Mid-Life Psychological Development:
Myth as Mentor
Friday, April 16, 10:00am–4:00pm

Stephen Aizenstat and Maren Hansen
Joseph Campbell publicly expressed gratitude to his students at Sarah Lawrence for consistently asking him: how does myth relate to life? Campbell taught us that myth simultaneously speaks both to an external reality and the inner life.

In this workshop, Stephen Aizenstat and Maren Hansen will share their dynamic process through which carefully selected myths address us in the depth psychological experiences of mid-life. Through guided processes, our personal challenges will actively dialogue with our mythic mentors. Imagine what Hecate or Gilgamesh might teach us that will enhance the journey through the second half of life.
Jung defined this second half of life as a time of spiritual concerns. Mid-life ushers in a host of depth psychological issues. As the biological orientation toward procreation fades, as career and/or family building no longer consumes our libido, and as the ego becomes more firmly established, the psyche turns toward concerns about the meaning of life. With aging bodies, we face our mortality. With death in the field of vision comes a clarifying of our purpose, our relationships, our life path. Through dialogue with selected myths, we can receive the collective wisdom and experience of our ancestors regarding these mid-life challenges.

Joseph Campbell at the Movies
Friday, April 16, 10:00am–4:00pm

Phil Cousineau
Joseph Campbell is well known for his contributions to mythological studies. His work has helped millions of readers to envision the role of the mythic imagination in literature, religion, and psychology. But less well known is his enormous influence in the modern storyteller's cave of the movies. In this workshop we will explore Campbell's relationship to film, including the movie stars that influenced him as a boy, such as Charlie Chaplin and Douglas Fairbanks; his role as President of Maya Deren's Creative Film Foundation in New York in the early 1950s; and his later impact on directors such as Stanley Kubrick, George Miller, and George Lucas.

Through film clips, animated anecdotes, and open discussion, we will explore the mythic structure of movies, the use and abuse of archetypes, the role of dream in movie-making, and the phenomenal popularity in Hollywood of the model of the hero's journey. Finally, we will discuss the protean reasons behind the titanic popularity of such recent worldwide hits as Whale Rider, The Matrix, and The Lord of the Rings.