Abstract
Carl Gustav Jung changed the way of thinking about the person, the conscious and the unconscious. According to Jung, every person carries a shadow and the less it is embodied in the individual’s conscious life, the denser it is. Shame is viewed as an intense, “soul eating” emotion which can impact negatively on the individual. Caroline Myss has developed a therapeutical concept to work with Jung’s archetypes in individual therapy from a positive psychology perspective. The question addressed in this chapter is how shame can be transformed from shadow into light, from the unconscious into consciousness. The aim of this chapter is to present a selected single case study on a therapeutical process working with shame, shadow and archetypal psychology in an individual and group process. Findings show that shame can be transformed through therapeutical work from a “soul eating” into a “soul feeding” emotion.
Keywords
Open your heart and listen
to what your dreams tell you.
Follow those dreams,
because only a person
who is not ashamed
can manifest the glory of God.
(Coelho 1992, 138)
Shame is a soul eating emotion. Shame is one of the scars of trauma, but shame shrinks as healing grows.
C.G. Jung
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.
Buying options
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Learn about institutional subscriptionsNotes
- 1.
See the Chap. 11 of Mrigaya Sinha in this book.
- 2.
The name has been changed to ensure anonymity and confidentiality.
- 3.
This relates to all the information provided during the group sessions with regard to archetypes, shadow work and astrology. The information referring to these aspects in the findings is all based on the participant observation and field notes from the group process as well as on information taken from collateral talks and interviews. Therefore, it might not be objectively correct when compared with the original sources provided above.
References
Behrendt, H., & Ben-Ari, R. (2012). The positive side of negative emotion: The role of guilt and shame in coping with interpersonal conflict. Journal of Conflict Resolution, 56(6), 1116–1138.
Bryman, A., Stephen, M., & Campo, C. (1996). The importance of context: Qualitative research and the study of leadership. Leadership Quarterly, 7, 353–370.
Flick, U. (2009). Sozialforschung. Methoden und Anwendungen. Reinbek bei Hamburg: Rowohlt Enzyklopädie.
Gamber, P. (2014). Familientherapie für Dummies. Weinheim: WILEY-VCH Verlag Gmbh.
Hall, J. A. (1989). Jung: Interpreting your dreams—A guidebook to Jungian dream philosophy and psychology. New York: St. Martin’s Press.
Harper, J. M., & Hoopes, M. H. (1990). Uncovering shame: Integrating individuals with their family systems. New York: W.W. Norton.
Jacoby, M. (2002). Shame and the origins of self esteem. A Jungian approach. New York: Taylor and Francis.
Jung, C. G. (1917). The psychology of the unconscious. Coll weeks, 7.
Jung, C. G. (1968). Commentary on the secret of the golden flower. In M. Fordham, G. Adler, & W. McGuire (Eds.), The collected works of C.G. Jung (pp. 12–101) (R.F.C. Hull, Trans.). Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
Jung, C. G. (1971a). Aion. In J. Campbell (Ed.), The portable Jung (pp. 139–162) (R.F.C. Hull, Trans.). New York: Penguin Books.
Jung, C. G. (1971b). Psychological types. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
Jung, C. G. (1976). Symbols and the interpretation of dreams, CW (Vol. 18). Princeton: Princeton University Press.
Jung, C. G. (1989). Nietzsches Zarathustra: Notes of the Seminar given in 1934–1939 by C.G. Jung. London: Routledge.
Jung, C. G. (2009). The Red Book. Liber Novus: A reader’s edition. Edited and with an introduction by Sonu Shamdasani. London: W.W. Norton.
Lee, R. G., & Wheeler, G. (2013). The voice of shame: Silence and connection in psychotherapy. San Francisco: Gestalt Press.
Maxwell, J. A. (2012). Qualitative research design: An interactive approach (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks: Sage.
Mayer, C.-H. (2011). The meaning of sense of coherence in transcultural management. Münster: Waxmann.
Mayer, C.-H., & Viviers, A. (2014a). “Following the word of God’: Empirical insights into managerial perceptions on spirituality, culture and health. In C.-H. Mayer & D. Geldenhuys (Eds.), Spirituality, culture and health in management. Special Issue, International Review of Psychiatry (Vol. 26, no. 3, pp. 302–314).
Mayer, C.-H., & Viviers, A. (2014b). “I still believe…” Reconstructing spirituality, culture and mental health across cultural divides. In C.-H. Mayer & D. Geldenhuys (Eds.), Spirituality, culture and health in management. Special Issue, International Review of Psychiatry (Vol. 26, no. 3, pp. 265–278).
Myss, C. (2002). Sacred contracts: Awakening your divine potential. Reading: Bantam Books.
Myss, C. (2015). The archetypal wheel. http://www.myss.com/free-resources/sacred-contracts-and-your-archetypes/the-archetypal-wheel. Accessed 21 September 2015.
Myss, C., & Shealy, C. N. (1993). The creation of health: The emotional, psychological, and spiritual responses that promote health and healing. New York: Three Rivers Press.
O’Reilly, K. (2012). Ethnographic returning: Qualitative longitudinal research and the reflexive analysis of social practice. Sociological Review, 60, 518–536.
Page, S. (1999). The shadow and the counsellor: Working with darker aspects of the person, role and profession. London: Routledge.
Patton, M. Q. (2002). Qualitative research and evaluation methods (3rd ed.). London: Sage.
Perry, C. (2015). The shadow: The Society of Analytical Psychology. Jungian analysis and psychotherapy. http://www.thesap.org.uk/the-shadow. Accessed 21 September 2015.
Ruiz, D. M. (2011). The four agreements. A practical guide to personal freedom: A Toltec Wisdom Book. San Rafael, California: Amber-Allen.
Stein, M. (2003). Jung’s map of the soul: An introduction (5th ed.). Peru, Illinois: Carus.
Terre Blanche, M., Durrheim, K., & Kelly, K. (2006). First steps in qualitative data analysis. In M. Terre Blanche, K. Durrheim & D. Painter (Eds.), Research in practice: Applied methods for the social sciences (pp. 321–344). Cape Town: University of Cape Town.
Wang, X. (2012). The construction of researcher—Researched relationships in school ethnography: Doing research, participating in the field and reflecting on ethical dilemmas. International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education, 26, 763–779.
Yin, R. K. (2008). Case study research: Design and methods. Thousand Oaks, California: Sage.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2017 Springer International Publishing AG
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Mayer, CH. (2017). Shame—“A Soul Feeding Emotion”: Archetypal Work and the Transformation of the Shadow of Shame in a Group Development Process. In: Vanderheiden, E., Mayer, CH. (eds) The Value of Shame. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-53100-7_12
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-53100-7_12
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-53099-4
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-53100-7
eBook Packages: Behavioral Science and PsychologyBehavioral Science and Psychology (R0)