Joseph Campbell's comparative studies in mythology revealed to him that culturally bred mythologies, despite their ethnic inflections, continually point to universal archetypes and a common human identity. Campbell's belief in the common human identity stems from his adherence to Carl Jung's mystical perspective on myth, where archetypes of the personal and collective unconscious help us understand humankind in the past, present and future. Myth, like art, Campbell believed, should be interpreted metaphorically, in terms of connotation instead of denotation. Failure to interpret myth poetically leads to religious, social, and political divisiveness. Examples of consequences of a literally interpreted mythology prevail in contemporary ethnic and global warring. This thesis examines the prominent themes in Campbell's alternative philosophy of mythology, and particularly the interpretation of some selected notions in Biblical mythology which, he suggests, have to be reviewed and re-interpreted metaphorically. With the collapse of cultural boundaries due to modernity, the world community needs a mythology for the whole planet. This thesis will discuss the serious implications for religious education of Campbell's hermeneutics of mythology.

No description available.

The Magus, by John Fowles, can be read as a modern re-telling of the traditional hero quest. The thesis attempts to explore all of the ways the novel compares to hero myths.

In this thesis I will be offering an analysis of C.G. Jung’s influence on the theoretical framework of the American comparative mythologist Joseph Campbell. My first main argument will be that Campbell underwent what I am calling a ‘Jungian turn’ around 1968: before this date he was vague and sometimes even dismissive about Jung, while after that date he became suddenly highly positive about Jung’s ideas (particularly about his concept of the archetype). My second main argument will be that this shift in attitude towards Jung occurred because Campbell’s interpretation of Jung changed. Before 1968 Campbell thought of Jung’s concept of the archetype as a ‘closed system’: a completely innate psychological structure that isn’t open to ‘imprinting’ by the environment in any way whatsoever. From 1968 onwards, however, he came to think of the archetype as the equivalent of a so-called ‘open innate-releasing mechanism’, which is the ethologist Konrad Lorenz’s term for a psychological structure that, although it has an innate component as well, is nevertheless open to ‘imprinting’ by the environment. As Campbell’s ideas prior to 1968 had been based on this concept, he realised that his own theoretical framework was compatible with Jung’s to a large extent. My final argument will be that the theoretical position which Campbell arrived at in the final phase of his career (which revolves around the concept of the open innate-releasing mechanism, but which has several other specific characteristics) is the same as the interpretation of Jung put forward by the scholar Anthony Stevens. As Stevens’ work is indisputably Jungian in nature, we might therefore draw the conclusion that it is possible to think of Campbell’s work as ‘Jungian’ in nature as well. However, as there are also some important differences between Campbell and Jung, I am arguing instead that we think of Campbell’s work in the final phase of his career as ‘post-Jungian’: this is the scholar Andrew Samuel’s term for a thinker who may not agree with Jung about every single issue, but whose work is still firmly rooted in his core ideas.

Note:

Thesis (MPhil)--University of Stellenbosch, 2006. / On title page: M.Phil in Ancient Cultures. Bibliography. Also available via the Internet.

"A Master's paper submitted to the faculty of the School of Information and Library Science of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Library Science." / Title from PDF title page (viewed on Apr. 25, 2006). "May 2004." Includes bibliographical references (p. 45-47).

We see the film like a reality because our perception of the film is like a reality around us. Movie as a dream and like a dream has unique tools how describe our soul and unconscious processes. This advantage is a crucial for my research, how can be useful for understanding how our unconscious works. C. G. Jung and Joseph Campbell and his work helps me with looking for the answer. How can film speak to us through the psychological layer instead of the narrative layer.

Thesis (MPhil (Ancient Studies)--University of Stellenbosch, 2006. / This thesis explores the Star Wars films in terms of C.G. Jung's theories on the archetypes and the collective unconscious, particularly as described by Joseph Campbell in his discussion of the journey of the mythic hero. In Chapter 1 short definitions of relevant terms such as “myth,” “the collective unconscious” and “archetypes” are given. Chapter 2 is a short discussion of four Jungian archetypes relevant to the topic, namely the Shadow, Guide, Mother, and Father. Chapter 3 focuses on the archetype of the Self and the psychological process of individuation as described by Jung, and its relation to the mythic hero and his journey. In Chapter 4 Star Wars is analysed in terms of the theoretical framework set out in Chapters 1-3. Chapter 5 is the concluding chapter, in which certain conclusions are made pertaining to the mythic character and psychological function of Star Wars, i.e., that the films contain elements that are mythic in character and may therefore perform the same psychological functions as myth. It is also argued that the popularity of Star Wars can therefore be ascribed to the same psychological reasons as the popularity of myth. Some attention is also given to possible further areas of study in this field, such as the mythic character of some other popular phenomena (for example Harry Potter or The Lord of the Rings) and the function of myth and modern mythic equivalents as a community-shaping factor in people’s lives.