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abandoned object cathexis:
the detachment of interest from an object (i.e., a particular person) which was previously invested with importance
anima:
the feminine component of the psyche
animus:
the masculine component of the psyche
anthropomorphic:
ascribing human characteristics to a thing or being that is not human, such as a building, an animal, or a deity
archetypal:
relating to the archetypes
See: archetype
archetype:
a recurring symbolic theme, common to all cultures and transcending the boundaries of time and space
NOTE: Archetypes are irrepressible, unconscious, pre-existing forms that seem to be part of the inherited structure of the psyche and can manifest themselves spontaneously anywhere, at any time (e.g., spirals, the Tree of Life, the serpent)
cathexis:
a term introduced by Freud to refer to the investment of psychic energy that one has in an inner or outer object (i.e., in a person, thing, or idea); from the Greek kathexis, ⇒ holding, retention
collective unconscious:
Jung's term for the that dimension of the unconscious which is common to humankind in general. It is made up of the archetypes, those typical modes of perception and apprehension which are loosely rooted in the instincts. Through the collective unconscious we are predisposed to experience life and to react to life events in typically human ways.
complexes:
aggregates of images, impressions, and ideas that are held together by a common feeling-tone. One's father-complex, for instance, is made up of the cluster of associations one has with respect to one's father, in particular, as well as to the theme, "father," more generally. In Jung's view, complexes may acquire a degree of autonomy, functioning as sub-personalities within the psyche of the individual. Dreams present the complexes in personified form.
epistemology:
the field of study concerned with the origins, nature, and limits of human knowledge
epistrophé:
reversion through likeness; from a Neoplatonic idea which holds that all phenomena may be reflectively led back to a universal theme or archetypal model
epistrophic:
relating to, dealing with, or containing epistrophé
See: epistrophé
eschatological:
relating to or dealing with eschatology
See: eschatoloty
eschatology:
a theological term referring to doctrines or speculative thought concerning last things or final matters such as death, the last judgement, the afterlife, the end of the world
hermeneutics:
the science of interpretation, concerned primarily with the principles by which texts, such as the Bible or the that of a dream, may be elucidated
hyper-cathected:
invested with an excess or surplus of psychic or emotional energy
See: cathexis
imaginatio vera:
alchemical term for the "true imagination" as opposed to the imaginatio fantastica or "false imagination"
introjection:
a psychoanalytic term referring to the process by which the functions of an external object (i.e., of another person) become taken up internally into an inner mental representation.
Lamarckian:
of or relating to the now-discredited evolutionary theory of Jean Baptiste Lamarck, which holds that acquired characteristics, such as the work-enlarged hands of one's cobbler father, may be inherited.
metapsychology:
a term coined by Freud to refer to psychological theory at its most abstract or speculative level.
mundus imaginalis:
lit. "imaginal world" — a term introduced by Henry Corbin to designate a third area or world composed of archetypal figures located between the realm of the intelligibles (apprehended by the mind ) and the empirical world (perceived with the senses). The adjective "imaginal" (introduced into psychology from Corbin by way of Hillman) usefully distinguishes visionary imagination from our usual notion of "the imaginary" as something fictitious, illusory, or false.
mythopoeic:
pertaining to the making of myths or mythological poetry; causing, creating, or giving rise to myth
narcissism:
a psychoanaltyic term referring to a person's self-structure, self-image, self-esteem; from Narcissus, a character in Greek mythology who spurns the love of others but falls in love with his own reflection seen in a pool
narcissistic cathexis:
an investment of one's psychic energies in oneself
See: narcissism
See: cathexis
ontological:
relating to or dealing with ontology
See: ontology
ontology
the branch of philosophy that is concerned with the nature of being or of existence as such; used here to convey Jung's notion of psychic reality and of the primacy of psychic existence
projection:
the unwitting attribution of unconscious aspects of one's own personality or behaviour patterns to others
selfobject:
a term introduced by Heinz Kohut to refer to people who play significant roles in the development and maintenance of one's self-esteem.
thanatocentric:
term coined by the author meaning "revolving around or centred on death"
thanatology:
the study or science of death and dying; from Thanatos, the ancient Greek personification of death.
theophany:
the manifestation or appearance of a god to a human subject
transference:
a psychological process wherein one displaces feelings, ideas, or impressions belonging to a past relationship onto a current relationship
transpersonal:
beyond the contingencies of personalistic, biographical psychology; used here as a synonym for "universal" and "archetypal"
wish-psychosis:
a pathological state of mind in which wishes are realized in an hallucinatory or delusional way, not just in dreams but in the waking state as well
mysterium tremendum:
a term used by Rudolf Otto to indicate the uncanny, overwhelming emotions that may accompany religious or mystical experiences