like and to account for the exceptional experience of psychological inquiry at its best. The third, expanded edition includes two new chapters. The new second chapter offers a basic introduction to depth psychology for thoughtful, inquisitive readers, one that follows its connections to myth, religion, and indigenous practices of healing. A new seventh chapter on deep writing explores qualities such as beauty, craft, the fluidity and precision of language, and soulful communion between author and reader. This edition also enlarges the scope of the conversation by including more expert voices, including philosophers, poets, and novelists as well as scholars of religion, anthropology, mythology, and neurobiology.

Genres: Psychology, Reference

364 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 11, 2005

Reviews

[Katrina · Rating 4 out of 5]

“The Art of Inquiry” is the first book I’ve read on depth psychology and I couldn’t have found it soon enough. I have felt intuitively pulled toward blending psychology with art and philosophy for a while now, and Coppin and Nelson’s work expanded my desire.

I was inspired not only because of its loving and holistic approach, but because it summarized quite eloquently so many ideas I’ve been playing around with in my own mind. I feel very seen by depth psychology, it’s like the budding voices of my psyche are gaining a voice.

This way of thinking is so counter productive to the capitalist way of gaining knowledge and competency that our current society rewards us for. There’s such a discomfort in belonging to a society that rewards domination, control, the performance of competence, etc etc. This book honored the discomfort I feel and articulated another way of being that feels spiritually uplifting and creatively inspiring.

What is “the art of inquiry”? It “relishes the pursuit of wisdom, more than the possession of it. It is the willingness to learn from everyone and everything by reflecting on other’s ideas without defensiveness. It is the ability to be deeply moved by what one sees, hears, and feels, accepting the full impact of living in complex emotional bodies” (Pg 148). This is just one description of what it means to live a life of psychological examination, but this body of work is littered with iterations and examples of similar themes. This is the kind of book that needs to be purchased and read with pagemarkers and pencils. I’m very happy to have my personally annotated copy on my bookshelf.

In retrospect, I wouldn’t have chosen this for my first book on depth psychology because a large chunk of it is geared toward researchers, which isn’t necessarily inapplicable, just not what I was looking for.

[Katrina Dreamer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is not nearly as in-depth as the Wounded Researcher and it talks about nearly all the same concepts, so for that reason I do not like it as much. However, I think it is probably more accessible to a wider audience.

[Flora]

pinhole perspective by necessity

psyche

myth of origin

anima/animus/shadow/light/historical figures- never deer

[Whysper · Rating 1 out of 5]

Inquiry is not an art. Useless.