From Sexual Instinct to Archetypal Longing: Women’s Psychological Development and the Erotic

Abstract

The split between Sigmund Freud and Carl G. Jung in 1913 hinged on Jung’s assertion that the libido was not solely sexual in nature. Preferring the broader term psychic energy, Jung did not deny the power of sexuality in psychology, but his focus shifted to burgeoning ideas around the collective unconscious, archetypes, individuation, and symbols. While Jung continued, at times, to imply libidinal aspects of the erotic, he left this work incomplete and ripe for study, especially with regard to a Jungian perspective on women’s sexuality. As such, this dissertation explores the nature of women’s erotic lives in their own words with a focus on how the erotic acts as a process and outcome of Jungian psychological work, on par with active imagination and dreams. As well, Jung’s notion of the instinct-to-archetype spectrum offers insight into a deeper understanding of the role of sexuality in individuation. This research explores erotic tension as a transcendent function to birth a new way of being for women, giving archetypal shape and meaning to the sexual instinct. The erotic realm is just one facet of a woman’s life and individuation, yet as it is both physical and spiritual, employing psychological work with the erotic offers a potent avenue for healing and wholeness.